http://app2.nea.gov.sg/emag/ en-us In 2008, Singapore disposed of 2.63 million tonnes of refuse - enough to fill about 310 soccer fields up to an average man's height of 1.7 m. At this rate, our 704 sq km country would have long been overrun by garbage. With such limited land area and high population density, it is not surprising that the disposal of solid waste poses a major challenge in Singapore. The strong economic growth achieved in the last 30 years of development has also resulted in a big increase in waste. In 1970, about 1,300 tonnes per day of solid waste were disposed of. This had increased to 7700 tonnes per day by 2001, a 6-fold increase from 1970. So why is it then, that we do not see huge mountains of refuse outside our bedroom window each morning? This is where the National Environment Agency (NEA) comes in. http://app2.nea.gov.sg/emag/ Hawker centres have become such an integral part of Singapore living that one cannot imagine a life without them. Here we take a look at their evolution, their unique characteristics and also at the systems that make this unmistakable part of Singapore culture work. But first we have a chat with three people, each of whom has played a part in hawker history. http://app2.nea.gov.sg/emag/issue1/