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Learning Initiatives for Employment (LIFT) Community Impact Fund – Training and placing marginalised individuals into stable jobs
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Learning Initiatives for Employment (LIFT) Community Impact Fund – Training and placing marginalised individuals into stable jobs

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The Learning Initiatives for Employment (LIFT) Community Impact Fund (CIF) was launched in 2019 by The Community Foundation of Singapore (CFS), which provides vocational training and socio-emotional support for marginalised individuals in Singapore before placing them into jobs.

CIFs are flagship programmes established by CFS in partnership with charities to address unmet needs or under-supported social issues in Singapore. It takes a ground-up approach to understand the needs of care recipients and outcomes they care about to ensure that they would truly benefit from these programmes.

LIFT is designed to leverage the expertise of social enterprises in terms of job coaching and job matching. These programmes support persons with disabilities, persons recovering from mental illnesses, disadvantaged women and youth-at-risk who face challenges finding jobs and keeping them. 

In partnership with Bettr Barista and Project Dignity, LIFT saw 115 people receiving training at Bettr Barista Coffee Academy or Dignity Kitchen from April 2020 to March 2021. Ninety-one participants completed the training, and of those who had completed the course, 73 people were successfully hired, with 55 managing to remain employed for more than three months.

To support the LIFT Community Impact Fund, visit here. Read the media release here.

 

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The competition was organised by City Harvest Community Services Association and received support from FUN! Fund, a Community Impact Fund jointly established by the Community Foundation of Singapore and the Agency for Integrated Care, with the aim of addressing social isolation among the elderly.

Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Communications and Information & Ministry of National Development Mr Tan Kiat How attended the event. He encouraged the elderly to stay physically and mentally well, as well as urging them to participate in community activities and enjoy their golden years together.

Learn more about FUN! Fund at https://www.cf.org.sg/fun-fund/.

 

The programme provides the children with a non-threatening platform to connect with peers and have positive conversations. In addition, it exposes them to different people who can assist to broaden their perspectives.

L.S., a volunteer with the Reading Odyssey programme @ Spooner Road

中心“常胜将军”胡锦盛:比赛限时反应要快

现年92岁的胡锦盛是最年长的参赛者。自2017年退休后,他几乎每天都到活跃乐龄中心报到,从此爱上了玩拉密,每次可玩上三个小时,在中心是“常胜将军”。

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CFS wins inaugural award for contributions to the community care sector

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cfs receives prestigious Friends of Community Care Awards 2020, recognizing their outstanding contributions to the community.

The Community Foundation of Singapore (CFS) is one of twelve organisations selected to receive the inaugural Friends of Community Care Award 2020.

Launched by the Agency of Integrated Care (AIC), the award honours organisations outside of the community care sector who have contributed to the community care sector.

CFS is honoured to have been selected by a distinguished judging panel, comprising veterans from the Community Care Sector, as well as representatives from the Ministry of Health and AIC.

A Friend in Crisis

The COVID-19 crisis in Singapore was the catalyst for a series of conversations between CFS and AIC. With early cases of COVID-19 being reported from February to March 2020, CFS approached AIC to see how CFS could support the sector as it faced with new and unprecedented challenges.

Through these conversations, CFS was constantly receptive to AIC’s feedback on areas of need amongst community care providers. As a nod towards CFS’ appreciation of community care workers, CFS took the first step of sponsoring the first Tranche of Staff Appreciation to boosting staff morale and welfare.

Through CFS’ new community impact fund, the Sayang Sayang Fund, CFS was able to fundraise and provide targeted support for vulnerable communities impacted by the COVID- 19 pandemic.

Keeping seniors safe was one key priority. CFS’ timely and forthcoming support helped Community Care providers focus on managing the situation and safeguarding the interests and wellbeing of seniors.

Bolstering the Sector

With almost $8 million raised through the Sayang Sayang Fund, CFS’ work helped to provide more donations for the sector. This has greatly enabled community care providers to provide sustained support to their beneficiaries amidst the COVID-19 situation.

“When CFS worked on supporting the vulnerable in the community during the pandemic, winning an award was the last thing on our minds,” says Catherine Loh, CEO of CFS, “While it is wonderful to receive positive affirmation, what is more valuable is the great partnership we have struck up with AIC to realise our objectives of improving the quality of life of our people.”

