Singapore's demographic diversity was the driving force for the
country's founding leaders as they forged a nation. They sought to
navigate the many differences in the country's ancestral, social and
cultural affiliations even as they embarked on the urgent task of
nation-building. A decade into the new century, many of the country's
traditional understandings of differences are being challenged, even as
new differences, spawned by immigration, new media and globalisation,
emerge.The Singapore Perspectives 2014 conference considered the
consequences of both historical and emergent differences, based on the
understanding that race, language, religion, economic status, age and
countries of origin will continue to shape Singapore's society and
economy. The conference proceedings contain contributions from prominent
speakers such as Singapore Minister of State for Education Sim Ann,
Associate Professor Kwok Kian Woon, Dr Leslie Teo, Professor David Chan
and the points of debate on the question whether consensus or contest
will underpin Singapore's future from Professors Kishore Mahbubani and
Chua Beng Huat.