Rapid biodiversity change is contributing to the spread of old and new diseases, increased vulnerability of food systems and supply chains, and growing threats and costs to economic productivity. Climate change and environmental degradation have amplified this problem in Southeast Asia. Yet one of the most consequential drivers of rapid biodiversity change has been the historical introduction of alien species and their naturalization and establishment. Focusing on the history and current status of naturalized species, our SSRC-funded two-year project will address how and why rapid biodiversity change and its historical vectors impact health security, food security, and economic security in Singapore and Southeast Asia. We will employ digital humanities methods and new historical source materials to answer these interrelated questions.

Our project builds on an HSS Seed Fund (Collaborative Research), which was awarded to ARI in January 2020.

Project partners include: Yale-NUS College, NUS Libraries, Singapore National Parks Board, Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, National Library of Singapore, and Oxford University Museum of Natural History.