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit dolor

The competition was organised by City Harvest Community Services Association and received support from FUN! Fund, a Community Impact Fund jointly established by the Community Foundation of Singapore and the Agency for Integrated Care, with the aim of addressing social isolation among the elderly.

Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Communications and Information & Ministry of National Development Mr Tan Kiat How attended the event. He encouraged the elderly to stay physically and mentally well, as well as urging them to participate in community activities and enjoy their golden years together.

Learn more about FUN! Fund at https://www.cf.org.sg/fun-fund/.

 

The programme provides the children with a non-threatening platform to connect with peers and have positive conversations. In addition, it exposes them to different people who can assist to broaden their perspectives.

L.S., a volunteer with the Reading Odyssey programme @ Spooner Road

中心“常胜将军”胡锦盛:比赛限时反应要快

现年92岁的胡锦盛是最年长的参赛者。自2017年退休后,他几乎每天都到活跃乐龄中心报到,从此爱上了玩拉密,每次可玩上三个小时,在中心是“常胜将军”。

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News

Lianhe Zaobao: By encouraging participation in interest groups to improve skills, youth collective helps students plan their careers

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People showcasing how to pitch a tent

王晓亚
工艺教育中区学院的谭嘉燕参与学校的户外探险兴趣小组,成功克服恐惧完成绑紧跳,并学到野外求生技能,让她在职业规划上多了选择,考虑未来成为一名露营指导员。

一次绑紧跳的经验,让19岁的谭嘉燕在成长过程中经历改变,也用所学到的新技能为未来职场做好准备。

谭嘉燕目前就读于工艺教育中区学院人力资源与行政系一年级,因喜欢户外活动,两个月前加入学校的户外探险兴趣小组,并跟许多其他科系的同学一起参加为期三天的户外露营。

其间,参与绑紧跳让她印象深刻。她说,自己原本就惧高,从没想过有朝一日会有勇气从七层高楼跳下去。“以前参加过的露营,只要是高空项目我都无法完成。但这次同学和指导员不断鼓励我,我就跳下去了。”

跳下的一瞬间,谭嘉燕对于自己的勇气感到惊喜,战胜恐惧后也更有信心面对生活的挑战。

此次别具意义的户外露营经验,也让谭嘉燕学会如生火、煮饭、搭帐篷等不少野外求生技能,让她在未来职业规划中有了更多选择。“兴趣小组还与企业或机构合作,让我在之后有机会去实习和进修,也许未来能够成为一名真正的露营指导员。”

户外探险是新加坡青年影响组织(Singapore Youth Impact Collective)旗下项目的兴趣小组之一,该组织昨早于工艺教育中区学院为两个新项目及一间名为“APTITUDE”的新活动中心举行开幕仪式。

青年影响组织在2017年由樟宜基金会、触爱社会服务及新加坡社会基金会等六家企业组成,目的在于通过鼓励工教院的学生参与不同兴趣小组,教导相关技能,帮助他们提升专业课程之外的职场技能。

除了兴趣小组,新开幕的APTITUDE活动中心设有沙发、会议桌、电玩机及多款桌面游戏卡牌等休闲设施,是学生课余时间交流玩耍的安全场所。

截至目前,青年影响组织已为项目投放近100万元运转资金,开放给年龄介于17至25岁的工教院学生。主办方希望在未来三年内让230名学生受益。
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Tan Jiayan of ITE College Central participated in the school’s outdoor adventure interest group and successfully overcame her fear of bungee jumping, as well as learnt outdoor skills. This in turn provides her with more choices in career planning, and she is considering becoming an outdoor instructor in the future.

The experience of bungee jumping enables 19-year-old Tan Jiayan to develop life skills, and also prepares her for the future workplace with the new skills she has picked up.

Tan Jiayan is currently enrolled as a first year student of Human Resource and Administration at ITE College Central. She likes outdoor activities and joined the school’s outdoor adventure interest group two months ago, participating in a three-day outdoor camp with other students.

The bungee jump left an impression on her. She has a fear of heights, and never thought that she would have the courage to jump from a seven-story building. “In previous camps, I couldn’t complete any high-altitude activities. But this time, with the encouragement of my course mates and instructors, I could do it.”

At the moment of jumping, Tan Jiayan was pleasantly surprised by her courage. After overcoming her fear, she is more confident to face other challenges in life.

