Chinese New Year in Singapore

I have always been extremely thankful to be born in Singapore: A home that is not only known as one of the safest country in the world, but also a multi-racial, religious and harmonious community. Our forefathers came from all over the world and within a short span of 45 years, we have evolved from a rural fishing village to today’s cosmopolitan city of magnificent sky-scrapers and happening nightlife!

Alright, enough of the self-praise. Since Chinese New Year (CNY) is coming up (14th-28th February 2010), let me tell you more about the cultural aspects of Singapore. The rich mix of cultures in Singapore means there is always a cultural event to celebrate, all through the year. These festivals usually centre on race, religion, age-old myths and traditions. Oh, did you notice the array of abbreviations Singaporeans use? That’s part of the Singapore culture as well! ERP, CPF, MOE, NTUC…you’ll learn more as we go along!

Chinatown
The hub of all activity during CNY is of course, Chinatown. Sense the preparation excitement in the air as enterprising merchants line Terengganu Street and Pagoda Street (Nearest MRT Station: Chinatown Station) with their colourful stalls!
Get your traditional CNY goodies such as Love Letters (thin, crispy cracker emblazoned with auspicious symbols, rolled into a hollow tube), Pineapple Tarts, Kuih Bang Kit (milky cookie that melts in your mouth, made from tapioca flour and coconut milk) and many more! The free sampling of goodies there can fill you up for a meal! Yummy. Or buy some pussy willow, red-paper decorations or baskets of mandarin oranges for good luck. If you're married and want to join in an age-old tradition, get some Hong Bao (small red envelopes) to give to those who are single. Don't forget to slip in some dollar notes in the Hong Bao before you give it away!

River Hong Bao Carnival (5 Minutes Walk from City Hall Station)
One of the most awaited carnivals in Singapore, the River Hong Bao Carnival is a huge and lively fair, featuring a mind-boggling variety of food, traditional arts and folklore from ancient China. You will find the entire fairground decorated with floats of mythical creatures, legendary heroes, Chinese gods, pagodas and cherry blossoms.
Visiting performers and artisans, flown in from selected provinces in China, will perform nightly cultural performances ranging from acrobatics to Chinese calligraphy. You can even have your palm read, or get a special Chinese zodiac reading of your birth sign! You should visit this place if you want to learn and experience the CNY customs.

Chingay Parade (Nearest MRT: CityHall Station)
Started in 1973 as a procession to mark the CNY festivities, this annual parade is now the grandest street and floats parade in Asia, showcasing the rich, vibrant multi-ethnic and cosmopolitan cultures of Singapore as well as hundreds of renowned performers from all over the world.

The term 'Chingay' originated from Southeast Asia, and is a phonetic equivalent of the Chinese words "妆艺" (which means "a decorated display of culture and traditional skills). Today, the parade has evolved into a massive multi-cultural and international event with live telecast on local television every year. For 2010, it will be taking place at our very own F1 Racing Pit on 19th and 20th February. Tickets can be purchased from www.sistic.com.sg. Chingay is truly an all-out, multi-national party you must not miss!

Transport-wise, I would say that it is relatively easy to find your way around Singapore. Not that we are a mere “little red dot”, but it is because we have got a comprehensive and accessible transport system in place. A good way to avoid the festive jams is to take the MRT (Mass Rapid Transit, also known as our subway or train services), which will bring you swiftly to heart of Chinatown and City Hall.

It is just the beginning of February, but I can already sense how exciting this month will be! Got to go, I’m off to get new wardrobe additions for the Chinese New Year, and I can’t wait to experience the festive crowd at Chinatown tonight!

Sustainability guru Prof Marc Epstein speaks on Sustainability and the Bottom Line

NBS was pleased to have leading sustainability guru, Professor Marc Epstein of the Jones Graduate School of Business at Rice University in Houston, Texas, speak in the recently launched NBS Dean’s Seminar Series on Sustainable Development.

