The President’s Science and Technology Awards (PSTA) is Singapore’s highest honour for scientists. Since their introduction in 2009, this annual celebration of research excellence has honored outstanding researchers who uphold Singapore’s commitment to research excellence while inspiring a community of scientific talent. On Tuesday afternoon, winners were revealed from across disciplines like medicine, public health engineering and computer sciences.
The PSTA also awarded the Harvard Prize Book to pre-tertiary students who epitomise service and care for others within their communities. It aims to inspire Singapore students with the idea that Harvard is an accessible institution of higher learning while uniting them with its community here. Muhammad Dinie from ITE College Central won this prize book for leading an initiative that provided Town Council cleaners during Covid-19 pandemic relief with packed meals, groceries and thank-you cards as tokens of appreciation.
Dr Alan HJ Chan Spirit of Singapore Book Prize has been launched with a prize pool worth $30,000 to honor local fiction and non-fiction works in Singapore, representing one of the richest prizes yet for any Singapore book award. Backed by a $1 Million donation from Confucian scholar Alan Chan, it was unveiled on April 18. According to its organizers, it encourages writers who champion values key to shaping Singapore, such as equality, diversity, religious harmony, meritocracy and resilience.
Six engaging works have been shortlisted for the inaugural NUS Singapore History Prize, an initiative launched by NUS to “stimulate engagement with Singapore’s history broadly understood” and make its complexities more accessible, according to a press release from NUS History Department. Wesley Leon Aroozoo’s The Punkhawala and the Prostitute was shortlisted alongside Lynn Wong and Koh Keng Leong’s Theatres of Memory: Industrial Heritage of 20th Century Singapore as well as Khir Johari’s Food of Singapore Malays among others.
Prince William arrived at Changi Airport Wednesday for his solo visit to Singapore to bring attention to global efforts against wildlife trafficking and innovation. To mark his arrival, Changi’s Rain Vortex was illuminated in green to mark his passage through its halls.
On his trip, King Charles will meet local entrepreneurs to see how technologies are being used to advance sustainability in Singapore. Additionally, he will attend the United for Wildlife summit and hear how law enforcement and conservation agencies are joining forces to combat illegal wildlife trade, which costs our planet approximately $20 billion every year. Finally, he is scheduled to visit the i2e Hub where local innovators are developing solutions to sustainable living – before leaving Singapore behind on Friday en route for Malaysia (read about singapore prize here).