This unique outdoor camping experience also allowed Tan Jiayan to learn a range of outdoor skills such as fire-starting, cooking, tent pitching, so that she has more choices in her career planning. “The interest group also works with companies or organisations which may offer me opportunities of internship or further training, and maybe become a real outdoor instructor in the future.”

Outdoor adventure is one of the interest groups enabled by the Singapore Youth Impact Collective, which launched two new programmes and an event centre called ‘APTITUDE’ at ITE College Central yesterday.

The Singapore Youth Impact Collective consists of six organisations including Changi Foundation, TOUCH Community Services and the Community Foundation of Singapore. It aims to help students from the college to improve their professional skills by encouraging them to participate in different interest groups and pick up workplace skills.

In addition to the interest group, the newly opened APTITUDE centre also has leisure facilities such as sofas, conference tables, video games and a variety of table games. It is a safe place for students to socialise and play in their spare time.

Up till now, the Singapore Youth Impact Collective has invested nearly $1 million in operating funds to support the programmes which are open to students of ITE colleges between the ages of 17 and 25. The organisers hope to benefit 230 students over the next three years.

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit dolor

The competition was organised by City Harvest Community Services Association and received support from FUN! Fund, a Community Impact Fund jointly established by the Community Foundation of Singapore and the Agency for Integrated Care, with the aim of addressing social isolation among the elderly.

Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Communications and Information & Ministry of National Development Mr Tan Kiat How attended the event. He encouraged the elderly to stay physically and mentally well, as well as urging them to participate in community activities and enjoy their golden years together.

Learn more about FUN! Fund at https://www.cf.org.sg/fun-fund/.

 

The programme provides the children with a non-threatening platform to connect with peers and have positive conversations. In addition, it exposes them to different people who can assist to broaden their perspectives.

L.S., a volunteer with the Reading Odyssey programme @ Spooner Road

中心“常胜将军”胡锦盛:比赛限时反应要快

现年92岁的胡锦盛是最年长的参赛者。自2017年退休后,他几乎每天都到活跃乐龄中心报到,从此爱上了玩拉密,每次可玩上三个小时,在中心是“常胜将军”。

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Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book.

Events

Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) Family Office Circle Webinar: Philanthropy in Singapore and the Region

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The Community Foundation of Singapore’s (CFS) CEO, Ms. Catherine Loh, was invited to speak at a virtual closed-door Family Office Circle event titled Philanthropy in Singapore and the Region on the 22nd of July, organised by the MAS-EDB Family Office Development Team[1] in partnership with the Asia Philanthropy Circle (APC) and CFS.    

The event was attended by 55 international and local participants, involving single family offices and family foundations who had either set up or are setting up a presence in Singapore.

Ms. Kelly Teo, Deputy Director and Head of MAS’ Banking Development Division, observed in her opening remarks that there was an increasing interest among single family offices, especially those involving the next-generation, to give back to society such as through  philanthropy. This sentiment is corroborated by the UBS Family Office report 2020 which found that philanthropy is becoming the most important activity by the time of the third generation. However, many were unsure about how to start and who to give to. The Family Office Circle event was hence organised to share with single family offices about the philanthropy landscape and giving opportunities in Singapore and the region.

The crucial role of Philanthropy in Singapore

CFS’s CEO Ms Catherine Loh participated in a fireside chat, hosted by Ms. Stacey Choe, the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of APC on Singapore’s philanthropy landscape, its gaps and opportunities.

Catherine spoke about the need for philanthropy in Singapore, despite being widely regarded as a wealthy country. She explained that due to the widening income gap, social inequality is deepened in our society, and philanthropic donations are needed to provide relief to those in need and to find long term solutions to reduce social inequality. 

While Singapore does not have absolute poverty, relative poverty is a concern here. Research has shown that a family of 4 needs between S$2,500 to $2,950 a month in gross household income to live decently. 

The Covid-19 pandemic has hit the lower income more seriously than those with higher incomes.  The lower income and less educated are likely to find it challenging to pivot and adapt to a workplace that is changing due to technological advancements.   

Singapore also requires solutions to a rapidly ageing society.  Other critical areas of need would be looking at issues related to mental health and environment.  All these issues are critical to the future stability of Singapore.

When asked about how we could support those who are most in need, Catherine answered that she would prefer donors to ask what kind of social change they would like to see instead. She said that asking that question would lead to effecting long term change, for instance, helping the poor to get out of the poverty cycle.

