Kenneth Er is the Chief Executive Officer of the National Parks Board in Singapore, the lead agency overseeing parks, nature reserves and greenery in the city. He will be presenting on The Science & Technology behind transforming Singapore into a City in Nature.
Biography
Kenneth began his career in parks management in the 1990s and has been involved in the planning, implementation and management of parks and streetscapes in the city, including the Marina South area. Some of his key projects included the development of the Marina South Promenade and the Millennium mass tree planting in Marina South.
In 2003, Kenneth was seconded to the Ministry of National Development as Assistant Director, and later assumed the position of Deputy Director in 2004 overseeing policies and review of legislations pertaining to parks and greenery infrastructure, agri-veterinary, and building and construction.
Upon his return to the National Parks Board, he took on the role of Deputy Director, and later General Manager at Gardens by the Bay, where he played a pivotal role in developing the Gardens and overseeing the progress of the project from concept to form. Kenneth was also concurrently Assistant Chief Executive Officer (Corporate Development & Services) at the National Parks Board. He was appointed Chief Operating Officer of the Gardens by the Bay in 2012.
Kenneth is presently the Chief Executive Officer of National Parks Board (NParks). NParks is the lead agency overseeing the greenery of our City in a Garden and biodiversity conservation in land-scarce Singapore. NParks manages over 350 parks, 4 nature reserves, extensive streetscape/roadside greenery and our island-wide Park Connector Network. NParks also plays a critical role in enhancing the competencies of the landscape and horticulture industry through training, certification and applied research.
Kenneth has a Forestry degree from the Australian National University and a Masters in Science from the University of British Columbia. He has published extensively on Conservation Biology, Urban Forestry and Ecology, and Horticulture.
The Science & Technology Behind Transforming Singapore into a City in Nature
As the result of greening efforts that have spanned more than 50 years, Singapore is one of the greenest cities in the world and home to a rich diversity of flora and fauna – all of this despite being a small city-state of 728 km2.
In this keynote presentation, Mr Kenneth Er (Chief Executive Officer, National Parks Board, Singapore) will share about Singapore’s ongoing transformation into a City in Nature to create a green, livable and sustainable home for all Singaporeans.
This City in Nature vision is anchored on a science-based approach to retain and integrate greenery, and also to restore nature into the urban landscape, in order to address the effects of urbanisation and climate change. This includes safeguarding nature reserves in core biodiversity areas, providing nature parks to buffer the reserves from edge effects and naturalising urban parks as supplementary habitats.
Ecological connectivity is further strengthened through an island-wide network of nature ways and park connectors, which involves the transformation of urban tree plantings into forest structures through the introduction of native trees in a tiered structure. Underpinning this effort is the translation of conservation science, urban ecology and forestry principles into planning and practice through the use of technology, digitalisation and analytical models. This has also enhanced the capacity to reach out and promote community participation and stewardship.