With the rapid expansion of the city in the past few decades, relationships with wildlife have often been contentious, with people unsure how to safely and proactively engage with nature. Huang Ningxin from the Nature Society Singapore believes people live their lives close to nature without being truly connected to it.

“Singaporeans don’t appreciate how majestic a real mountain or real forest is,” she says. 

With the ever-increasing need for land, Ms Ningxin explains how important it is to build the connection with nature parks and forests. While it may not be possible to maintain one large nature reserve with the rapid demand for housing, she says smaller reserves are essential in promoting conservation and healthy ecosystems.  

When primatologist Dr Andie Ang first heard about the langurs, they were labelled as a ‘living-dead’ species.  

She added how it was the shock of this discovery that compelled her to dedicate time and research to helping the vulnerable species. By preventing further deforestation of their habitat, she says the population has been given space to slowly reproduce and grow.  

Dr Ang says it’s paramount for the animals to learn how to adapt to their changing environment. With the installation of rope bridges and the EcoLink, a nature corridor that overpasses Bukit Timah Expressway, she says it is now safer for the langurs to cross between nature reserves.  

Knowing if land should be used for development or conservation is one of the main focuses of the Nature Society. Ms Ningxin says they assist in identifying what should be noted for conservation, which is put forward to the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). The URA is responsible for creating a masterplan that outlines what different parts of the land will be used for.  

Within this, priority sites for wildlife are identified. Dr Ang says while all land is important, they also need to ensure the land is balanced between the differing demands.

“We know that we can’t keep clearing the forest, but can we then selectively say, unfortunately, maybe this habitat is of a higher priority, probably because they have a higher level of biodiversity,” she says.  

As well as conserving the habitat, advocates say fostering a more peaceful coexistence with nature is another pathway to protecting wildlife. Joe Kam is the founder of JK Wildlife, and says coexistence simply means respecting living things sharing the same space. He believes anyone can learn to coexist if given time and training, for it is often a misconception or bad experience that causes people to distrust the animals in the first place.  

Encouraging communities to respectfully share the space with wildlife is part of Edwina Lim’s role as Education executive at the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (ACRES). She says tackling the issues central to the problem becomes ever-more significant as homes begin to creep onto nature reserves. Ms Lim believes a lack of interactions with wildlife from a young age is often the cause of this lack of understanding.  

This disconnection from wildlife flows into other aspects of nature engagement, such as conservation efforts. Dr Ang says too many Singaporeans don’t know their endemic animals, and this limits the help that can be given to endangered species, such as the Raffles Banded Langurs.  

Changing attitudes towards wildlife is a complex but essential task in improving the relationship between humans and nature. Ms Lim says getting people to widen their perspective is the key to promoting healthier relationships, as it is through this that they can “sow the seed of kindness and empathy towards all animals.”  

Despite the gap between the city and nature, Ms Huang believes the situation is improving. She says while Singaporeans are known for being detached from nature, it is motivating to know people are putting themselves forward to be a voice for change. She says it’s not just conservationists or scientists that can drive change.

While Singapore may not have much land, what it does have is people. Ms Huang says if everyone worked together, the future of the natural world would look much brighter.  

 This story was produced as part of the Curtin Journalism 2024 Singapore Study Tour and supported by funding from the federal government’s New Colombo Plan.