Liaw Wy-Cin, Straits Times 21 Jun 08;
SINGAPORE is a city-state which epitomises the urban planner's biggest challenges.
From how to provide for growth while keeping the place green, to how to overcome scarcities of land, water and other resources, the Republic has found innovative ways to respond to many of these challenges.
It is therefore fitting that more than 6,000 government officials, scientists, industry experts and businessmen from across the world will be meeting here next week to study how to keep cities sustainable.
They will discuss and try to find ways to make cities more liveable at a time when population growth and economic progress are putting pressure on the world's resources.
To help them figure out how to get there, two inaugural events will be held - the Singapore International Water Week and the World Cities Summit. Both events are being held for the first time and Singapore is organising both.
Mr Michael Toh, 40, the general manager of the water conference, said one inspiration for the event was Singapore's award-winning water success story.
In 40 years, this nation has raised its number of water sources from two to four. They are: imported water, water from the country's reservoirs, treated used water and desalinated water.
The star in this success story is technology, which is being tapped to treat used and sea water.
Mr Toh said: 'We wanted this event to be a platform to showcase our technologies to the world, to share with other countries how we solved our water problems and to help them solve theirs as well.'
The theme for the water event, organised by national water agency PUB, is Sustainable Water Solutions For Cities.
The cities summit, organised by the Ministry of National Development, the Civil Service College and the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, will bear the theme Liveable And Vibrant Cities.
Under the wings of these two big events are more than 20 international high-level meetings and workshops, including a conference with a special focus on East Asia.
The buzz word at these meetings will certainly be 'sustainability', short form for how nations can attain economic prosperity without straining the world's resources.
The global escalation of oil and food prices in the past few months has made the need for the judicious use of scarce resources even more pressing, so this will certainly also come under the spotlight at next week's discussions.
Although most of the event's sessions will involve government officials, businessmen, scientists and industry experts, some activities will be tailored for students and the public.
Policymakers will largely be involved in meetings to discuss the challenges of growing urban populations.
Academics and industry experts will be tied up in a conference on water and used-water treatment technologies; they will also be drawn to a trade show on water-related products and services as well as seven business forums.
Mr Toh said these will serve as a marketplace for 'buyers and sellers to come together to see what water technologies are available'.
The trade show will be open to the public on Thursday, he said.
Environment groups will have their own area of interest in the proceedings.
As Singapore develops and as the Government opens up more nature areas to the public for recreational purposes, the Waterways Watch Society, for example, hopes the protection of reservoirs and rivers will be discussed.
Its chairman, MrEugene Heng, 59, said: 'There has to be proper awareness and education for all the users because, unfortunately, people create litter and this may pollute the waterways.'
In the World Cities Summit, one area of urban planning to be discussed will be how to make cities happier and more satisfying places to live in.
Cities summit delegate Rajendra Kumar, 38, the deputy general manager at the reserve bank of India and who is now doing a master's degree at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, said he hopes to take some lessons back with him to India, where waves of rural folk are migrating to the cities.
'This puts a lot of strain on housing, the provision of water, sanitation, transport and infrastructure,' he added.
The president of non-profit organisation Eco-Singapore, Mr Wilson Ang, 26, hopes conference delegates will explore setting up funds to develop a regional centre of expertise on sustainable city planning.
'This way, more research and development can go into supporting countries keen on making their cities more sustainable,' he said.
Among the events planned are forums and a concert for the delegates, featuring Tan Dun, the composer of the Oscar-winning score of the Chinese film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
The works, Water Concerto and Crouching Tiger Concerto, will be performed at the Esplanade Concert Hall by the Singapore Festival Orchestra.
The Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize, an international award that honours an individual or organisation for contributions to solving the world's water woes, will also be given out.
Local pop maestro Dick Lee has been roped in as the creative director of the gala prize-giving ceremony. He also wrote the theme song for the water week, which will debut at the ceremony.
Another highlight: an energetic three-night performance by Dutch theatre troupe The Lunatics at Bedok Reservoir, which started yesterday.
The Marina Bay area will be turned into a field for canoe polo matches and a stage for water ski performances.
At the Science Centre, an exhibition on water and how it shapes ecosystems around the world opened last month and will be on until October.
Water meet to get ideas to flow across divides
Tania Tan, Straits Times 21 Jun 08;
WHEN Singapore's national water agency, the PUB, won the prestigious Stockholm Industry Water Award - the Nobel equivalent in water industry circles - last year, it was like a splash of cold water on a tired, distracted world.
Suddenly, this water-scarce nation found itself a little spring of ideas on how to tackle some of the most pressing water issues facing the world.
The PUB did not stop there. It decided a follow-up act was called for. This gave rise to the inaugural Singapore International Water Week, which officially kicks off next Tuesday.
More than 5,000 heads of government, research and industry will be in town to discuss water issues during the four-day event, which took 15 months of planning by the PUB.
'The event will not only allow Singapore to share with the water industry its experiences, but also bring together experts from around the world to share their views and brainstorm practical solutions,' said PUB chief executive Khoo Teng Chye.
Leaders from over 70 countries will be in town to discuss policy, make deals and check out Singapore's own water successes.
They have much to discuss: International finance institution, the Asian Development Bank, estimates that 700 million people in the region lack access to safe water. About two billion lack access to basic sanitation facilities.
Strong global economic growth, population pressures and increased urbanisation have dovetailed to sharply increase water use. Pollution and climate change put further strain on resources, he added.
A report by the United Nations Environment Programme predicted that the escalating burden of water demand will become 'intolerable in water-scarce countries' within the next few decades.
Such issues are also discussed at conferences, like the annual symposiums by the Stockholm International Water Institute and the biennial International Water Association (IWA) conference, but on different playing fields - either by industry or policymakers.
With such established events around the world, Singapore's water summit had to 'carve out a niche for itself', said Mr Khoo.
That involved bringing leaders 'across the water cycle' together under one roof.
Programmes and seminars were designed to cater to a wider audience of industry and non-industry types, said Singapore International Water Week managing director Michael Toh.
'We want everyone in one place to get them on the same page when it comes to water problems in the region,' he said.
'Partnerships and innovation must be at the centre of addressing water problems,' said Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs director-general for enterprise and innovation Renee Bergkamp, who will speak next week.
Having the chance to speak to regional policymakers, and industry players is a 'unique chance', said Associate Professor Vladan Babovic, director of the Singapore- Delft Water Alliance. He will attend the conference next week.
Running since 1991, the Stockholm institute's World Water Week focuses on water management and policy, while the IWA meeting traditionally brings together technological stalwarts and companies, he noted.
Conferences are often tailored to either policy or industry players, preventing 'fluid communication' between parties, said Prof Babovic, who is also with the National University of Singapore engineering faculty.
'It's easy for either party to get lost if they're not experts in these events - it prevents good solutions from being achieved,' he said.
Added Mr Toh: 'We are not suggesting we have the perfect answer, only that we can help matchmake solutions to problems.'
