socialservice.sg presents: "Before the Ballot"

With Chen Weiwen, the founder of Eyeviser (https://eyeviser.com/), which offers 360-degree eye-care to companies and the public*, we chat about the three big ideas on the future of eye-care and eye-health. First, the shift from treatment to prevention. Second, the role of tech-powered prescription checks. And third, the personalisation of eye-care. (*This is corrected from an earlier version of the preamble.) This episode is part of "The Future of..." series of the podcast's fifth season (https://socialservice.sg/podcast/). The feature photo is by Ng Shi Wen.

As part of Save.Me (https://www.screeningstatistics.com/saveme/), Prof. Rosie Ching and her students interviewed almost 3,000 folks in Singapore for the country’s first national survey on suicide. We ask her about the suicide stigma index, the key findings, as well as relevant policy and practice directions.This episode is part of "Making Research Sense" series of the podcast's fifth season (https://socialservice.sg/podcast/). The feature photo is by Ng Shi Wen.

Today, as part of our “Civic Engagement and Action” mini-series, where we speak to folks about expanding communities and spaces for sustained civic engagement and political participation, I am joined by our co-host, Isaac Neo, a political and security risk analyst. We chat briefly about his GE2020 newsletter and his involvement in a number of other Singaporean initiatives and organisations before diving into his thesis, titled “Pragmatic resistance as counter-conduct: Civil society advocacy in Singapore”. He details how actors in the environmental and migrant worker sectors use non-confrontational and technocratic methods and shift between cooperation and contestation vis-à-vis the state. Past episodes referenced in this episode include: #GE2020 Raising socio-political literacy and civic engagement in Singapore (CAPE’s Huang Runchen and Joel Yew) Intersectional climate justice, climate change and its unequal effects, and aspirations for a low-carbon Singapore The history of the making of youth – and the history of the present – in youth-conscious, youth-centred Singapore: PhD candidate Edgar Liao This episode is part of the "Civic Engagement and Action" series of the podcast's fifth season (https://socialservice.sg/podcast/). The feature photo is by Ng Shi Wen.

Today, as part of our “The Future Of…” mini-series, where we chat about big ideas with Singaporeans engaged in social initiatives in Asia and beyond, I am joined by our co-host, Samantha Lee. Samantha is the founder of StoneSoup Partners, an early-stage fund that invests in companies that do well by doing good in emerging markets in Africa and South East Asia. She shares her big ideas about the future of building truly scalable companies to solve the world’s biggest problems, through a marriage of purpose and profit. This episode is part of "The Future of..." series of the podcast's fifth season (https://socialservice.sg/podcast/). The feature photo is by Ng Shi Wen.

“What is something that brought you joy today?” That’s the question one is encouraged to contemplate as one explores the website of HappyUrns (https://happyurns.org/), an initiative to help different groups of Singaporeans engage meaningfully with death and end-of-life topics with their loved ones. With team members Amanda Swee and Adya Sadanand, we have a thoughtful conversation about their three projects - "Residents' Urns", the "Celebration Kit"; and the "Life in a Year Book" - and for each project you’ll hear powerful stories and reflections of their design experiences and interpersonal interactions. This episode is a great complement to an earlier episode with representatives of “Both Sides, Now”, who work to normalise end-of-life conversations through artistic projects and public engagement. HappyUrns is currently running a competition titled, "Reinterpreting the Urn: A Symbol of Celebration" (https://happyurns.org/a-happy-urns-competition/). Singaporeans of all ages and backgrounds are welcomed to create a design to give "new and personal meaning to the urn and transform it into a symbol that represents celebration and appreciation of life.” This episode is part of "Making Research Sense" series of the podcast's fifth season (https://socialservice.sg/podcast/). The feature photo is by Ng Shi Wen.

Last year, the Lien Centre for Social Innovation published Singapore’s first nationally representative food insecurity study, finding that about 10 per cent of Singaporean households experienced food insecurity at least once in the last 12 months. This year, the centre's updated, second part of "The Hunger Report" explored two related questions. First, what is the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on food insecurity in Singapore? And second, how can the unique needs of food-insecure families be met? We take a deeper dive into the report with members of the report team, Dr. Dalvin Sidhu, Dr. Tania Nagpaul, and Ms. Ng Weng Lin. This episode is part of "Making Research Sense" series of the podcast's fifth season (https://socialservice.sg/podcast/). The feature photo is by Ng Shi Wen.

Using two child cohorts, Dr. Jonathan Huang and his team at the Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences at the Agency for Science, Technology and Research sought to understand - in a journal article - the lifestyle changes experienced by Singaporean children after the country's circuit-breaker as well as the potential long-term outcomes. In our conversation, we learn more about the research findings and methodology, future directions, and the potential practice and policy implications. This episode is part of "Making Research Sense" series of the podcast's fifth season (https://socialservice.sg/podcast/). The feature photo is by Ng Shi Wen.

Inspired by the short story “SIN” in Singaporean writer Ng Yi-Sheng's collection “Lion City” (https://epigrambookshop.sg/products/lion-city), “What’s the Matter, Mr. Monster” (https://www.ministryofmonsters.sg/) is a dialogue-driven game where one role-plays as a civil servant settling complaints of otherworldly creatures settling into Singapore. With director Roshan Singh Sambhi, we dive into its genesis at Sing Lit Station's Sing Lit Blk Party, features of the game, and its potential for community and civic engagement. This episode is part of the "Civic Engagement and Action" series of the podcast's fifth season (https://socialservice.sg/podcast/). The feature photo is by Ng Shi Wen.

Social enterprise Wateroam (https://www.wateroam.com) has been working to build a world without prolonged thirst, and today with one of its co-founders Lim Chong Tee we want to push the conversation a little further, by challenging him to share his big ideas about the future of water and water scarcity. After that, we talk about Wateroam’s plans in the next five years, and then the next 50 years, before rounding up with his personal development and his thoughts on the socio-political situation in Myanmar in relation to the work of the growing social enterprise. This episode is part of "The Future of..." series of the podcast's fifth season (https://socialservice.sg/podcast/). The feature photo is by Ng Shi Wen.

Since 2013, "Both Sides, Now" (https://www.bothsidesnow.sg/) has sought to normalise end-of-life conversations, by creating artistic projects and engaging Singaporeans at public locations such as hospitals, town centres, senior homes, and HDB void decks. Last year, in 2021, the project researched and engaged the Malay-Muslim community, culminating in the "Kata-Kata Kita" variety show (https://www.bothsidesnow.sg/programme). And behind this endeavour was a multi-disciplinary team of creatives and researchers, four of whom are with us today. With artistic director Kok Heng Leun, lead artist Adib Kosnan, creative producer Ngiam Su-Lin, and research team member Siti Hazirah Bte Mohamad, we chat about the genesis of "Both Sides, Now", the experience of staging the "Kata-Kata Kita" variety show, and the project's upcoming public engagement programme in Bedok this year. This episode is part of the "Making Research Sense" series of the podcast's fifth season (https://socialservice.sg/podcast/). The feature photo is by Ng Shi Wen.