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Volunteer hub among ideas at first SGfuture session

SINGAPORE — The SGfuture engagement series kicked off today (Nov 29) with 100 youth leaders and young working adults brainstorming for ideas for Singapore’s future.

Participants at the SGfuture engagement series using playing cards in an ice-breaker segment to introduce themselves to one another. Photo: Don Wong/TODAY

Participants at the SGfuture engagement series using playing cards in an ice-breaker segment to introduce themselves to one another. Photo: Don Wong/TODAY

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SINGAPORE — The SGfuture engagement series kicked off today (Nov 29) with 100 youth leaders and young working adults brainstorming for ideas for Singapore’s future.

Organised by the National Youth Council (NYC), the participants were aged between 16 and 35 years old, and came from a range of backgrounds, from working in the private sector (22 per cent) to members of Youth Corps Singapore (35 per cent).

They were split into six groups to discuss ideas such as the future of security, building an empathetic society and creating opportunities for youths from all backgrounds.

Among the ideas to emerge at the session was having a volunteer hub to share resources for volunteering programmes. Ms Murugiah Komala, marketing manager of social enterprise Project Dignity, which works with the disabled and disadvantaged, said a volunteer hub would make it easier to people to start volunteer programmes and or take part in them. For example, it could serve as a database, said Ms Komala, 27, who was in the group discussing how to build an empathetic society.

Final-year Temasek Polytechnic student Andria Tan, who was part of the group discussing opportunities for youths, said her group talked about why people are happy in their jobs. “We want to find out how they can be satisfied in their jobs even without earning a good pay,” said the 19-year-old, who is also part of the Youth Corps Singapore.

Speaking to reporters, Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs and National Development Desmond Lee said there was a “diversity of views” during the session.

“You cannot expect (from) one session (to have) a confluence of ideas. In fact you want the diversity to drive a momentum forward, added Mr Lee, who is also chairman of the Youth Corps Singapore Advisory Committee and Council Member of the NYC.

He also described the sessions as a “call to action” rather than a dialogue session. “We want people to take up projects, to take up collaborations with each other and with government and civil society and to make things happen,” he said.

Another four sessions will be held this month, including one Tuesday by Halogen Foundation Singapore on empowering youths from underprivileged backgrounds. The public can go to www.singapore50.sg/SGfuture for more information.

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