Katong-Joo Chiat first to roll out community-run heritage initiative under new 5-year NHB plan

SINGAPORE – Residents and visitors to the Katong-Joo Chiat precinct can look forward to street festivals, guided tours and talks in 2024, when the area comes under a new initiative aimed at empowering communities and neighbourhoods to celebrate their heritage.

Called Heritage Activation Nodes, the initiative is one of several announced by the National Heritage Board (NHB) on Friday, when it launched Our SG Heritage Plan 2.0. The five-year plan will guide the heritage and museum sector from 2023 till 2027.

The plan comprises efforts in four areas – identity, industry, innovation and community, which the Heritage Activation Nodes initiative falls under.

NHB’s deputy chief executive for policy and community Alvin Tan said the initiative was developed in response to public demand for more opportunities for ground-up involvement in heritage.

Each node will be led by community groups, with the board playing a supporting role, such as through funding and developing the capabilities of volunteers in various areas, including tour guiding.

Other efforts under the five-year plan, which was launched by Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong at the Peranakan Museum, include a joint initiative by the board, Singapore Art Museum, Urban Redevelopment Authority, National Library Board and DesignSingapore Council to establish a collection covering a wide range of design disciplines, such as fashion, graphic design

and architecture.

The collection will “help to expand our understanding of Singapore’s identity within the context of the region’s history and aesthetic, and better illustrate the Singapore Story and our nation’s connection with the region and the world”, said NHB.

The board and its various partners are still ironing out details of the collection, which will be announced at a later date.

To support local heritage businesses and craftsmen, the board will transform Armenian Street into a precinct for craft and creativity via, for example, organising events and performances, and offering pop-up shops inspired by Singapore’s crafts and traditions.

Plans for Armenian Street will be rolled out in phases.

NHB also plans to announce which element it has chosen for Singapore’s next nomination for inscription on Unesco’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by the end of 2023, said Mr Tan.

A

10-element shortlist,

which included practices such as getai and orchid cultivation, was unveiled in March 2022, following Singapore’s first and only inscription – hawker culture –

on Unesco’s list in December 2020

.

In putting together the new five-year plan, NHB engaged more than 650 stakeholders, partners, enthusiasts and creative folk in more than 50 focus group discussions from the start of 2021, before seeking

ideas and suggestions from the public

between August and November 2022.

Mr Tong said the latest plan sets out how all Singaporeans can help safeguard and promote the country’s shared heritage, and called on more people to participate in the country’s heritage development.

Among the groups answering his call is Katong Culture, which was chosen as the main community partner for the Katong-Joo Chiat heritage node that will be launched in April 2024.

The interest group, which was established by the Joo Chiat Community Club Management Committee in January 2023, helps to promote and celebrate the heritage of Katong and Joo Chiat – areas commonly associated with Peranakan culture and cuisine.

Mr Gavin Chan, 38, who is among the group’s founding members, said volunteers have, for years, been organising cultural activities, and decided to formalise them through the interest group and bring various initiatives together after the Covid-19 pandemic.

He looks forward to NHB training volunteers in research and documentation techniques so that the community’s intangible assets, such as stories, sights and sounds, can be properly recorded and showcased.

Mr Chan also hopes that by collaborating with NHB, the group can tap the board’s resources, so others can experience Katong-Joo Chiat’s heritage in new ways, such as through virtual reality experiences.

NHB and Katong Culture will later in 2023 issue a public call seeking ideas for programmes, projects and exhibitions that can enliven the precinct.

The board will launch a Katong-Joo Chiat edition of its

street corner heritage galleries

in the first quarter of 2024 to promote the history of heritage businesses. Each business will get a display case to showcase items related to its history.

Mr Tan said the board plans to roll out three other heritage activation nodes – a second in 2024 and two in 2025 – and called on other community groups to reach out if they wish to collaborate on and establish these nodes.

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Opening new memory lanes

NHB’s latest five-year plan for the heritage and museum sector comprises four areas – identity, community, industry and innovation. Here are some notable initiatives under each area.

Identity

1. Develop a design collection

NHB will partner other organisations and agencies to roll out the collection, which covers a range of design disciplines, focusing on contemporary Singaporean designers and architects.

2. Expand Singapore’s representation on the Unesco Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity

Following the inscription of Singapore’s hawker culture on Unesco’s list in 2020, NHB is identifying the second state nomination for the list.

A joint nomination for the kebaya

with four other South-east Asian countries was submitted to Unesco in March.

3. Promote and care for archaeological treasures

Existing legislation is being reviewed to better safeguard archaeological heritage and support the conduct of archaeological studies.

Community

1. Establish Heritage Activation Nodes to enliven heartland precincts

These nodes will be set up in neighbourhoods where the board currently does not have a presence. It will work with community groups, paving the way for regular heritage programming and training for volunteers.

2. Deepen engagement with youths

NHB’s 31-member youth panel will put forward a blueprint in mid-2024 to strengthen and sustain youth interest and involvement in heritage causes.

Industry

1. Transform Armenian Street into a craft precinct

NHB will work with businesses, artisans and the arts community to turn the area into a hub that offers a range of lifestyle options, such as pop-up shops selling Singapore-inspired merchandise.

2. Showcase local collections and stories overseas

NHB will partner like-minded organisations to co-present Singapore content and materials abroad.

Innovation

1. Use new technologies to enhance heritage interactions

The board is exploring the development of a 3D digital asset repository that showcases important objects and buildings in vivid detail.