A Distinguished Research Professor of Management at the American business school, he has done extensive research, consulting and teaching in the sustainability area.
Prof Epstein’s talk on May 6th at NTU@one-north campus focused on Sustainability and the Bottom Line – a topic that is of interest to all in the business world as it is a significant challenge to concurrently measure and manage social and financial performance.

CEOs of global corporations and SMEs alike have recognised that managing stakeholder interests and the social, environmental and economic impact of corporate products, services, processes and other activities is critical for both financial and sustainability success, he said.

Based on his extensive research and advisory work with leading global companies like Nike, Proctor & Gamble, Shell and Nissan, Prof Epstein described how they had successfully integrated sustainability into their businesses and increased both financial and sustainability success.

The leadership challenge in corporations is the competing pressures to produce profits and to be a good corporate citizen. The good thing is that managers increasingly understand that these are linked. Already concepts like waste reduction – where you help to save the environment and “make money” by reducing wastage, and similarly improve product design to enhance efficiency, are well understood and practiced.

But increasingly tremendous thought was being given to integrating social and environmental risks with huge capital investment decisions. For instance, companies have to consider what would be the impact on their business if the consumers were to boycott their products if they were to use child labour or cause oil spills and the like.


Professor Epstein delivering his talk in the NBS Dean’s Seminar Series at NTU@one-north campus.

“When these events occur, companies and investors are typically both surprised and unprepared. And, such events are occurring more often,’’ Prof Epstein pointed out.

All companies must better anticipate external consequences of their activities and need to better anticipate social consequences. While some social impacts turn into crises, thankfully most do not, he said.

Among the social and political issues businesses need to look out for are: child labour and poor working conditions, environmental emissions, nationalisation of industries, joint venture partner risks, unstable or corrupt governments, potentially dangerous products, nutrition and obesity, and interrupted or unsafe supply.

At the same time there can be opportunities to convert a risk into an opportunity. For instance due to the public focus on nutrition and obesity, PepsiCo is very concerned about nutritional issues impacting its business and “is having a lot of its people look into it and look for new ways of doing business by coming up with new products,’’ Prof Epstein said.

“It is no longer only about risk and compliance – it is also about innovation and opportunity to simultaneously achieve excellence in sustainability and financial performance.’’ This requires more innovation and entrepreneurship from sustainability leaders, start-ups and SMEs, and more sensitivity to sustainability issues by innovation and R&D leaders, and business unit and functional leaders, he added.

Driving social and financial improvements through sustainability requires strong and innovative leadership. This is because businesses need to be innovative in both products and processes, for which they need both technological innovation in products and business model innovation in processes.

Prof Epstein also stressed that investors and lenders should encourage companies to integrate environmental, social and governance issues into operational and capital investment decisions.

“Early consideration provides enormous opportunities for companies of all sizes to be creative, innovative and achieve entrepreneurial success,’’ he added.

The talk was followed by a lively question-and-answer session.

Food Paradise

Author : Kelly-Ann, Singapore

I think I can safely call myself a foodie; someone who is discerning enough to tell a ribeye from a sirloin.

Food gives me comfort and for some strange reason, I feel uberly excited as the clock tick closer and closer to the next meal time.

Singapore is just the place for a foodie like me. The great nationality diversity here means the many different cuisines available for our taste buds. Walk into any hawker centre or kopitiam (literally: a coffee shop – one without air conditioning - that sells food and drinks), and you’ll be spoilt for choice. The majority of races in Singapore make up the kinds of dishes you’ll find there: Chinese, Malay, Indian and simple Western dishes.

I’ll start simple, and give you a low-down of what to expect if you’re on a low budget. Nothing fancy, yet.

There is almost always a kopitiam within a few blocks away from wherever you are, in Singapore. If you’re in a suburban neighbourhood centre (affectionately known as ‘Central’ here), there will be a market, a large complex that sells fresh meats, produce, food and drinks. If you’re in a suburban mall, or a shopping centre in the city, you will definitely be able to locate a food court – which has air conditioning and cleaners who help to clear your trays.

These places are the most affordable ways to dine and are usually open until late.

