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NERI
An interdisciplinary institute
To begin, what are the main
aims of the National University
of Singapore Environmental Research
Institute (NERI) as a whole?
NERI aims to establish the National University
of Singapore (NUS) as a leading global institute
for interdisciplinary research, education
and expertise in environmental science and
technology in Asia. The Institute coordinates and
facilitates cross-faculty research and educational
activities to conduct cutting-edge research
addressing critical environmental issues. It also
proactively seeks external partnerships and
collaborations such as government agencies
and industries from across the world to address
pressing environmental issues.
Can you highlight the key activities and
research programmes in which NERI is
currently involved?
The current key research tracks are:
• Environmental Surveillance and Treatment
• Environmental and Human Health
• Green Chemistry and Sustainable Energy
• Impacts of Climate Change on the Environment
NERI also initiates major research
programmes with international universities
and relevant agencies in Singapore with
substantial funding from the Singapore
Government. Currently these are the
Singapore Peking Oxford Research Enterprise
(SPORE) on Water Eco-efficiency, and Energy
The National University of Singapore Environmental Research Institute
aims to coordinate, integrate, and facilitate research and
educational initiatives across NUS to address critical
environmental topics. Professor Ong Choon Nam,
Director of the Institute, discusses their
research strategy
and
Environmental
Sustainability Solutions for Megacities (E2S2).
To what extent is Nature an important
source of knowledge and inspiration for
developing new environmental technologies?
Observing and studying Nature provides
answers to most questions about how things
work in the living world. It is our motivation to
find similar mechanisms that can be applied to
current environmental challenges.
Through our studies of certain mangrove
species with special desalination abilities and
of certain fish species that can rapidly adapt
to survive in highly saline and fresh waters,
we hope to generate insight into developing
novel, bio-inspired desalination devices and
applications for the future.
What exciting progress have you made
on waste to energy conversion using
microbial processes?
Plant waste is the most voluminous waste
worldwide. However, 70 per cent of plant
biomass is lignocellulose, which does not easily
undergo biodegradation. Our research team
has been conducting studies into peatland
dynamics using system-level technologies such
as metagenomics and metabolomics, combined
with custom computational platforms. These
technologies
have allowed
them to characterise
consortia of microbes,
describe their natural
physicochemical environment and
develop an understanding of their metabolic
processes. From this knowledge base, our team
has identified novel enzymes and pathways
to enhance biodegradation of lignocellulosic
wastes. Novel bioprocesses are currently being
developed by combining the microbial ecology
and physicochemical parameters which we
hope will provide innovative solutions for
utilising the world’s largest resource of waste.
How is your research focused on developing
practical, user-based solutions to
environmental issues? Can you expand on
some of the solutions you are developing?
Though NERI is tasked to focus on upstream
research, it also collaborates with industrial
partners to develop practical user-based
solutions. With industry, we are currently
developing:
• Environmental Biomonitoring – aiming to
use small aquarium fishes (such as zebrafish)
coupled with molecular-biochemical
approaches for monitoring contaminants of
emerging concern (CEC) in water
• New Generation Smart Water Assessment
Network (NUSwan) – developing and testing
an instrument intended to conduct extensive
environmental and water data collection with
lesser human intervention and efficiently
cover a wide range of data points
48 INTERNATIONAL INNOVATION

NERI
Interdisciplinary
innovations
NERI brings together researchers from different disciplines, institutions,
government agencies, international organisations and industry to
tackle critical environmental challenges that face the world today
• Engineered Nanomaterials – investigating
potential toxicity of exposure to engineered
nanomaterials through exploring their
behaviour in biological systems and their
implications for the environment and health
• Microbial Fuel Cells (MFC) – an eco-friendly
wastewater treatment technique generating
bioelectricity from biomass using bacteria. Our
research team is developing more cost-effective
and sustainable catalysts that could achieve
bioelectricity generation with higher efficiency
• Solventless and Solvent-minimised Extraction
– green analytical chemistry involves
designing analytical methods that minimise
the use and generation of hazardous
substances. Our team is developing an
environmentally-friendly analytical method
that combines solvent minimised extraction
procedure and statistical calculation
technique to reduce the amount of solvents
required in the analysis of pollutants in
environmental waters
Can you offer an insight into NERI’s vision
moving forward?
