Climate change, societal polarisation, population ageing, city maintenance,
tightening land-use pressures – these are trends that we can anticipate for our city and our city-state,
the “known unknowns”. But in an increasingly volatile and uncertain world,
we also need to prepare for the “unknown unknowns”. COVID-19 is one example.
As Minister Ong put it, it is a “reset button”, forcing us to re-think the way we do things.
How we will live, work, play, travel, or see a doctor, in this “new normal”?
Will we need so much office and retail space, as more work and shop from home?
Do our neighbourhoods need more community co-working areas?
How can we make “rush hours” a thing of the past?
Innovation is borne out of crises. And the pandemic is a chance for us to do things better
and smarter, as we design our future city. We need to prepare for different possibilities,
by planning for greater flexibility in our city. For instance, we may need to safeguard land
to stockpile and produce essential materials during supply disruptions,
or set aside flexible “white spaces” for emergency use. This may mean that we can’t maximise all our
available land now, but it will help us build resilience for future challenges. Recognising
the many uncertainties we face, we will develop long-term plans that will preserve flexibility
and optionality for the future, for instance, through our ongoing Long-Term Plan Review.
These are some of the many things we’re doing to prepare for the future of our city.
If we put them together, what kind of Singapore might we see? We could see a
city that celebrates diversity – Where we find joy in our commonalities, and make space for
our differences? Where we are brought closer together through common spaces that we build together?
We could see a city that is more inclusive – designed for people with different needs and
abilities – not as an afterthought or a retrofit, but from the outset, with intentionality and heart.
Schools, homes, streets, and parks with people-centred designs, based on lived experiences.
We could see a city in harmony with nature – not just decorated with gardens and landscapes,
but living with nature as it is, in all its beauty and majesty.
We could see a climate-ready city, where sustainability becomes a way of life.
And perhaps, even going beyond a sustainable city that minimises damage to the environment,
to a restorative one that heals the damage caused, and one day,
to a regenerative city – one that does more for the environment than it might take away.
We could see a digitally enabled, globally connected city that only serves as home –
not just connected, but a connector – a hub for trade in goods and services, but also digital
flows and the exchange of skills and ideas. Yet through all our reinvention,
we should also see a city rooted in its memories and in its heritage – where our history will be chronicled not just in
books, but also in our buildings and landscapes – which are not conserved as empty monuments,
but given fresh leases of life, respectful of the memories of these buildings.
We could see a society that cares even more. A close-knit community
that uplifts each other, especially those who need more support.
What do we need, to achieve our vision of our future city?
There are many things that we need to do. But I will just spend the next few moments
to highlight three important elements among others – trust, stewardship, and collective action.
First, a community of trust. City planning involves hard decisions – balancing competing
interests, across time and space. There are no perfect solutions, and we will all need to
make some compromises, including tough ones. In such situations, trust becomes key.
When we share our views, do we trust that we will be heard?
Do we trust that those who disagree with us love this city as much as we do,
so that we can try to find common ground? And when decisions are made,
do we trust that they are made in our best shared interests, considering all perspectives?
Trust doesn’t mean we always have to agree, but it means we must believe
that despite our disagreements, we always have the interests of our city at heart.
Fostering this takes hard work. There will be stumbles along the way, and it
only comes with building deep relationships over time.
The second element we need is stewardship. Our land is a precious resource –
we must steward it with care. This means thinking long-term, because our city is not just for us,
but for our children and their children to come. This is what our forefathers did for us.
Their long-term vision gave us iconic features of our city,
such as Changi Airport, Marina Bay, and our MRT networks, which have took many years to fulfil.
Yet they also set aside swathes of land for us. We are using these for bold
urban transformation plans which I've spoke about a little earlier.
As these plans are realised, they will create new and interesting spaces for the next
generation – who will, in turn, pursue their own rejuvenation plans and shape the city – the vision that they aspire to.
So let’s take good care of our city and our environment today as stewards, so that future generations have space for their dreams too.
The third and final element is collective action. Open conversations like the ones
at this conference are important. Yet, beyond discussion and ideation, let us also take action.
Roll up our sleeves, and work together. This is what the Singapore Together movement
seeks to achieve. All of us have a part to play, in the future of our society and our city-state.
So if I may put this question to all of us here: as we reflect on the insights from this conference,
what is one thing that we will do to contribute to this city we call home? How can we partner you?
Let me conclude. We only have one city, and we must make the most of it, now and into the future.
There are significant challenges ahead of us, some of them existential – climate change,
the possible fragmentation of our society, and potential future pandemics. But we have started
preparing for the trends coming our way, and if we continue to work well together – bound by trust,
adopting a mindset of stewardship, and taking collective action – then I am confident that we are better placed
to achieve our vision of a better Singapore.