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| Making
innovation a way of life |
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| Key
messages were communicated to staff
through experiential activities
during the staff seminar held at
Fort Canning Park. |
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In
the last year, the focus of the National Parks
Board (NParks) has shifted from merely providing
and maintaining our Garden City to playing a
pivotal role in cultivating in our people a sense
of being rooted to our homeland. To do this well,
NParks
adopted innovative ways to help Singapore become a City in a Garden for all Singaporeans.
The emphasis is now to make innovation NParks’ way of life. This is evident
in all areas, such as the way we make improvements to our horticultural practices,
and communicate key messages and thrusts to our staff.
Finding innovative solutions
NParks staff have relooked at horticultural practices and come up with an alternative
way of transplanting trees from one location to another. Traditionally, the transplanting
of trees involved massive pruning of both the roots and crown of the tree to
enable removal and transportation. This placed undue stress on the trees, resulting
in mortality in some cases. In fact, there are even certain tree species which
have been known not to be able to take to such a transplanting process at all.
Given the problems with this traditional transplanting method, NParks Nursery
staff looked for alternative ways to nurture instant trees so that harvesting
them later on would be less of a hassle both in terms of removal and transportation
as well as re-establishment. The answer was in the Root Control Bag.
The Root Control Bag is made of porous geo-fabric material. Compact fibrous roots
can grow within the bag. Furthermore, the trees can grow normally and remain
healthy as the roots are still able to absorb nutrients and water from the ground
outside the bag. Pruning is no longer required at either the root or crown level,
and trees can be easily transplanted from one location to another with minimum
stress on the plants.
Communicating key messages
Perhaps the most apt example of fostering the spirit of innovation in NParks
was evident at the NParks Staff Seminar held in May 2002. Unlike most staff seminars,
which are held indoors and where key messages are communicated to staff through
lectures and presentations, this year’s staff seminar was held outdoors
at our beautiful Fort Canning Park.
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| Staff
having fun while learning about NParks’ new
mission, vision and core values. |
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At
the seminar, key messages were communicated through
experiential learning activities. Staff were grouped
and moved through various stations. Each station
focused on imparting a specific value through interactive games. Hence staff
learned about the new vision and mission of the Ministry of National Development
and NParks, along with the Board’s core values and thrusts for the new
millennium, in a fun-filled atmosphere which also facilitated bonding among staff.
The essence of the seminar’s key message can be summed up in the words
of guest of honour Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister of State for National Development, “NParks
is not just about planting trees and making sure roots develop. It is, in fact,
about helping people sink roots into this place called Singapore.” |
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By
Serene Goh, NParks
Next: JTC Academy opens
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