NERI envisions itself as playing a major role
in addressing environmental sustainability
in Southeast Asia. The Institute is directed
towards addressing regional issues through
collaborations with Singapore’s neighbouring
countries. This will entail sharing and
working with regional governments to
provide greater opportunities to address
challenges beyond Singapore.
THE NATIONAL UNIVERSITY of Singapore
Environmental Research Institute (NERI)
initiates and coordinates interdisciplinary
work on the environment by bringing together
faculties from across the University as well as
collaborating with international experts from
renowned institutions worldwide. Focusing
particularly on issues affecting Singapore and
Asia, the Institute is working to establish itself
as a leading global centre for forward-thinking
research on the environment.
The varied academic backgrounds of the
Institute’s Director, Professor Ong Choon Nam,
whose research is largely in environmental
health, and of Deputy Directors Dr Ong Say
Leong, an environmental engineer together
with Dr Sanjay Swarup, an environmental
microbiologist, exemplify the interdisciplinary
principles on which NERI is founded.
SUPPORTING
INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES
Alongside research work, the Institute hosts
educational activities, such as cross-disciplinary
seminar series and training, to share knowledge,
build expertise and facilitate collaborative
work among faculties from different disciplines
towards environmental research. Its state-of-theart
laboratory facilities, equipment and trained
personnel support a high standard of novel
research. The interdisciplinary strategy makes
the National University of Singapore (NUS)
a significant contributor in addressing critical
environmental issues and reaching ‘innovative
solutions for sustainable development’, one of
the missions outlined by Choon Nam.
By consistently building relationships and
initiating projects between researchers across
disciplines, both internally and externally,
environmental sustainability issues are
approached using new perspectives. As the pointof-contact
for NUS environmental research,
NERI matches the needed skills and expertise to
implement projects and cover new grounds of
research. The Institute also facilitates sharing of
ideas by providing platforms for disseminating
information and encouraging researchers to
publish in peer-reviewed journals.
NERI has built on its credible reputation
and track record to establish collaborations
beyond academia. The strategic partnerships
with government agencies and industry
demonstrate the Institute’s cutting-edge
research with far-reaching impacts ensuring
that research creates practical sustainable
solutions to address environmental problems
throughout Asia and beyond.
MODELLING MEGACITIES
FOR SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS
NERI is hosting the recently established
Programme on Energy and Environmental
Sustainability Solutions (E2S2), a collaborative
initiative between NUS and Shanghai Jiao
Tong University in China and includes
several international companies in China and
Singapore. It is supported by the Singapore
National Research Foundation and the
Shanghai Municipal Government. The research
team is addressing challenges in megacities
that can be useful to strategic policy makers,
environmental scientists and engineers.
Singapore and Shanghai have been selected
as the first two test-bedding sites because of
their different sizes and complexities. Data
gathered from these two cities will enable
the development of a sustainable platform
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INTELLIGENCE
NERI
NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF
SINGAPORE ENVIRONMENTAL
RESEARCH INSTITUTE
OBJECTIVES
To establish NUS as a leading global centre
of interdisciplinary research, education,
and expertise in the Environment field,
particularly in issues affecting Singapore
and Asia.
KEY COLLABORATORS
Professor Ong Choon Nam • Professor
Ong Say Leong • Associate Professor
Sanjay Swarup • Professor Li Fong Yau,
Sam • Professor Lee Hian Kee • Professor
Peter Ng Kee Lin • Associate Professor
Tong Yen Wah
FUNDING
National University of Singapore
• Singapore National Research
Foundation • Environment and Water
Technology Programme Office • National
Environment Agency • National Medical
Research Council • Singapore Economic
Development Board • Industry
CONTACT
Ong Choon Nam, PhD
Director, NUS Environmental Research
Institute
Professor, School of Public Health
NUS Environmental Research Institute
National University of Singapore
#02-01, T-Lab Building,
5A Engineering Drive 1
Singapore 117411
T +65 6516 4982 or 6516 7542
E erisec@nus.edu.sg
www.nus.edu.sg/neri
ONG CHOON NAM is an environmental
toxicologist by training. He is a professor
of Public Health and presently Director
of National University of Singapore
Environmental Research Institute. Beyond
these roles, Ong also works as advisor
to the World Health Organization, US
National Water Research Institute, and
the International Life Sciences Institute.
