How to Win at Tug-of-War
What I’ve learned about balancing human development and keeping the natural world.
The last time I played tug-of-war, I was a small 5th grader pulling on a rope, trying to help my team win on field day. It was a 4-way rope, one for each house at my school. The sun was glaring down on us, and after 10 minutes of pulling, in a surprising turn of events, everyone ended up letting go of the rope at the same time. Now, as a junior in high school, whenever someone mentions ‘tug-of-war’, I think back to my first day of school when one of my teachers introduced the ‘sustainability compass’ to us. We plan on using it throughout this year, starting off with the Clementi Project.
The Clementi Project, as a transdisciplinary unit, had many ambitious goals for Quest students to accomplish. We were supposed to connect with the natural world and learn how to live in harmony with plants and animals. But I missed out on the Clementi Hike, immediately making this assignment much harder. How am I supposed to reflect on an experience that should’ve changed me, when I wasn’t even there?
Luckily, aside from the Clementi Hike, I could still relate to nature. When I was younger I lived in Hong Kong, in an apartment building that lay on a tall mountain, with lush, flourishing forests surrounding us on all sides. My family and I used to go trekking every weekend to take in the pristine beauty of the outdoors. The sporadic wild boar, dog, and occasionally cow would serve as a reminder that we could coexist peacefully. Then, when I moved to Singapore and started hiking the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, I’d walk by some long-tailed macaques, watching as the baby macaques would feel safe to roam around our shared space.
I immediately felt horrified when I learned last month that the government created a plan to tear down Clementi for residential use. All the wildlife, who didn’t have anywhere else to go, were bound to die or be captured. Sure, as Singapore approaches 6 million citizens, we require more space. However, just because we’ve evolved, it doesn’t mean we need to leave the natural world behind. Imagine you and your kids, 20 years from now, visiting your deserted childhood home. The grass where you once kicked around a football with friends is shrivelled and sun-baked. The ground consists of white cracks, breaking under your feet. The trees sway their branches to protect themselves from the unbearable heat. The smell of decomposing wood fills your nose as you look around at the home you once roamed and cherished. What happened? How did everything change so quickly? Well, we need to learn that you can’t have it all — we need to have a balance.
The good news is that Mr Lee, the Minister of Development, declared that Clementi Forest would not be touched unless future generations require it. As the globe approaches 8 billion humans, it is more than likely we will require more (of everything). The tension is real. Animals feel it, humans feel it; we can’t keep pulling. It’s like a game of tug-of-war and something (or everyone) will get pulled over the edge. And it won’t be into a pond of mud (think Squid Games tug-of-war instead of your backyard family game).
How can we win this game of tug-of-war?
Humans have simply been overpowering the competition in this game for decades. Before, I always assumed everyone had to be either absorbed in saving the environment or developing our Earth. However, a sustainable future doesn’t mean you win this game of tug-of-war. Life’s a constant game, and if we keep pulling, we will exhaust ourselves. We need to learn how to pull and give.
I am willing to give something up to receive something in return. I graduate in a little under two years. I’ll move to abroad to start a new journey, while my younger sister stays here to finish hers. When I imagine myself visiting Singapore 4 years from now for my little sister’s graduation, I wish to return to a Singapore that has mastered the art of harmony and is capable of thriving via environmental sustainability and evolution. There are so many possibilities to make this happen. There isn’t one right answer, there are plenty, and right now we have the capability to make the necessary changes. I stopped eating beef 3 years ago — every small change helps. So what can you do to help?
