NTU Asian School of the Environment

Avoided deforestation projects are one of the most popular nature-based climate solutions — the idea being that if we keep forests standing, we keep carbon out of the atmosphere.

But forests aren't just carbon storage units. They're living ecosystems: habitat for countless species, water and soil regulators, and home to local and Indigenous communities.

Undergrad alumni and research assistant Kelly Ong took a closer look at 133 projects across the globe through five indicators of ecological integrity — and found that while some projects maintained aspects of ecological integrity, others showed no additionality… or worse.

Carbon-focused protection doesn't guarantee ecological integrity.

📄 Read Kelly's full paper, published in Nature Climate Change — link in our bio.

Green sea turtles have just been reclassified by the IUCN from "Endangered" to "Least Concern."

But why are researchers still concerned?

Because a population can look healthy on paper - and still be quietly fragile. If a large population of turtles have low genetic diversity, a single new disease or a climate shift could end up becoming a bigger threat than previously imagined.

PhD candidate Aaron Espinosa is studying green sea turtles across Singapore, Hong Kong, and Florida to understand not just how many are left, but how genetically equipped they are to face whatever comes next.

📍 Hear directly from our researchers this weekend!
Find us at the ASE booth at the Festival of Biodiversity 2026 — free entry, no registration needed.

🗓 6 June 2026 | 10am–12pm (Turtles & Genetics)
🗓 7 June 2026 | 10am–7.30pm (Leaf Litter & Invertebrates)
📌 The Plaza, National Library Building

The dirt beneath your feet in a city park might just be hiding species unknown to science.

Prof Weng Ngai from and undergrad Jiayuan from have been sifting through the leaf litter of Singapore's forests and urban parks and found at least 10 new centipede records and 7 new millipede records for Singapore, with up to 8 species potentially new to science entirely.

Some of these undescribed centipedes weren't only found deep in primary forest — they turned up in re-landscaped urban parks like Botanic Gardens, Yishun Park, and Bishan-AMK Park.

Leaf litter isn't just dead leaves. It's a living system — decomposing, cycling nutrients, supporting the invisible workers that keep ecosystems running. And it turns out, we've barely scratched the surface of who lives there.

🔬 Research conducted in collaboration with Cities of Tomorrow project.

📍 Come meet our researchers this weekend! Find us at the ASE booth at 2026 - Free entry, no registration needed!

🗓 7 June 2026 | 10am–7.30pm (Myriapod Samples to see!)
📌 The Plaza, National Library Building
Myriapods Centipedes Millipedes LeafLitter

Did you know critically endangered hawksbill turtles are nesting right here in Singapore — at East Coast Park and Sentosa? 🐢

Researcher Dr Lyndsey is studying how rising temperatures from climate change could impact sea turtle populations in the future. The work that she and her colleagues at ASE's Genomics lab sheds key insights on conservation of turtle species around the world.

🌊 Meet Dr Lyndsey and fellow researchers from NTU's Asian School of the Environment at NParks' Festival of Biodiversity 2026!
📅 6 – 7 June | 10am – 7.30pm
📍 The Plaza, National Library Building

Urban growth is accelerating—but what are we losing in the process?

By 2050, cities across Southeast Asia are expected to expand rapidly—largely by converting forests and croplands.

Dr .hua ’s research highlights a critical trade-off:
👉 Urban expansion is driving significant carbon sink loss
👉 Land use change is increasing CO₂ emissions globally
👉 We still lack spatially detailed projections to fully understand these impacts

The bigger question:
How do we design cities that grow without erasing the natural systems they depend on?

Catch Dr Ronhgua's presentation at the Union General Assembly 2026:
🗓 Wednesday, 6 May 2026
⏰ 2:35pm

🔗 Link in bio for more faculty talks and sessions.