dws-deltares-nus-new-centre-cloud-burst-singapore-770pxDutch applied research institute Deltares and the National University of Singapore (NUS) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to explore the development of a new Singapore Centre on Urban Resilience (SeCURE).

The centre aims to contribute to solving urban resilience challenges for Southeast Asia cities, such as climate change induced flooding and drought.

The MoU was signed on 24 November in the presence of Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte who was on a four-days trade mission to Indonesia and Singapore.

dws-deltares-nus-centre-signing-rutte-350pxSigning by prof. Wong, NUS (front left) and Mr. Maarten Smits, Deltares (front right) in presence of mr. Mark Rutte (back middle), Prime Minister of the Netherlands and mr. Masagos Zulkifl (back right), Singapore Minister for the Environment and Water Resources.

Cross-disciplinary cooperation
It is envisaged that the new SeCURE centre could focus on both the development of methods and the delivery of services that enable a quantitative optimisation of resilience measures, strategies and investments.

The work is likely to take a comprehensive systems-based approach together with the use of big data.

SeCURE could also facilitate and stimulate cross-disciplinary cooperation across Southeast Asia.

Inclusive growth
Dr. Rinus Vis from Deltares remarked that, “There is an urgent need to increase the resilience and to realize sustainable inclusive growth of urban systems that are under a threat of increased shocks and stresses. Solving these problems requires huge investments to be optimized in terms of both financial and societal return”.

dws-deltares-nus-centre-mou-map-350pxMost pressing water and soil issues
Professor Wong, Director of NUSDeltares, said, “NUS has a longstanding partnership with Deltares through the NUSDeltares Alliance to address some of the most pressing water and soil issues confronting the world today. SeCURE is a natural step forward to leverage on our experience and expertise to co-create innovative solutions to address real-world challenges that are unique to Southeast Asia.”

This news item was originally published on the website of Deltares and NUSDeltares alliance.

(Top photo: Heavy rainfall in Singapore)

Read also on this website
● SIWW 2016: A look back on an event that showcased a water industry willing to innovate, 18 July 2016
● Deltares officially opens big data iD-Lab to assess and visualize global water issues, 29 March 2016
● Singapore and Rotterdam ports discuss future port strategies at round-table meeting, 15 March 2016
● Singapore authorities react enthousiastically to Healthy City concept by Dutch designers, 10 March 2016
● Projects: Improving urban water quality

More information
Deltares
Delft, the Netherlands
+31 88 335 8273
www.deltares.nl/en

NUSDeltares Alliance
Singapore
+65 6516 6852
www.nusdeltares.org

Presentation of Singapore Centre on Urban Resilience (SeCURE).