Living in Singapore Magazine - October/November 2020

October - November 2020

A Phoenix Rising A story of triumph from one of our own

Tra v el Bummed It’s OK not to be OK about travel restrictions

Thanksgiving in the Tropics

Singapore chefs and their take on the holiday LIVING IN SINGAPORE 1

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Check Out What’s Happening!

Every month, AAS brings its members a wide variety of events that are either discounted or member-exclusive.

Sign up online to book your spot at our October and November offerings!

Coming This October and November Coffee Connexions Join a small, but perfectly formed group for morning coffee at Crossroads Cafe where you’ll have the opportunity to make new connexions and catch up with old ones too.

Resilience During Career Transition Get insight into the concepts and the effective strategies for being resilient during a career transition.

LinkedIn Profile Optimization Learn about the importance of optimizing your profile for job searching and how recruiters and hiring managers use LinkedIn to source for talent.

At the Table: A Networking & Career Group for Women “Working Within the New Normal: Creating A New Working Model” Working from home is the new norm. Come explore how to plan for and shape this new way of working.

Our Regular Monthly AAS Events Coffee Connexions – make new friends and catch up with old ones over coffee Third Thursday – gatherings, talks, quiz nights and more, every third Thursday of the month Metworks – lunches and happy hours with our networking group for men Men’s Tennis – looking for a men’s tennis ladder? We’ve got one for you!

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who we are Being a person is tough.

We’re not really informed of this and neither are we encouraged to discuss it in any great detail.

People are generally quite uncomfortable with confronting sadness and despair and, very often, even mild emotional responses and sensitivity have a stigma against them. We are told we’re oversensitive or unable to take a joke. So it’s no surprise that when it comes to talking about mental health or mental illness, we often clam up.

October 10 is World Mental Health Day and this is the main reason that the cover feature of the October/November issue of Living in Singapore is about living with mental illness. I had the privilege of talking to our columnist and AAS friend, Andrea McKenna Brankin, about triumphing over bipolar disorder and her soon to be published book, Bipolar Phoenix. It was truly humbling and inspiring to hear her speak so candidly about what she has gone through, of her quest to destigmatize talking about mental health and of how she’s not just survived, but thrived.

What particularly struck me at the end of the interview was Andrea’s comment that mental illness doesn’t discriminate; anyone of any age, gender, nationality, ethnicity, educational background or belief system could be affected. If there is anything that the pandemic this year has taught us, we’ve all at some stage and on some level ‘felt’ it. Being in isolation is hard. We’ve been cut off from family and friends and likely to have felt down about this. In a special travel feature, we talk to expats who have opened up about their experiences of being isolated and the prevailing message is: It’s OK not to be OK when it comes to the travel restrictions. And we’re united in that.

The theme of this year’s World Mental Health Day is ‘kindness’, so on October 10 - and, in fact, on any other given day be kind to yourself and those around you.

We’re doing alright.

Have a great couple of months ahead.

Editor-in-Chief Katie Baines

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EDITORIAL Editor-in-Chief: Katie Baines communications@aasingapore.com Publishing Editor: Christi Novomesky generalmanager@aasingapore.com LAYOUT Graphic Designer: Silvia Ong graphics@aasingapore.com ADVERTISING Advertising Manager: Thila Chandra san.ads@aasingapore.com COLUMNISTS Julian Chua, John Hamalian, Richard Hartung, Dee Khanduja, Andy Lee, Amanda Lim, Andrea McKenna Brankin, Laura O’Gorman Schwartz CONTRIBUTORS Muhammad An-Nur, Katie Baines (for AAS), Asif Chowdhury, Vir Cohelo, Didi Hari Krishnan, Adam Hodgkins, Laura Hubbard, Ken Nabors, Heidi Sarna, Marc Servos, Josette Ungos, Susan Williams, Militsa Yaneva AMERICAN ASSOCIATION BOARD MEMBERS President: Blair Hall Vice President: Michael Johnsen Treasurer: Ashok Lalwani Secretary: Brian Schwender Directors: Holli Feichko, Jeff Gaines, Jason Iafolla, Caitlin McNeal Immediate Past President: Stephanie Nash AmCham Chair: Dr. Hsien-Hsien Lei The American Club President: Richard Hartung AWA President: Debra Minnock SACAC Chair: Jeff Majestic SAS Chair: Tom Boasberg Non-Voting Members: US Embassy: Brian Himmelsteib US Military: Rear Admiral Joey Tynch AAS: Christi Novomesky PUBLISHER – AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF SINGAPORE The American Association of Singapore (AAS) is a professional, not-for-profit organization established to enhance the well-being and living experience of Americans residing in Singapore and to promote relationships, both business and social, between Americans and those from different cultures and nationalities. admin@aasingapore.com • www.aasingapore.com.

