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Singapore Internet Research Centre (SiRC)
Director: Professor Ang Peng Hwa
Deputy Director: Associate Prof Margaret Tan
Launched in January 2004 and hosted at the Wee Kim Wee
School of Communication and Information at Nanyang
Technological University, Singapore, the Singapore Internet
Research Centre (SiRC) is recognized as a premier Asian
research institute on the new media. SiRC initiates and
conducts research related to new media/internet across Asia,
including East, Southeast, and South Asia and brings Asian
experiences and perspectives to the global discussion about
the development, impact, and potential of the Internet. SiRC
focuses research attention on the experiences of Asian
nations with the Internet. The SiRC associates engage in a
wide variety of collaborative research efforts with other
researchers around the globe.
SiRC is currently headed by Professor Ang Peng Hwa and
receives its core funding from the School.
Vision
• To be a key node for internet and new media
research in Asia, covering social, political, and
cultural impact of information technologies
• Bring Asian experiences and perspectives to the
global discussion about the innovation, development
and impact of the internet and information
technologies
Mission
• Initiate and conduct research related to the internet
and new media across Asia
• Supported through the following strategic thrusts:
- Education (including training)
- Service (including consulting)
- Public policy advocacy
Research Activities
A top-flight research centre should have activities in four key
areas: research, education, service and public policy
advocacy.
In research, SiRC has produced a commendable list of
publications and conference presentations. SiRC has in the
past few years spearheaded numerous research projects,
conducted workshops and conferences, hosted visiting
fellows, all of which have helped build our international profile
and media contacts. In teaching, faculties are involved in
bringing state-of-art knowledge to the classroom. In training,
workshops have been held for the internet community, such
as, for example, workshops on the legal issues facing
bloggers. In public consulting and policy advocacy, faculties
were present in the high-level Advisory Council for the Impact
of New Media on Society (AIMS) and contributed to the final
report of the Council.
Designed to support research projects that will strengthen the
body of methodologically sound and theoretically-based
social science research in Information and Communications
Technology and Development (ICTD), the Strengthening
ICTD Research Capacity in Asia (SIRCA) research grants
programme, one of the latest and biggest grant award to-date
to SiRC by the International Development Research Centre, is
to build research capacity among emerging principal
investigators based in Asia – particularly those who would
benefit from seed funding, exposure to research capacity
building exercises, and interaction with mentors. SIRCA is
currently funding 14 grant awardees, reaching out to
emerging ICTD scholars in 8 Asian countries (Philippines,
India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Cambodia, Nepal and
China) and established networks with ICTD experts in 6
countries (US, UK, Philippines, India, Hong Kong and
Singapore).
The SiRC is well placed to continue to work on our primary
task of investigating the impact of new media on society, with
emphases on Singapore, and Asia. The importance of
understanding the social impact of such new media forms as
interactive digital media (IDM) has been recognized by the
Singapore Government and two senior members of the
Centre are in fact contributing to the first report of the Advisory
Council on the Impact of New Media on Society (AIMS).
SiRC will continue to look for new ways to improve the
Centre’s local and international profile, research projects as
well as media contacts through meaningful projects.
School Research Centres
College of Business (NBS)
Centre for Accounting and Auditing Research (CAAR)
Director: Professor Tan Hun Tong
Mission
To promote quality academic and applied research in
accounting and auditing as well as to foster links with industry
through joint research and consulting.
Research Activities
• Planning, conducting, and providing administrative
support for research on significant issues relating to
accounting or auditing
• Organising research seminars, workshops, round-table
discussions and forums on emerging or controversial
issues affecting the accounting and
auditing profession
• Circulating working papers and other monographs to
disseminate research findings amongst academics and
professionals
• Organising or supporting the organisation of local
and regional accounting conferences for academics
and professionals in the Asia-Pacific region.
• Please refer to http://www.isarhq.org/ for details of
the International Symposium of Audit Research (ISAR)
Centre for Asia Pacific Technology Law and Policy
(CAPTEL)
Director: Associate Professor Tan Soo Kiat, Harry
Mission
The Centre for Asia Pacific Technology Law & Policy is an
interdisciplinary research centre founded to explore the
challenges of new technologies on the development of law
and policy so as to promote development of its role in the Asia
Pacific Economies.
CAPTEL is a research centre located in Nanyang Business
School, Nanyang Technological University. It is one of the first
technology law and policy centres in the world to be founded
in a business school. It is within the fertile environment of
business academia and industry that the centre’s early days
were sown.
As a result, CAPTEL was created specifically be a centre for
research and consultancy in technology law and policy for the