Business leaders, policy makers and developers across various disciplines in urban development congregated at Shape the World Conference this year, which was held at the National Design Centre on July 6, to discuss opportunities and strategies for enabling sustainable smart cities and urban transformation in ASEAN. The conference was jointly organised by CPG Consultants, a subsidiary of CPG Corporation, and Consulus; and supported by the DesignSingapore Council.
The conference opened with a thought-provoking address on what defined a smart city. The importance of harnessing technology in fostering a closer connection between human beings, and leveraging the power of co-creation in designing urban landscapes for functional, meaningful and emotional differentiations, were highlighted.
Designing future identities for ASEAN cities
The first half of the conference was focused on building distinctive identities for cities in ASEAN, where industry luminaries shared use cases and discussed pertinent issues.
The concept and application of vertical greenery to urban spaces were presented as a use case on creating a distinct identity for a high-rise urban environment in Singapore.
Saradise, the smart-city integrated township located in Kuching which features intelligent smart living concept combined with Sarawak-inspired designs, was also shared as best practices. By unifying and incorporating the Sarawak identity, arts and ecology with urban design, Saradise created a unique living experience and inspired the people in Sarawak to live their lives in a way never thought possible.
Development of ASEAN cities in a new world order
Other speakers also exchanged ideas on how ASEAN cities should be developed in a new world order where growth within Southeast Asia would continue to be driven by rapid urbanisation—with more than 90 million more people expected to be urbanised by 2020.
“Countries in the ASEAN region are expected to undergo rapid urbanisation as more people move to cities, causing the region’s urbanised population proportion to surge from 47 per cent in 2014 to a projected 65 per cent in 2050,” said Tan Shao Yen, CEO of CPG Consultants. “This could lead to economic, societal and environmental issues, including resource scarcity, air pollution and deforestation. It is therefore vital to explore viable and innovative viewpoints and methodologies that will help design our cities in such a way that not only meets the specific needs of those living in them, but also in a sustainable and engaging manner that will inspire future generations.”
Additionally, the use of smart technology in transforming urban landscapes was underscored by how the Internet of Things (IoT) platform could be leveraged to integrate the physical and virtual worlds, so as to yield automation, overall efficiency and economic benefits for a city or community. — Construction+ Online
Conference speakers by order of appearance:
• Mark Wee, Executive Director, DesignSingapore Council
• Tan Shao Yen, CEO, CPG Consultants
• Lawrence Chong, CEO, Consulus
• Helena Pham, Partner, Consulus
• Larry Ng Hock Lye, Group Director, Urban Redevelopment Authority of Singapore (URA)
• Dato Chris Chung – Group CEO, Saradise
• Kuan Chee Yung, Senior Vice President, CPG Consultants
• Karthik Karkal, Senior Vice President, CPG Consultants
• Ong Choon Fah, CEO, Edmund Tie & Company
• Edward Gunawan, Corporate Strategy Director, Damai Putra Group
• Sri Rajah, CEO, Stream Environmental
• Sharon Kam, Head for Creative Strategies, Consulus
• Andre Toh, Partner, Ernst & Young
• Adam Fowler, Director, Vihajico Investment
• Swaroop Balakrishnan, Regional Sales Director for Asia Pacific, BOSCH Software Innovations
• Dr Sekhar Kondepudi, Associate Professor, National University of Singapore (NUS)