Living in Singapore magazine is circulated six times per year, with a readership of 24,000, with the purpose of enhancing the expatriate experience in Singapore.

SUBSCRIPTION A subscription to Living in Singapore is complementary with an AAS or CRCE membership. AAS annual family membership is $120. CRCE membership is $220.

To join, visit www.aasingapore.com and have Living in Singapore magazine delivered to your home. Reproduction in any manner, in English or any other language, is prohibited without written permission.

Living in Singapore welcomes all contributions of volunteer time or written material. Living in Singapore is printed by Ho Printing Singapore Pte Ltd. 31, Changi South Street 1, Changi South Industrial Estate, Singapore 486769. Living In Singapore magazine Print Permit No. MCI (P) 058/06/2020.

what’s in...

8 Rising Above Mental Illness Feel inspired by one woman’s triumph over bipolar disorder

22 Limitless Hours of Local Literature Delve into the hidden gems on Singapore’s literary scene

24 The Lesser Known History of Sun Yat Sen Discover the huge impact on China’s history from a little corner of Balestier

34 Travel Grief

8

Relate to the universal feeling of isolation during COVID-19

40 Thanksgiving with Singapore’s Top Chefs Loosen your belt and tuck into your Thanksgiving feast!

22

24

34

40

Cover photo by Katie Baines

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community calendar

American Association & Sister Organizations Events

Message from the President Welcome to our October/November issue of Living in Singapore magazine!

At this time of year, we all are well into our seasonal rhythms of work, school, family and social events.

Halloween, and then Thanksgiving, are just around the corner and the ‘winter’ holidays will be here right behind.

Although family rhythms certainly are different this time and holidays may well be celebrated differently.

Around Thanksgiving our family tradition is to consider the things for which we’re grateful. For all its inconvenience, uncertainty and concerns, I find myself thankful for some of the things I have gained in this time of COVID. The lockdown brought our family together again, allowing me to spend time with our 20-something year old daughters and to get to appreciate the young adults they have become. While the five-person limit has killed large social events, I am thankful for those cozy home dinners with a few dear friends – something we’d almost never done in seven previous years in Singapore. And I am glad I got over my fear of missing out to stay home to read that book I’d been meaning to polish off. I am not thankful for the couple extra pounds I gained and still am unable to work off because my gym’s restrictions make it too hard to schedule convenient time.

Although 2020 has presented challenges to connecting with friends and family, the COVID restrictions have served as a catalyst for AAS to help members both forge new and foster existing relationships. We have been thrilled to partner with our sister organizations to produce member-exclusive virtual events and seminars, on topics such as ‘Politics with Steve Okun’ and keeping kids safe online, which we co-hosted with the American Club. Most notable was the highly successful virtual program, ‘International Women’s Day 2020: Celebrating Women in a Time of Crisis and Adversity’ which we did in partnership with the American Club and the American Chamber Commerce, and which also included a new collaboration with The Canadian Chamber of Commerce and Canadian Association of Singapore.

For now, virtual offerings are what we can do to support the community.

Looking ahead to a broader Phase 3 easing of restrictions, we are excited by the prospect of a full slate of programs and events in which people actually are in the same room in addition to virtual gatherings. We plan to launch a variety of inventive networking and interest-driven programs for members, as well as resume events steeped in traditions of the American community in Singapore, such the gala George Washington Ball.

This is your Association. We would love to hear your ideas and know your interests so we can offer our members the best.

Stay safe, be healthy, and keep your fingers crossed that this viral threat soon will recede and restrictions will be eased. See you on the street.