Catherine also extolled the benefits of participating in philanthropy, citing that families who engage in it together are happier and pass down shared values to the next generation. Philanthropy also reduces the income gap and promotes cohesion in countries, and benefits the rest of the region as well through exchange of expertise and the replication of successful philanthropic pilot programs.

A Donor’s Giving Journey

Catherine was delighted to have Mr. Govind Bommi, the Founder and Chairman of Filtrex Holding Pte. Ltd, to share his inspiring giving journey as a donor of CFS and what motivated him to give.

CFS donor Mr. Govind Bommi came from very humble beginnings. He was born in Bangalore, India, to a family of six children who lived off a single income.

Despite his family’s modest background, it was his mother’s generosity towards the beggars who came to his house in the evenings that made the deepest impression on him. It was her philosophy towards helping others that struck a chord with him and formed the basis of his own giving nature, leading to the founding of the Andal Cares Fund, named in honor of his mother.

Mr. Bommi now considers Singapore his home, after moving here 20 years ago. He set up a water filtration and purification company, and says it’s best to participate in the community that one lives in and find out how best you can help others. Currently, Mr Bommi’s Andal Cares Fund is administered and managed by CFS, and supports rehabilitation programmes by the Metta Association. 

The Philanthropy Landscape in the region and its opportunities

The CEO of APC, Ms. Mafruza Khan gave an introduction to APC and the work that they do while COO Ms. Stacey Choe spoke about the philanthropy landscape in the region, its key trends and opportunities to build a better Asia through philanthropy together. She also shared about the unique challenges that philanthropists faced in Asia and suggested how philanthropists can convene together and collaborate to catalyze the necessary changes.

If you would like to learn more about philanthropy giving in Singapore, read here.

[1] A strategic partnership between the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Singapore Economic Development Board.

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News

Three rising economic identities of women

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The world is far from being equal and fair for women, and the Covid-19 crisis has amplified this disparity.

As the global Covid-19 vaccine roll-out promises light at the end of the tunnel, the world is still accounting for the pandemic’s disproportionate impact on women and, consequently, the sacrifices they have made during this time – whether it is at work or at home.

Singapore recognises this and has declared 2021 as the Year of Celebrating SG Women. Meanwhile, this year’s theme for International Women’s Day on March 8 is “Women in leadership: Achieving an equal future in a Covid-19 world”.

How can we enshrine women’s economic value through permanent action, thus forging a new dawn for working women post-pandemic?

The world is far from being equal and fair for women, and the crisis has amplified this disparity. Women form 39 per cent of global employment but account for 54 per cent of overall job losses, according to McKinsey Global Institute. Covid-19 has also made women’s jobs 1.8 times more vulnerable than men’s jobs.

In a Deloitte Global survey that polled 400 working women across nine countries, nearly 82 per cent said they had been adversely impacted by the pandemic – largely due to shouldering more caregiving/homeschooling responsibilities. Of these, nearly 70 per cent were concerned about career progression.

Yet the fundamental human right of gender parity presents a critical economic opportunity. Righting the imbalance will help increase women’s economic participation and foster a more inclusive economy, which can drive sustainable development worldwide. This could mean adding US$13 trillion (S$17.3 trillion) to global gross domestic product (GDP) in 2030, according to McKinsey. But if nothing is done, global GDP growth could fall by US$1 trillion in 2030.

To counter this disparity and create an equal future for women, corporate and government policies must support women’s full economic participation. To do this, we should recognise three formidable identities of women: as worker, consumer and investor.

Women as workers

When schools in the United States resumed last September and instituted home- based learning, 80 per cent of the 1.1 million job-leavers were women. In December, women lost 156,000 jobs while men gained 16,000. To top it off, one in four women in the US is considering leaving the workplace due to challenges created by Covid-19, according to a joint report by McKinsey and LeanIn.org.

If issues are not addressed now, there would be fewer women leaders in the future.

Suffice it to say, there is still no equal pay for equal work. Singapore women still earned 6 per cent less than their male peers for doing the same work, according to a January 2020 report by Ministry of Manpower researchers Eileen Lin and Grace Gan and National University of Singapore economist Jessica Pan.

This is despite more women having higher educational attainment and increased workforce participation. Researchers attributed this difference to caregiving, a role that usually falls on women. Time taken off work leads to gaps in work experience, which affects career progression and earnings.

