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Refusing a Culture of Convenient Consumption
Some thoughts on #consumption trends in #Singapore. Written for the Association of Muslim Professionals’ monthly magazine. Timely given the fact that #EarthOvershootDay was last week. (Singapore’s Earth Overshoot Day was apparently in April, hence suggesting that the country is consuming more than the global average!). Online version of the article can be read here.
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Environmental Awareness: Alternative Strategies Beyond Symbolism
Beyond symbolic “feel good” environmental activities, there is much to learn and build on crises and traditional/cultural practices In this piece, I argued that what is lacking from existing environmental awareness campaigns, is the sustained experiential awareness of resource scarcity. In the case of Singapore, given the fact that majority of residents start from a […]
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Food Fights over Food Rights
“Global food price shocks have demonstrated the urgent need to effectively address food insecurity in Southeast Asia – both at the national and regional level” This think-piece goes beyond issues of supply and demand of food, and provides greater insight to the role of Human Security in understanding the issue of food security in a […]
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Climate action on a concrete island
“The over-reliance on the government for solutions, however, reflects what some have termed as the nanny-state syndrome: due to years of strong state intervention and action, people have become apathetic and expect the government to address all problems.” Read more about addressing climate change in Singapore in this article in Asia Dialogue, the online magazine […]
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Pandemic measures during the Hajj
In a think piece “Ensuring Good Health During the Hajj in a Time of the H1N1 Pandemic”, I – together with researchers at the RSIS Centre for NTS Studies – commented on the progress and prospects of H1N1 pandemic mitigation efforts in Saudi Arabia leading up to the annual Hajj pilgrimage in 2009. The piece […]
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Raising environmental awareness amongst Muslims
On 13 May 2011, I was featured in Singapore’s Malay Newspaper – Berita Harian – for my research and advocacy work on faith-based environmentalism. In the interview, I noted how countries in the Muslim World largely fall into at least one of three categories in relation to climate change. Victims of climate change: Countries such […]
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Promoting the hyper-reality of Crazy Rich Asians?
My two cents worth on the pitfalls of riding on Crazy Rich Asians wave for promoting tourism in Singapore. One of the broader impacts that my colleague, Luenne, and I mentioned in the article is the ramifications that it potentially has for the average middle-class Chinese. This is particularly so in places where Chinese are […]
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Happy Australia Day!
Up before sunrise on a public holiday. WHUT?! Cos sometimes you just gotta get things done. Fajr prayers, intercontinental skype calls, reports and thesis. But first, a wholemeal toast with a spread of almond butter and fresh fig. Yes fresh fig. Ditch the jam and have the real thing when you can. Cuppa coffee and […]
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The Doritos-Palm Oil Nexus. Whut?!
When I saw this video (below), I was like “Dayummmmm..” I mean what’s a party without a bowl of Doritos? That convenient [read: LAZY] option to just grab from the store to entertain guests or bring to a pot luck gathering. The solution: Just gotta be a bit more creative and try healthier options then… […]