Berita Harian

This was a report on a lecture by Dr Mohd Faizal Musa which was held on 9 May 2015, titled “Ideals of Excellence versus Ideals of Destruction”. The lecture is part of the Al-Bustan lecture series organised by the Department of Malay Studies of the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences and the event was held at the Malay Heritage Centre. Dr Faizal, a Research Fellow from the Institute of the Malay World and Civilization at the National University of Malaysia who surveyed Malay historiography, literary texts and classical Malay proverbs, examined the “Ideals of Excellence versus Ideals of Destruction” concept introduced by the late Professor Syed Hussein Alatas, to discuss the humanistic, universal and Islamic values which can be found in these narratives.

The Straits Times                                                               

In today’s edition of The Straits Times, there was an article contribution by Professor Lily Kong and Professor James Sidaway from the Department of Geography at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences on spaces for the dead, where urban planners often have to balance the needs of the dead and the needs of the living. The authors discussed about land scarcity in Singapore, which has led to cremations and columbaria replacing burial grounds to house the dead, as well as “eco-friendly” alternatives like sea burials, scatter burials and woodland burials.

Prof Kong and Prof Sidaway noted that in many cultures, dead bodies and their ashes are associated with pollution rather than purity and that this in essence lies at the heart of objections to locating any facility related to death in proximity to the living. They opined that while death relates to the strongest human emotions which are intensely personal, practical issues relating to what happens to the deceased also reflect wider social, economic, political and cultural predicaments.

To read the full article, click here.

The Straits Times

In an interview with Straits Times Razor TV, Prof Jean Yeung from the Department of Sociology and Director of the Centre for Family and Population Research (CFPR), shares her views on Singapore’s low fertility rate.

To watch the interview, click here.

The Straits Times

This was an article contribution by Professor Jonathan Rigg from the Department of Geography at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, as well as Ms Hanna Ruszczyk, and Ms Katie Oven, who are from Durham University in the United Kingdom. The authors shared their ground observations of Nepal’s earthquake preparedness during their visit to the country before the major earthquake occurred on 25 April 2015. They also shared email excerpts containing observations of the ground situation after the earthquake. The authors opined that even following this earthquake, there will be many who will see Nepal’s major challenges as developmental and that integrating disaster preparedness into the mainstream of government and development work will only be slightly easier than it was before the earthquake.

Click here to read the full article.

Berita Harian

This was a report on an event titled CITA-SISWARA organised by the Department of Malay Studies at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, together with the NUS Malay Language Society, in which Postdoctoral Fellow Dr Noorman Abdullah from the Department of Malay Studies discussed how Singapore’s history is shaped by various key historical figures.

The Straits Times

This was a report on the launch of the Centre for Family and Population Research (CFPR), a new research centre under the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, Ms Grace Fu, launched the new research centre at its inaugural conference titled “Singapore Families and Population Dynamics”. In her speech, Ms Fu said the issues that CFPR will study include healthcare needs in an ageing Asia and shifting social needs. Speaking at the event, NUS President Professor Tan Chorh Chuan noted that the new centre is well positioned to contribute to the understanding of the population challenges facing Singapore.

CFPR is helmed by Professor Jean Yeung from the Department of Sociology at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. The new centre will focus on research in areas such as managing family stress, fertility, ageing and health. Yesterday’s opening was held in conjunction with the centre’s inaugural conference, which discussed issues such as the impact of mobile technology on communication between parents and their children, and how government policy shapes the circumstances and choices of single parent and low-income families.