After the last meetup on the fertility crisis, we're going to take a look at friendship and community in modern society, and how that may or may not be playing a role family formation and the fertility crisis.
Working paper on Generational and Socio-Economic Divides in Singapore by the Institute of Policy Studies. This is a long paper; I recommend reading the Introduction (before the start of section 1.1), then skimming the results in sections 2-5, and reading the Conclusion.
Are we dealing with a real crisis of friendship/community, or a recurring moral panic about modern life? What evidence would actually convince you that social connection has meaningfully declined?
What does the IPS data suggest is changing about friendship in Singapore specifically? Is the main concern fewer close friends, more class/social sorting, or weaker cross-group ties?
If children need community-based childhoods, what exactly has to exist around them? Are we missing safe public spaces, parental trust, nearby peers, or a thicker neighbourhood culture?
Do modernity and prosperity make friendship shallower? If people can buy help, use therapy, outsource logistics, and avoid relying on friends, does that make relationships freer, or less intimate?
How much of dating difficulty is really a community-infrastructure problem? Did older infrastructure in churches, workplaces, schools, neighbourhoods etc, make dating easier by providing repeated contact, vouching, and social accountability?
How does Singapore’s social environment shape delayed dating, marriage, and parenthood? Are people single for longer mainly because of preferences, economic pressure, housing timelines, work culture, or dating-app fatigue?
What kind of community should we actually try to build? Do you see your ideal community as helping people form families?
Location
Meet at Holland Village MRT Exit B (underground part) at 3 pm. We will wait for everyone to gather for 5-10 mins, and then head over to my nearby apartment. If you've been here before, feel free to come directly to the apartment (though you may need to wait to be let in).
Some snacks will be provided. There are many restaurants and a hawker centre nearby, if you want to buy your own food.
After the last meetup on the fertility crisis, we're going to take a look at friendship and community in modern society, and how that may or may not be playing a role family formation and the fertility crisis.
Readings
Discussion
Location
Meet at Holland Village MRT Exit B (underground part) at 3 pm. We will wait for everyone to gather for 5-10 mins, and then head over to my nearby apartment. If you've been here before, feel free to come directly to the apartment (though you may need to wait to be let in).
Some snacks will be provided. There are many restaurants and a hawker centre nearby, if you want to buy your own food.
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