The Wallace Trail at Bukit Timah is named in honour of Alfred Russel Wallace, the British naturalist who independently conceived the theory of evolution through natural selection. He visited Singapore many times from 1854 – 1862 as part of his eight-year stay in the Malay archipelago. To get closer to the remaining primary forests, Wallace stayed with a French Roman Catholic missionary at St Joseph’s in Bukit Timah district. During his time in Singapore, Wallace trekked daily into the hilltops and collected thousands of insects and birds.

In multi-religious, multiracial Singapore, many Singaporeans will not hesitate to stand up on behalf of countrymen at the receiving end of racist jokes, insults and discrimination. From young, Singaporeans have been taught the importance of respecting different religions and cultural practices. Where public education is insufficient, the government has an array of legal tools to tackle instigators of religious and racial conflict. [Read more…]

Our President Tan Tatt Si delivered this speech at a dialogue regarding the ‘Freedom of religion or belief in Singapore and ASEAN’, organised by the EU Delegation to Singapore on Dec 9, 2016, at Raffles Hotel. Photos courtesy of European Union Delegation to Singapore. [Read more…]

This is a summary of our President Tan Tatt Si’s presentation at the International Humanist and Ethical Youth Organization (IHEYO) Asian Humanism Conference, held at National Taiwan University in Taiwan on August 6-7, 2016. The two-day conference, sponsored by IHEYO and hosted by Taiwanese humanists, also included speakers from various parts of Asia. Tatt Si was the first speaker.
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Interfaith dialogues are a common feature in Singapore but since 2012, a different type of dialogue called the “UnConference” has been taking place annually at Nanyang Girls’ High School (NYGH). Instead of having a panel of religious leaders lead the dialogue, UnConference generates a dialogue from the ground-up, allowing participants to suggest their own topics and attend any discussion they fancy.

The Humanist Society (Singapore), or HumanistSG, has been sending representatives to the UnConference from 2014-2016. Although we are an NGO comprising of humanists, atheists, agnostics and other like-minded people, the Society also supports Singapore’s racial and religious harmony. This year, the UnConference was held on August 13.

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