Joint forum provides platform for discourse on social change and community engagement
SINGAPORE – Building and sustaining healthy and liveable cities goes beyond improving the physical infrastructure, it also has much to do with creating a quality living environment, say communication and environment experts today at the forum on “Social Change and Community Engagement for Healthy and Liveable Cities”.
The quality infrastructure conducive for work, living and play that exists in Singapore may be testament to decades of careful urban planning and judicious public policies, but developing healthy and liveable cities goes beyond that. Such cities are founded on a quality living environment, which requires an active citizenry and a strong sense of community ownership towards issues pertaining to our urban lifestyle and community living. That is why public engagement through the use of effective communication strategies and building alliances are crucial in bringing about positive social change and improvements to urban living.
Bringing together key stakeholders
Jointly organised by the Centre for Liveable Cities (CLC), Health Promotion Board (HPB), and National Environment Agency (NEA), the forum recognises the need to take an inter-sectoral approach to achieving effective community engagement, and to building strategic alliances with the various key stakeholders. These include policy makers, town councils (TCs), Community Development Councils (CDCs), civil society, academia, and the private sector.
“Unlike other cities in the region that are grappling with more fundamental issues such as the lack of access to basic sanitation and clean water, one of our biggest challenges is in nurturing a civic-conscious society to realise our transformation to a world-class city”, says Mr Andrew Tan, Director of the CLC.
Agreeing, Dr Amy Khor, Mayor of South West District and Guest-of-Honour added that “it is not just about the physical infrastructure and environment but also the social graciousness and behaviour of its citizens that contributes to the soul and ambience of the city”.
In line with the call for more community engagement, the Forum also saw communication experts from both local and overseas exchanging valuable insights on strategic communications with regards to social development issues and behavioural impact. Guest speaker Dr Everold Hosein, a Senior Communication Advisor-Consultant with the World Health Organization, for instance, shared with the 300-strong audience his views on social change and human behaviour. Dr Hosein has 30 years of experience in strategic communications, and he was the one who developed the COMBI (Communication for Behavioural Impact) approach, a planning methodology which offers a dynamic approach to achieving behavioural results in social development.
The HPB and NEA, two key government agencies involved extensively in community engagement and outreach, also shared their respective agencies’ experience and strategies. During the Forum, Mr Tan Wee Hock, Director of NEA’s 3P Network Division, also highlighted the importance of fostering greater ownership in every individual to meet the challenges in sustaining a clean and green environment. He offered insights into NEA’s success in developing programmes to engage and empower the 3P (People, Public and Private) partners to play their part in caring for the environment.
Indeed, forming strategic partnerships with key stakeholders is valued by many agencies. Mr Robin Chua, HPB’s Deputy Director for Corporate Partnership Management, for instance, also spoke on the Board’s approach in building tactical alliances to make Singapore a healthier city. He provided an interesting perspective on HPB’s partnership framework and strategies, and cited examples of alliances with both the private and public sectors in supporting HPB's efforts in building a healthy city.
The Forum discussed wide-ranging issues covering environmental ownership, social graciousness, anti-social behaviour like littering, public hygiene standards, as well as efforts to promote greater personal and community responsibility through more effective public outreach and education. The highlight of the morning is the panel session moderated by Mr Andrew Tan, during which the speakers and audience engage in active discussion.
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About the Centre for Liveable Cities
The Centre for Liveable Cities is a policy-oriented centre established by the Ministry of National Development and the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources in June 2008.
It brings together Singapore’s expertise on sustainable urban development in the areas of good governance, urban planning, effective resource management, quality living environment and integrated transport solutions. The Centre facilitates the sharing of knowledge and best practices among cities in the region and globally.
About the Health Promotion Board
Established in 2001, the Health Promotion Board (HPB) has a vision to build a nation of healthy and happy people. HPB is the main driver for national health promotion and disease prevention programmes.
Although residents in Singapore today enjoy good health with high life expectancy and low mortality rates, HPB aims to further improve health status to enable residents to continue to enjoy good health as they age. Targetted programmes for children, adults and the elderly are implemented to increase the quality and years of healthy life and prevent illness, disability and premature death
For more information on HPB and its programmes, kindly visit www.hpb.gov.sg.
About the National Environment Agency
Formed on 1 July 2002, the National Environment Agency (NEA) is the leading public organization responsible for improving and sustaining a clean and green environment in Singapore. The NEA develops and spearheads environmental initiatives and programmes through its partnership with the People, Public and Private sectors. It is committed to motivating every individual to take up environmental ownership and to care for the environment as a way of life.
By protecting Singapore's resources from pollution, maintaining a high level of public health and providing timely meteorological information, the NEA endeavours to ensure sustainable development and a quality living environment for present and future generations.