Featuring the dreamers and doers who took action to shape the future. They helped to kickstart the SG Youth Action Plan from 2019 to 2020. Each one of them has their own story. Now it’s your turn to write your chapter.
Abbas is the co-founder of Rely, a Singapore-based financial technology company. Having grown up in a lower-income family, he relates to the struggles of youths from vulnerable communities, and cares deeply about giving these youths access to opportunities. Abbas is also part of the Youth Corps Advisory Committee.
Through the SG Youth Action Plan, Abbas strives to engage youths better and support vulnerable groups in building a more caring and inclusive society. Abbas also served as a mentor for the Youth Action Challenge (Societal issues track).
He is also running a mentoring programme, “project firefly” on connecting low-income youths with a group of mentors over a period of 6 months. Through this programme, the youths will have the opportunities to visit places like Google and Facebook, or just to cycle with their mentors.
A free spirit with boundless imagination and a desire to experiment, reinvent and grow, Andrew uses his unique background in psychology with his experience as an entrepreneur, coach, and bartender to create social eco-systems that build on the strengths of the community.
As a SG Youth Action Plan panelist, he has worked with youths in the Eurasian community for over a decade, and has strengthened community relationships by supporting causes that youths are passionate about. His team has conducted workshops on mental health and aims to build a stronger social support system within micro-communities.
He believes that his keen sense of innovation will help drive conversations to actions that will benefit future generations.
Bryan is the founder of several local lifestyle sites including TheSmartLocal, Eatbook, ZULA and MS News, which share the same philosophy of creating positive content for youths. By starting conversations about various societal topics, these platforms have helped shaped youths' perceptions.
As a SG Youth Action Plan panelist and a judge for the Youth Action Challenge (Open qualifiers), Bryan has a passion for causes relating to inclusivity and mental health. He has worked on Youths try Therapy”, “TSL 99 – Youths share the last time they cried”. He also worked with Sylvia to create Singapore’s own “Bandersnatch” on Vision 2025, and is currently working on a TSL x IFPAS video series on financial planning.
Through the SG Youth Action Plan, he has prepared youths for future challenges by giving them a voice and sense of ownership in the community. Ding Yi Music Company organised an online concert on 14 Feb to show concern and support to Singaporeans who are affected by the Covid-19 Virus.
Dedric was also featured in an episode of Channel 8’s “Be my guest”, which highlighted youths who pursued their dreams and took an unusual career path - featuring Dedric's musical journey to becoming an orchestra conductor.
He is currently working with the Purple Symphony to provide a platform for artists with special needs to showcase their talents and celebrate Singapore’s racial diversity by incorporating ethnic music.
Edward is the co-founder and Managing Director of Timbre Group. Through his work at Timbre, he has been supporting and developing Singapore musicians and culinary talents for the past 15 years. He also currently serves on the council of the Ngee Ann Polytechnic Council and Restaurant Association of Singapore.
As the Co-chair for SG Youth Action Plan, Edward strongly believed in developing an individual's talents and potential to the fullest. He is now focused on guiding youths towards community involvement to build a more inclusive and environmentally conscious society. Edward was a panel speaker for the Youth Action Challenge (Environment).
As part of this commitment, Edward is leading the way to build an organic waste recycling installation and also working on First responder for mental health.
Edward currently serves as a Member of Parliament for Holland Bukit Timah GRC since July 2020. He is the Deputy Chairperson of the Government Parliamentary Committee for Manpower and a member of the Government Parliamentary Committee for Finance, Trade and Industry.
Uncontented with the status quo, Rachel studied business and leadership books and started her own online fashion business, Love Bonito, at just age 19. It is now a successful local label that is expanding fast in the region. She was honoured by Forbes as Asia's 30 Under 30 in 2016, and was also a speaker and consultant for the Youth Action Challenge Springboard Programme.
Rachel believes in providing the next generation of Singaporeans with the right support to make their mark, have a voice in issues that matter, and shape the future of Singapore. She cares deeply about women empowerment and has used Love Bonito as a safe space for women to discuss issues and attend workshops.
As many youths aspire to be entrepreneurial but do not know where to start, Rachel also helps provide opportunities and resources that youths can tap on to do so.
Inch is an avid singer-songwriter who has performed at major local and international events (such as the Singapore International Festival of Arts, Singapore F1 Grand Prix, Youth Olympic Games, South By South West, TEDxWomen in Washington DC, Canadian Music Week and many others).
She is dedicated in pursuing her passion and giving back to the community - both of which has earned her a Singapore Youth Award in 2018!
Inch believes that the process is more important than the outcome. She is currently working on an album in collaboration with 3AM collective, featuring a collection of songs from various artistes to de-stigmatise seeking help for mental health.
Rusydi is the co-founder and CEO of Reactor, a company that provides entrepreneurship training for youths. With his passion for engaging youths, he spends most of his time mentoring youth-led startups and designing Entrepreneurship Education programmes for schools. He also served on the board of *SCAPE, and is Singapore's youth delegate to the Commonwealth.
As a SG Youth Action Plan panelist, Rusydi supports issues on inclusiveness, future of education, youth entrepreneurship, development of small businesses and encouraging youths to be Asia Ready. He organized the Edu2025 Policy Hackathon, which is Singapore’s first education policy hackathon designed for educators and student leaders, supported by MCCY, NYC and MOE.
