The environment has become the catch-phrase of our times with concern worldwide focusing on the sustainability of natural resources and nature conservation. Singapore, as a thriving island city-state, does not have a rural hinterland or natural resources. Yet the environment has been considered no less important and has presented the challenge of its reconciliation with urban management. Since 1968, when the concept of a "clean and green garden city" was first introduced through parliament, Singapore's political leadership has taken an active role in positively managing the environmental impact of urban growth and industrialization, and achieving a balance between conservation and development. The aim, in the words of then Prime Minister, now Senior Minister, Lee Kuan Yew, is to become "a city worthy of an industrious people whose quest for progress is matched by their appreciation for the beauty of nature". This book is both an account of Singapore's programmes and policies on environmental management, and a challenge to cities of the future to meet and exceed the high standards already set by Singapore.

Ooi, Giok Ling, ed. 1995. Environment and the City: Sharing Singapore's Experience and Future Challenges. Singapore: Times Academic Press for IPS.

(336 pages, ISBN 981 210 080 6)