Blair Hall AAS President

American Community Organizations Directory AAS aassingapore.com American Dragons americandragons.sg

AmCham amcham.org.sg +65 6597 5730 AWA awasingapore.org +65 6734 4895

Sacac Sports afl.sacac.com

Navy League nlus.sgp.org

SAS sas.edu.sg +65 6363 3403

TAC amclub.org.sg +65 6737 3411

Scouts BSA Scouts Troop 7B: bsatroop07.org BSA Scouts Troop 10B and 1010G: facebook.com/BSATroopX Cub Scouts Pack 3010: sites.google.com/view/sgtroop10/home Cub Scouts Pack 3017: SGPack3017@gmail.com USA Girl Scouts: singaporeusagirlscouts.org

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US Embassy sg.usembassy.gov +65 6476 9100

American Association of Singapore (AAS & CRCE) Coffee Connexions October 7 & November 4, 10 – 11:30am Resilience During Career Transition October 29, 10am – 12pm LinkedIn Profile Optimization November 12, 10am – 12pm At the Table: A Networking & Career Group for Women November 24, 6:30 – 8pm American Dragons Singapore Dragon Boat (Kallang Basin) Tuesdays 6:30am – 8:00am Saturdays 3:00 pm – 5:30pm Outrigger (WaveHouse at Siloso Beach, Sentosa) Wednesday 6am – 8am Friday 6am – 8am Sunday 7am – 9pm American Women’s Association (AWA) Volunteering: Willing Hearts Soup Kitchen October 22, 12pm – 3pm Listen Ladies Wine Check-In October 29, 4pm – 5pm Singapore American School Fall break October 12 – 16 Thanksgiving (SAS holiday) November 26 & 27 The American Club JMS Wine 101 October 10: White Wine October 17: Red Wine October 24: Rosé Wine October 31: Sparkling Wines and Champagne, 4pm – 5pm

notable events Coffee Connexions Join a small, but perfectly formed group for morning coffee at Crossroads Cafe where you’ll have the opportunity to make new connexions and catch up with old ones too. There’s no fee to join, but attendees are required to purchase at least one drink/coffee (minimum). Attendees will receive a 20% discount on food and beverage purchases. Maximum group of five people.

Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel, 320 Orchard Road, October 7 & November 4, 10 – 11:30am Resilience During Career Transition The COVID-19 pandemic has caused many companies to undergo restructuring where many professionals are in career transition. This workshop introduces the concepts and the effective strategies of being resilient during a career transition. Several self-care and career transition tips will be offered to job seekers and those in career transition during the pandemic.

October 29, 10am - 12pm, online LinkedIn Profile Optimization LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional online network and it is changing the face of the job search globally. This session will outline the importance of optimizing your profile for job searching, and how recruiters and hiring managers use LinkedIn to source for talent.

Tips and strategies for creating an optimized profile will be shared to ensure that you can leverage your skills and experiences to connect to opportunities.

November 12, 10am - 12pm, online At the Table: A Networking & Career Group for Women “Working Within the New Normal: Creating A New Working Model” Working from home is the new norm, and in our November session, we will explore how to plan for and shape this new way of working.

November 24, 6:30-8pm, online One-to-One Career Counselling Need a little personal advice? From career guidance to CV reviews to honing your interview skills, our experienced Career Advisors can help you achieve your goals, online! Book your virtual session now with our Career Advisors, James Kwan or Dee Khanduja by contacting our CRCE Manager at crce@aasingapore.com.

Various dates and times available

This Is Your Association What do you want to see on our program of events to have fun, give back and be involved? Email our Events Manager, Madeline Critchley, at events@aasingapore. com - we’d love to hear your ideas!

member benefits Drinks & Co. 20% discount on all food items. Offer valid at Holland Village outlet only. Through November 30, 2020.

Tel: 9619 4568.

Reservations recommended.

Estheclinic 10% discount for all their treatments. Through November 30, 2020. Tel: 6221 4797. T&C applies.

Hard Rock Cafe (Singapore & Sentosa) 15% discount on food and beverage upon showing your AAS membership card. Through December 30, 2020. Tel: 6235 5232 (Singapore), 6795 7454 (Sentosa). T&C applies.

Hedger’s Carpet Gallery 10% off professional carpet cleaning and restoration services.

Free high-quality underlayment with every purchase at our store (while stocks last). Through December 30, 2020.

Tel: 6462 0028. T&C applies.

Lawry’s The Prime Rib 15% discount for à la carte food bill for dine-in only. Tel: 6836 3333. T&C applies.

Morton’s of Chicago Complimentary cocktail or mocktail (one per diner) and one complimentary dessert per table. Applicable to the main dining room only. Through December 30, 2020. Present AAS membership card to enjoy. Tel: 6339 3740.

T&C applies.

