Opinion Pieces

June 24, 2020
On June 11, Beijing reported a new outbreak of coronavirus after 56 days of “zero new cases”. After the infections were confirmed, the government swung into action.… Read More

June 12, 2020
COVID-19 has exposed the ills and virtues of local communities, national systems, and global regimes when it comes to food.… Read More

June 8, 2020
COVID-19 will unquestionably delay achievement of the SDGs, the latest global attempt to improve the quality of life of billions of people around the world by 2030.… Read More

May 21, 2020
COVID-19’s origin has become a political issue, but this should not prevent governments from learning from China’s response to the crisis.… Read More

May 19, 2020
How and where the novel coronavirus originated has now become a highly debated political issue. But this should not preclude learning from the good practices of countries that are emerging from the global public health crisis.… Read More

May 11, 2020
Megatrends are reshaping the world as we know it. Urbanisation, demographic and social change, resource scarcity and pollution, climate change, mass migration, technological breakthroughs, globalisation, and shifts in global economic and political power are some of the forces that are impacting the lives of billions of people due to their ‘global reach, broad scope and fundamental and dramatic impact.’
… Read More

May 4, 2020
The Covid-19 crisis is drawing attention to respiratory health, and in cities with severe air pollution, people may be more vulnerable to the virus. While the world is focused on crisis mitigation, it is important not to lose sight of recurring challenges such as air pollution and environmental degradation.
… Read More

April 30, 2020
COVID-19 and its unintended environmental impacts have been discussed at length. While there have been immediate gains, such as lower greenhouse emissions and improved air quality in numerous cities, much more remains to be done to improve the state of the natural environment in the long term.… Read More

March 27, 2020
Singapore is very fortunate as the entire population has access to clean water, soap and handwashing facilities. But are these actually used by individuals and by food handlers, whether in hawker centres or fancy restaurants? Anecdotal information indicates this is often not the case.… Read More