Some 90 people turned up for the first Be An Idea Vision, a platform for Singaporeans to hear from socially conscious individuals who are working for positive change in Singapore.
An informal two-hour event held on the last Wednesday of every month, it is the brainchild of Be An Idea (www.beanidea.com), which aims to spread inspiring social narratives. Its goal is to build a deeper understand of key issues in the local community and how they are being addressed, as well as to foster relationships between professionals with similar goals and values.
The inaugural session of Be An Idea Vision was held at a packed Artistry Café along Jalan Pinang. It saw six guests presenting in the Pecha Kucha style, where each individual is allotted 20 slides, with 20 seconds per slide. This means that each presenter has a total of six minutes and 40 seconds to showcase his or her ideas and experiences.
First to speak was Simon Wong, the man behind In Her Shoes, an arts and music community fighting the scourge of cancer. Mr Wong related the story of how he slipped into depression and illness following his wife’s death from stomach cancer in 2008. But he eventually pulled himself together to found In Her Shoes, which has now grown into a three-day long arts festival.
Next up - Mohamed Abbas Sheyed Ebramsa, project director of culinary school Gourmet Guru Academy. Noting that many families here live on less than $1,500 a month, the Nanyang Technological University undergraduate spoke of the school’s efforts to train low-income homemakers to become culinary teachers, in order to earn extra money.
Jean Loo of content creation studio Logue spoke next. Logue aims to build strong narratives across different media – film, photography and print – and works on creative projects with a social bent.
Kathy Xu represented Dorsal Effect, which aims to stop the trade in shark’s fins in Lombok, Indonesia. Currently based in Lombok, Ms Xu works to help shark fishermen there find a sustainable alternative livelihood through eco-tourism. Her goal: for tourists to come to Lombok on a daily basis, so that the shark fishermen can turn to eco-tourism for good.
Audience members like project manager Cheow Xin Yi had come specially to hear Ms Xu’s talk. Ms Cheow volunteers with migrant workers NGO TWC2, and is also interested in conservation issues. She says: “It’s good that the event managed to gather a group of people who can inspire change, and it gets like-minded people together, so it can spark off change.”
Meanwhile, Kokila Annamalai of women’s advocacy group Aware took on the issue of violence against women, noting that at least one in 10 Singapore women will face physical violence in their lifetime. Ms Annamalai is the campaign coordinator for We Can!, an anti-violence campaign that began in South Asia and was launched in Singapore last year.
Last to speak was Zhang Tingjun of The Chain Reaction Project. Co-founded by Ms Zhang and three friends in 2009, the group’s goal is to use adventure as a platform to create positive change in the region. It has worked on diverse causes such as human trafficking and infant mortality.
Mariko Shiomi, who is currently between jobs, was also in the audience, and says the event has gotten her thinking about the various issues presented. She notes: “It was very informative. I was very inspired by how many Singaporeans out there are doing so much for these various causes. It makes you think about how you can do your part.”
Ms Zhang’s parting shot perhaps summed up the spirit of the event best: “Don’t underestimate your ability to be a catalyst for change.”