TO address heat stress, Singapore recently set up a new office under its Sustainability and the Environment Ministry to spearhead the republic’s efforts in this area, The Straits Times reported.
Named the Heat Resilience Policy Office, it will oversee heat management efforts across the island state by coordinating action, overseeing research, and representing Singapore interna-tionally.
The office will develop a heat resilience action plan across the infrastructure, health, economic, and social sectors, and also extend proven cooling solutions to other sectors. This coordi-nation will also prevent dupli-cative efforts, according to The Straits Times.
As Singapore’s Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment Dr Janil Puthu-cheary explained, “Some issues that we will need to deal with include which areas, sectors, or population segments are most at risk, and how can we further support these groups?”
Continuing, he said, “What additional research is needed for sectors to develop effective, tailored measures? How do we balance the need for additional cooling against the need to meet our emissions targets?”
More funds will also be invested in research that will deepen the understanding of how heat affects people and facilitate the development of novel cooling solutions.
According to Dr Janil, a heat resilience research and development (R&D) programme will be launched under Singapore’s Research, Innovation and Enter-prise 2030 national research masterplan to ensure that the heat office’s action plan is backed by science.
Under the programme, a new S$40mil (RM125mil) “Adapting to Heat Impacts” funding initiative has been launched for research on heat impacts and strengthening various groups’ ability to withstand rising temperatures and reduce heat illnesses.
The aim is to come up with tailored guidelines and solutions, especially for vulnerable groups, including seniors, very young children, and outdoor workers, said Dr Janil.
Other research areas could include studying how rising temperatures affect residents’ quality of sleep amid warmer nights, students’ learning at school, and employees’ productivity.
Dr Janil noted that the new R&D programme will build on existing heat research.
For example, new cooling solutions can be tested on an existing digital twin that simulates Singapore’s urban climate. This digital twin was developed by the Cooling Singapore 2.0 project helmed by the Singapore-ETH Centre. (ETH refers to the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology.)
Efforts to improve people’s resilience to heat will also be coordinated across government ministries and agencies.
On international collaborations, Singapore will share its efforts while learning from solutions in other countries, Dr Janil said. For example, local authorities in Brazil are piloting a digital twin to simulate city- and district-level climate change scenarios.
To engage Singaporeans on long-term adaptation measures and build climate literacy within the community, the authorities will hold group discussions and an exhibition.
Singapore has also designated 2026 as the Year of Climate Adaptation, and outlined various initiatives that will be implemented on this front.
“It involves a comprehensive review of our adaptation measures across key domains such as heat resilience, coastal and flood resilience, and water and food resilience,” said Sustainability and the Environment Minister Grace Fu.
These measures will be formalised in the country’s inaugural national climate adaptation plan – a report that the country aims to publish in 2027. Countries party to the Paris Agreement are obliged to submit these plans to the United Nations. — The Straits Times/Asia News Network
