Serene Ng
Education: B Soc. Sci. (Honours) in Geography and History (NUS)
Currently working on: Rivers in Northern Thai History - Paleofloods in Wiang Kum Kam with Alan D. Ziegler and Spencer H. Wood.
Work experience: Preservation of Monuments Board, Singapore (research intern)
Research interest:
I am interested in the various relations between nature and society, in particular, riverine societies of Southeast Asia and their interactions with dynamic river systems. As an environmental history enthusiast, I have done geo-archeological research on paleofloods and their influence on the ancient Lannathai city of Wiang Kum Kam in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
Over the next (hopefully) two years, for my masters thesis research, I hope to understand how legends and social memories of environmental hazards have shaped societal responses towards these hazards in northern Thailand. Following which, I wish to explore the possibilities of incoporating grassroots perspectives - often influenced by culture and local history - into state-planned hazards management programs.
Other interests:
Besides nature-society relations, I am also interested in Western art and architecture – Brunelleschi and Borromini are my favourite architects. Relatedly, I am also a keen reader of the dialectics and philosophies of urban conservation and built heritage. Like David Lowenthal, I strongly believe that things worth saving need not necessarily be beautiful or historic, instead are those that are familiar and/or well-loved.
I love travelling, writing, The Strokes, good food and the smell of rain.