Chang Wen is the co-founder and CEO of Ninja Van, Southeast Asia’s leading technology-enabled logistics company. As an SG Youth Action Plan panellist, Chang Wen believes in the need to create the right platforms and opportunities to represent the views of young Singaporeans. He led a panel discussion together with Tech-in-Asia on “Youth in Tech: What Singaporeans should know when building a career in a fast-growing industry”.
The engagement looked at how youths can be confident in navigating the future economy amidst technological disruption. Chang Wen also took part as a panelist in a ‘Future of Education’ Conversation organised by Access Singapore, encouraging the youth audience to source for more internship and work experiences as grades do not necessarily translate to eventual work performance.
Gavin is a Principal Geotechnical Engineer and a member of the BCA Young Leader's Programme, who actively contributes to the community and is driven to support youth causes. He gives back by volunteering with the Association of Consulting Engineer’s Youth Profession Connection Executive Committee, grassroots organisations and events.
His passion for youth causes include strengthening youth aspirations in the engineering industry, and building a Singapore identity that youths can relate to.
As co-founder of Night Owl Cinematics (NOC), Sylvia has five registered companies and an impressive social media presence - all of which earned her a place in the inaugural Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2016.
Beyond her fun and wacky online persona, she is a strong believer in giving back to society. She has engaged youth sector organization leaders on mental health issues and got involved as a key partner for Beyond the Label Festival organized by National Council of Social Service (NCSS). She has also hosted talk shows to support digital engagement efforts, such as one with the co-founder of Carousell on future of work and pre-budget with SMS Janil, and an upcoming one on mental health.
A special episode she ran on “Do It For The Money” has also helped to increase awareness of causes like inclusivity and active citizenry, motivating youths to step and be a part of it.
Additionally, together with Chang Wen and Wendy, they are leading an ambitious #SGpaysitforward initiative to encourage Singaporeans to support the vulnerable communities in light of COVID-19. The drive aims to deliver 100,000 care kits containing sanitary essentials to low-income households.
Swedha serves as Chief Networks Officer of Advisory, a youth-led non-profit organisation dedicated to help youths make informed career and further education choices, and a judge for the Youth Action Challenge (Societal Issues track). She is also a member of mental health collective Your Head Lah!, a grassroots volunteer, and a legislative assistant to a Member of Parliament.
Swedha cares deeply about building an inclusive society, and exploring issues surrounding mental health - especially on reducing the stigma and strengthening a peer support network. She was also involved in Penggal on Vasantham to introduce contributions of minority women made to Singapore.
Former Senior Minister of State Sim Ann is the co-lead for the SG Youth Action Plan panel, and served as a Youth Action Challenge judge.
She encourages youths to step up and lead changes they want to see in our society, and has organised collaborations between youths, community partners, and the Government through partnerships and policy-making in support of mental health! A platform that she supports is The Youth Mental Well-being Network, that was formed with the aim to drive change in the area of mental well-being for youths.
Wendy currently leads the Youth Development Unit at the National Trades Union Congress (also known as Young NTUC). She and her team provide avenues for youths to achieve their goals through career-based and cause-based programmes, often working alongside youth workers to gain a better understanding of their needs and aspirations.
Wendy desires to help youths navigate the journey of their working lives, from discovering career paths to securing better career prospects. She was a mentor to teams who participated in the Youth Action Challenge (Jobs and Future of Work), and one of her bigger commitments to this would be LIT: ASEAN, to help youths to navigate into the ASEAN job market.
Her team has also been actively supporting and caring for the frontline workers who have been working tireless to combat Covid-19. Over the course of 2.5 weeks, Young NTUC rallied over 180 volunteers in packing and distributing more than 15,000 care packs for workers across industries.
Additionally, together with Chang Wen and Sylvia, they are leading an ambitious #SGpaysitforward initiative to encourage Singaporeans to support the vulnerable communities in light of COVID-19. The drive aims to deliver 100,000 care kits containing sanitary essentials to low-income households.
Shafiee has dedicated his life towards youth causes, engaging with at-risk youths, and working with ex-offenders and their families. As CEO of Majulah Community, he leads a team of changemakers to empower youths from diverse backgrounds and lead changes in the community. He finds that adopting a sense of responsibility is the first step to building a community that cares for one another.
He strongly believes that all youths should be given a chance to harness their true potential, and is running a mentoring programme for youths from the Boys and Girls Home in partnership with 3 social enterprises.
Shafiee also served as a speaker for the Youth Action Challenge (Societal Issues track).
Shahira is an Orthodontic Registrar at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, a mentor for the Youth Action Challenge (Jobs and Future of Work track), and a dedicated youth leader. She joined the Mendaki Club (MClub) in 2014, where she co-founded The Numbers Story, a project that aims to bridge the learning gap by teaching Mathematics to children from lower-income families through storytelling and technology. She previously served as one of the Vice-Presidents in MClub, focusing on career development.
Shahira is passionate about building a more inclusive and compassionate society, and believes that the SG Youth Action Plan will empower youths to mould the Singapore that they envision. To do so, Shahira runs the MClub career mentoring programme to help promote representation of Malay/Muslims in competitive industries.