The gender pay gap was also due to women being more prevalent in sectors such as hospitality and healthcare having lower pay, compared with male-dominated occupations such as doctors and science, technology, engineering and mathematics professionals with typically higher pay.

Company and national policies should be designed to retain women workers. They should include tools for women to work remotely, retrain if necessary, maintain work- life balance as well as paid-leave policies that encompass childcare and eldercare.

In Singapore, a change in whole-of-nation/society mindset to share domestic responsibilities more equally is underway, with incentives for firms to adopt flexible work arrangements and increase paid paternity leave. This is significant, given the deep-rooted Asian mindset of gender stereotypes, and could pave the way for other Asian nations to follow.

Women as consumers

By 2030, 100 million more women will enter the global workforce, according to Frost & Sullivan’s Global Mega Trends to 2030.

This means that economic and financial power will shift significantly towards women. In fact, a Nielsen study showed that women are set to control 75 per cent of discretionary spending by 2028. Not only do they shop for themselves, they generally are in charge of household purchases. And if they like a brand, 85 per cent of women will remain loyal to it, Nielsen reported in 2018.

Yet media campaigns have been found lacking. In a 2018 study by Omnicom Media Group that surveyed 1,000 people, 39 per cent felt that advertising did not represent all genders accurately and 30 per cent said that brands misrepresented them and their gender.

Meanwhile, advertisements in Singapore were six times more likely to show women doing housework than men, and men were 32 per cent more likely to be featured in lead roles, according to a 2018-2020 study by Aware and marketing consultancy R3 of 200 television ads from Singapore’s top 100 advertisers.

Companies that pay heed to their messaging are duly rewarded. At Unilever, non-discriminatory advertising created 37 per cent more brand impact and a 28 per cent increase in purchase intent, a 2019 study by market researcher Kantar showed.

Upmarket exercise equipment company Peloton found this out the hard way. In November 2019, it released a 30-second video that showed a husband giving his wife a Peloton stationary bike. Critics slammed it for being sexist, tone-deaf and even dystopian. The backlash may have contributed to Peloton’s 15 per cent stock drop in three days, or about US$1.5 billion loss in market value. Peloton stood by its ad and insisted that the plunge was unrelated.

Companies that target the female audience should also track the percentage of women in managerial positions as well as on their boards. After all, companies with greater gender diversity were 25 per cent more likely to outperform their competition, McKinsey found in a 2020 report.

Women as investors

According to Boston Consulting Group, women are adding US$5 trillion per year to their assets globally and female-owned assets are likely to reach US$93 trillion by 2023. When making investment decisions, the study also found that while men mainly focused on an asset’s track record, women also considered environmental, social, and governance factors and preferred those that created positive impact as well.

Men were more willing to invest in speculative stocks that they believed would make money more quickly, but women preferred funds with a consistent record and diversified their investments, according to Warwick Business School’s 2018 study of 2,800 British men and women. The result of women’s more deliberative approach: Their returns were nearly 2 per cent higher than that of men’s, Warwick found.

As women accumulate more wealth, they are also challenging traditional notions of philanthropy. In the US, 93 per cent of high-net worth women gave money to charitable causes, compared with 87 per cent of men, according to the 2018 US Trust Study of High Net Worth Philanthropy.

Whereas donations used to be attributed to their husbands or made anonymously, women are becoming more visible on the philanthropic scene as they carve their own identities as a philanthropist, as seen in the case of Mrs Melinda Gates and Ms Priscilla Chan.

Women are also more inclined to give collectively and this has led to a proliferation of giving circles, where donors pool and decide together the allocation of proceeds. They also prefer to give to causes supporting girls and women, which they feel is most effective in addressing other societal issues, the Trust Study found.

Pre-Covid-19, the World Economic Forum estimated it would take 257 years to close the gender gap. Even as the world continues to grapple with the crisis, it is even more paramount now to take a gender lens in socio-economic policies with women playing a pivotal role in the post-pandemic economic recovery.

Trina Liang-Lin is Singapore’s newly appointed representative to the Group of Twenty for Women’s Economic Representation. She is past president of UN Women Singapore and the Financial Women’s Association, past vice-president of the Singapore Council of Women’s Organisations and past co-chair of BoardAgender.

Trina serves on the Board of the Community Foundation of Singapore since 1 September 2018.

Credit: The Straits Times © Singapore Press Holdings Limited. Permission required for reproduction.

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