Resources

Beyond cultural philanthropy: The art of making a difference

Last month’s Patron of the Arts event was a spot of sunlight at a time of gloomy Covid-19 headlines. The fact that Singaporeans – individuals as well as corporations – are still strongly supporting our arts groups in cash donations as well as with in-kind gifts was a heartening takeaway for everyone who cares for the arts and cultural scene in our country.The annual awards – alongside a similar counterpart in the heritage sector – are a meaningful way to thank those w

picture of lew chee beng and chua thian poh

Meet Singapore’s newer philanthropic foundations: They give millions, seeking to spark social change

Lew Chee Beng (left) founded the Lew Foundation in 2015, while Chua Thian Poh and his siblings set up the Chua Foundation in 2015.Self-made businessman Lew Chee Beng, 73, is giving away a substantial part of his fortune through a foundation. Since he founded the Lew Foundation in 2015, it has donated more than $12 million to charitable causes. Mr Yeo Puay Hin, the foundation’s executive director and Mr Lew’s son-in-law, said of his father-in-law: “He came from humble beginn

Our Annual Report 2021 is now available for download

We are pleased to share that the Community Foundation of Singapore (CFS) Annual Report 2021 has been published. Download your copy here to learn more about the year’s highlights and our impact on the community. Even as the pandemic gripped our nation, we are humbled to report that – together with our donors, charities, and partners – CFS delivered a year of bold action and made tremendous progress on our mission to facilitate impactful giving. Read Next

a group of people wearing face masks walking in on the streets

CFS is 3rd largest philanthropic foundation in Singapore

They were immigrants who became titans of industry and philanthropists in their own right. Now the legacies endowed by and named for some of Singapore’s richest tycoons – the Lee, Lien and Shaw foundations – continue to be some of the biggest givers to charity here.All three were among Singapore’s 10 largest philanthropic foundations, according to a report released last month. Read Next The report found that the 10 spent a total of $189 million in the

CFS’ LaLa Café Series: Wellness Talk and Mindfulness Practice

CFS’ LaLa Café is a virtual place to learn, socialise and rejuvenate for everyone at CFS. It is conducted by our employees, partners, and vendors to cultivate a growth-driven and dynamic work environment.For the latest edition of LaLa Café, we invited Desmond Lim, psychotherapist, wellness advocate, and coach from Mind Culture to share about Mental Wellness and Mindfulness Practice. Read Next Desmond shared that deep breathing exercises can help reduce an

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

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 s

Collaborative Giving to build Community Mental Health Champions

The Community Mental Health Champions Initiative, a collaborative project by the Community Foundation of Singapore (CFS) and Empact and supported by our corporate partner. It aims to recruit, train and retain 1,000 community mental health champions. Through this initiative, we will build a pool of mental health champions. These champions will actively support the sandwiched generation with a listening ear and signposting to professional services when needed – helping more peo

picture of a wooden bench and wooden table

CFS’ LaLa Café Series: Sustainability begins at home

CFS’ LaLa Café is a virtual place to learn, socialise and rejuvenate for everyone at CFS. It is conducted by our employees, partners, and vendors, to cultivate a growth-driven and dynamic work environment.For the July edition of LaLa Café, the theme was sustainability. One of our colleagues, Adam Reutens-Tan, a Principal Consultant at CFS with a personal passion for sustainability, introduced sustainability and how philanthropy could play a part. Read Next

Donor-advised funds can make a meaningful impact in Asia

Such funds give donors more say in the philanthropic process, and can lead to donors being tipped off about underfunded causes. These funds also make it possible for non-millionaires to do their bit.WHAT do Jack Dorsey, Larry Page, Elon Musk, Jack Ma and Mark Zuckerberg have in common in terms of their charitable giving? Read Next All of them have used donor-advised funds (DAFs) in short. DAFs are popular in the United States, with over US$140 billion sitting

LIFT (Learning Initiatives for Employment) Community Impact Fund – Training and increasing employability for marginalised groups

The Learning Initiatives for Employment (LIFT) Community Impact Fund (CIF) from the Community Foundation of Singapore (CFS) provides social enterprise funding to enable disadvantaged groups to obtain training in order to be more employable. The funding provided has allowed two social enterprises, the Bettr Barista Coffee Academy and Dignity Kitchen develop a more standardised training programme for their students, as well as expand the number of training places available to ai