Heat, rising sea levels lend urgency to COP28 climate talks in Dubai

Hello.

Can you believe it’s already December? Even as Singapore’s year-end “sweater weather” beckons, 2023 is set to be the hottest year on record, lending a sense of urgency to the UN climate conference currently taking place in Dubai.

What did you think of the “Long Island” that could be reclaimed off East Coast? While Singapore has long increased space through land reclamation, something else is at the heart of the plan announced on Tuesday: Protecting Singapore’s coastline against the threat of rising sea levels.

Global warming is also expected to increase the risk of infectious disease epidemics. Just as it took vaccines to bring COVID-19 under control, vaccines are needed to curb dengue outbreaks in Singapore, say Duke-NUS researchers Ooi Eng Eong and Shirin Kalimuddin.

Meanwhile in Malaysia, opposition leader Muhyiddin Yassin did a U-turn just a day after announcing he would step down as Bersatu party president. The former prime minister pulled off a shrewd political move, says Asian studies professor James Chin.

We hope you enjoy our selection of commentaries this week. Stay connected for timely updates and comprehensive analysis.

Charlene Tan

Senior Editor, Commentary

Malaysia opposition leader Muhyiddin pulls off shrewd political move with ’24-hour resignation’

There are several possible reasons why Muhyiddin Yassin changed his mind a day after vowing to step down as Bersatu party president. But the best answer might not be the most obvious one, says James Chin, Asian Studies professor at University of Tasmania.

Does a company-paid overseas trip sound fun, until you realise you’re sharing a room with colleagues?

Some of us may have reservations about travelling with colleagues, for fear our personal quirks will turn out to be embarrassing or annoying. Writer Vivian Teo shares her experience of work trips.

Thai PM’s first 100 days in office follow a populist path

After 100 days as Thailand Prime Minister, Srettha Thavisin has a strategy of economic populism that looks a lot like Thaksin Shinawatra’s, except for the audacious attempt to roll out a 10,000 baht digital cash handout, says Thai politics researcher Prem Singh Gill.

In a time of shrinkflation, how will consumers’ elasticity of forgiveness hold up?

In the world of shrinkflation, where product sizes mysteriously shrink while prices stay put, how much can consumers forgive before they walk away? Accenture Song’s Growth Markets president Flaviano Faleiro weighs in.

Nobody deserves to be trolled, even when they seem to be asking for it

Netizens are divided over a clip of online personality Kurt Tay getting heckled as he was leaving court. Even when internet figures feed their trolls, they don’t deserve to be treated cruelly, says mental health researcher Jonathan Kuek.

When heart attack symptoms are a false alarm – more awareness needed on panic attacks

Panic attack patients experience frightening symptoms that make them rush to the hospital, where they may not get a proper diagnosis, say Sharon Sung and Marcus Ong of Duke-NUS Medical School.

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