It was a simple question she asked at the end of an interview with us, but what Professor Ooi Giok Ling got us to consider became the starting point of Reclaim Land.

We first learnt about her through her book The Future of Space. It guided us in the course of pursing the stories on this website and showed us another side of Singapore we had failed to see. When we finally met her for an interview, her warmth and hospitality touched us. From the vigour and delight she took in answering our questions, we failed to see that she was already battling an illness then.

So it took us by surprise when we learnt that she departed this week on 5 October 2009. We only knew her through her writing and that one encounter, but we think she has left those living in this city that changes so quickly and easily an important question to ponder, “Whose city is it anyway?”.