He is an editorial board member of several
environmental journals, a scientific advisor
to the China Center of Disease Control
(CDC) and has chaired the Expert Panel for
NEWater.
to facilitate the understanding, design and
implementation of future sustainable solutions
for coupled problems in megacities. The
Programme is developing capabilities necessary
to solve problems characteristic of complex
cities. These capabilities can then be transferred
to different environments and benefit cities of
various sizes and complexities. The research is
focusing particularly on waste management
for energy recovery and on the challenges of
emerging contaminants. A distributed cloud
system will be used for large-scale urban
sensing and data management to support the
two central areas of study towards missionorientated
system modelling that can be
similarly adapted by other megacities.
A NATURAL
APPROACH TO DESALINATION
A large part of NERI’s work on water ecoefficiency
is biomimicry, observing and studying
nature to find solutions for environmental
challenges. Supplies of fresh water sources are
limited across the globe. Through biomimicry,
NERI scientists are trying to find more energyefficient
methods for water desalination.
Strategic partnerships with
government agencies and industry
demonstrate the Institute’s
cutting-edge research with farreaching
impacts
Mangrove species flourish along coastal
regions due to their special desalination
capacity. The leaf surfaces of mangroves
contain microscopic salt glands that rid tissues
of excess salts through secretions. As there is
little knowledge about nature’s desalination
mechanism in mangroves, NERI scientists have
been motivated to study them to find insights
for future desalination methods. A team of
environmental physiologists and chemists is
tracking the water movement in these glands
to investigate the role of aquaporins in the
desalination process. Using molecular biology
and proteomic approaches, researchers are
also exploring other membrane proteins that
may be involved in facilitating the secretion
of salts. Their work aims to understand the
operative system of these glands in order
to build a model for desalination that can
be pivotal in developing novel, bio-inspired
desalination devices and applications.
The adaptive nature of certain fish species,
such as African tilapia (Oreochromis sp.) also
holds potential for educating us onadaptation
and resilience within a changing environment.
African tilapias can survive in both saline and
fresh waters, offering another desalination
model for study. Working in collaboration, fish
biologists, chemists and engineers will obtain
‘architectural insights’ of the cellular structures
involved in the desalination mechanism within
the gills. This study will stimulate ideas for
building an innovative water treatment system
using potential biomaterials mimicked from
euryhaline fish, better preparing us to deal with
fresh water shortages and climate change.
ENVIRONMENTAL WORKS
ACROSS ASIA AND BEYOND
In line with NERI’s aim of becoming a leading
global environmental research institute centred
in Asia, the Institute is involved in a number of
initiatives spanning across the region.
The NUS Centre for Climate Change Studies
(C3S), the point-of-contact for climate change
studies, and an initiative of NERI, is currently
being established. The programme will carry
out multidisciplinary research in vulnerability,
adaptation and mitigation of climate change
impacting Singapore and the wider region. The
research includes collaborations with local and
regional institutions, agencies and industries
to obtain large data samples and disseminate
information to a wider scope of parties.
Working with two different institutions in
Indonesia (Universitas Jambi and LIPI), NERI is
investigating peatlands dynamics. By studying
the functionality of tropical peatlands, options
for different management solutions can
be evaluated and developed, contributing
to improved overall peatlands ecosystem
management. Hopefully, these studies can be
extended out to other parts of Southeast Asia
in the future.
NUS researchers also participate in the Seven
Southeast Asian Studies (7SEAS) programme, a
large-scale collaborative project with NASA, US
Navy and many regional agencies to tackle the
issues of transboundary emissions.
Senior members of NERI have been involved in
advising international bodies, such as the World
Health Organization, and federal agencies like
the US National Water Research Institute, on
drinking water guidelines and environmental
policies. Such involvements are perceived
to increase and will help NERI to build its
thought leadership and keep abreast with the
advancement of innovative and sustainable
environmental research.
50 INTERNATIONAL INNOVATION