Almost always, you’ll find the below dishes in some or all of these places.

Chinese

1. Hainanese Chicken Rice: Steamed chicken with soya and sesame gravy. Served with chicken-flavoured rice. If you dare the spice factor, ask for a side dip of chilli, ginger paste and dark sauce.
   
2. Roasted Duck Rice: Roasted duck served with white rice. Ask for a side dip of plum sauce and chilli paste.
   
3. Sliced fish soup vermicelli:
   
4. Bak Chor Mee (Minced Pork Noodle): Thin yellow noodle doused in a mixture of minced pork, mushrooms and dark soya-based gravy. Served with a side bowl of meatball soup.
   
5. Wanton Mee (Pork dumpling Noodle): Usually eaten dry. Thin yellow noodle with soya-based gravy and topped with roasted pork and wanton (pork dumplings)
   
6. Seafood/Beef Hor Fun (Stir-fried flat broad rice noodle): Stir-fried hor fun with a starchy gravy with your choice of meat/seafood. Must be eaten with pickled green chilli for extra kick!
   
7. Char Kway Teow (Stir-fried flat broad rice noodle in dark sauce): A dry version of the hor fun, this dish is usually done with dark sweet soya sauce, and lots of crispy and fragrant pork lard, tossed with bean sprouts, fish cake and raw clams. Ask for no clams if you’re not used to its raw taste.
   
8. Fried Carrot Cake: Broken pieces of steamed carrot and starch cake, stir fried with sweet dark sauce and held together with egg. Ask for a non-black version if you’re not used to having a sweet and savoury mix of tastes.
   
9. Fried Oyster Omelette: Fresh oysters loosely fried with a starchy egg mixture which turns into a yummy chewy paste when done.
   
10. Popiah: A rice paper-thin roll of stewed turnips, shredded vegetables and Chinese sausage.
    
11. ‘Michael Jackson’ drink: Officially known as “Michael Jackson”, this is a beverage made by mixing white soya bean milk with black grass jelly drink.
    

Malay

1. Laksa: A coconut milk-infused curry noodle dish. Topped with sliced fish cake, bean sprouts and raw clams.
   
2. Mee Siam: A tamarind-based soupy vermicelli dish. Topped with hard-boiled egg.
   
3. Mee Rubus: Another coconut-milk infused dish that has a strong peanut taste. Served with yellow noodles, shredded chicken and bean sprouts.
   
4. Nasi Lemak: Everyone’s favourite. Coconut white rice, topped with an omelette, fried fish, fried anchovies and peanut mix, cucumber slices and a dollop of sambal chilli (savoury chilli paste)
   
5. Mee Soto: Yellow noodles soaked in a chicken-based soup. Served with hard-boiled egg and shredded chicken.
   
6. Mee Goreng: Stir-fried yellow noodles in spicy paste. Some stalls use instant noodles to make this dish, good for those who cannot appreciate the taste of yellow noodles.
   
7. Rojak: A mixture of sliced cucumbers, apples, pineapples, raw mango, deep fried dough fritters tossed in a thick peanut-y shrimp sauce.
   
8. Bandung: A sweet beverage made with rose syrup and sweetened condensed milk.
   

Indian

1. Roti prata: A pancake bread made of lard, egg, flour and water. Usually eaten with curry. A variety of stuffings available like onion, cheese, eggs, and more.
   
2. Indian Rojak: An assortment of potatoes, eggs, bean curd (tofu), and prawns fried in batter, served with a sweet and spicy chili sauce
   
3. Fish head curry: A spicy dish, usually eaten with rice or bread. Fish head cooked in a thick curry gravy with chopped vegetables like lady’s fingers, onions, tomatos and brinjals (eggplants)
   
4. Nasi Biryani: A set of rice-based foods made with lots of spices, basmati rice, and meat, fish, eggs or vegetables.
   
5. Teh Tarik: Everyone’s favourite frothy tea! Literally known as “pulled tea”, its name is derived from the pouring process of "pulling" the drink during preparation. It is made from black tea and sweetened condensed milk.