QB Food $20 e-voucher with a minimum spend of $150 for home delivery, use code ‘Newbie’. The code is for single-use and new members to QB Food.

Qua 15% off regular items. Free delivery within Singapore Island for items above $100.00, otherwise, a $20 delivery charge applies.

Promo code: AAS2020.

Promotion valid through December 31, 2020. www.qua.com.sg T&C applies.

Shanti Residence, Nusa Dua, Bali AAS Members get 15% off room bookings directly. Quote AASSHANTI. Tel: 6338 2069.

T&C applies.

Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel AAS members enjoy a 25% discount on F & B. Present AAS membership card to enjoy. T&C applies. Tel: 6735 5800.

Solescape Shoes AAS members enjoy 15% discount on their purchase of a pair of shoes. Valid till December 31, 2020. T&C applies. Tel: 6464 8654

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up close and personal with...

Michael Johnsen, Arpin International Never has the adage “I get by with a little help from my friends” been more apt in the last few months. This August, the AAS team rolled up its sleeves, got packing and moved out of the Scotts Road office, allowing us to assess where will work best next. It’s thanks to AAS Vice President and Vice President for Asia Pacific at Arpin International, Michael Johnsen, though, that we have somewhere to store all of our office paraphernalia in the interim. Michael took time out of his busy schedule of storing and shipping households around the world to talk to us about what goes on at Arpin International.

How did you become involved with AAS? New to Singapore, our family was attending the famous 4th of July Celebration bash held at SAS. AAS has made this such a great tradition to find a slice of Americana in Singapore. It was a blast – games and entertainment for the kids, a live band, lots of great food and drinks!

Like all of the American community and supporters, we really missed that this year with COVID-19 cancelling large gatherings.

What does your day look like at Arpin International?

COVID-19 has really stirred up the pot in a number of ways, but we have kept busy. Frankly, that has mostly been moving families back to their home countries, although some countries are difficult to get back into. I think one ray of light is that most of those repatriations were normal ‘end of overseas contract’ rather than layoffs which we hear so much about and make the departure more difficult to accept.

What are the considerations in choosing a relocation company over arranging a move yourself?

Arpin has been operating for 120 years - just a little older than Singapore Amercan School. And a bit older than the Association’s favorite American US Marine Sergeant Bill Hook - a 95 year old World War II vet living in Singapore. We are very grateful to be contracted to so many of the largest MNCs in the world as our clientbase, so we have to uphold extremely high standards and we realize that everything we do is reflective of our reputation in the local, regional and global market.

For an international move, it’s challenging, if not next to impossible to move yourself, so it’s always suggested to do due-diligence on researching your selected mover. Ask all of the questions you have in order to make yourself comfortable.

How long does the cycle of moving from Singapore to another country take?

We do literally move families to and from everywhere - Arpin also handles the diplomatic corps of the US Department of State - but the majority of our corporate moves are to and from the US. Those will typically take six to eight weeks from door to door, including packing and Customs clearance in the US, through to delivery.

One COVID-19 “shock” is that the price of air-freight has skyrocketed as the supply of air-cargo space has reduced significantly. So we have to forewarn and be transparent about these charges. We certainly hope that this air-cargo situation changes sooner than later!

What are your tips for people planning a big move?

Time is always an issue for families as there is so much pressure with everything. Concerns range from worrying about what it’s like at home - preparing for reverse culture-shock in the best of times is challenging - down to even the basics of plane ticketing, with many families currently prefering to book flights with layovers in countries with lower COVID-19 presence.

I think that if you or your company has selected a reputable moving firm, you may depend on them to take on some of those pressures and manage the entire move well, leaving you to sit back and finally relax. We are a service business, so it’s our job to make sure that you are comfortable.

AAS Strategic Partners We would like to extend our thanks to our strategic partners at the Association for their continued support and contribution.

Centennial Partners

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Eagle Partner

HORIZ D A R K B L U E R G B 3 3 , 4 2 , 9 2 / H T M L # 2 12 A 5 C R E D R G B 2 3 7, 2 8 , 3 6 / H T M L # E D 1 C 2 4

Community Partner

Rising Above Mental Illness An interview with Andrea McKenna Brankin

When the topic of mental health comes up, it isn’t uncommon for people to wince, even just a little.

Talking about mental health is tough; to this day, it still holds stigma surrounding weakness and being unable to cope, and going to therapy or taking medication are, at times, even thought as taboo. But if the stigma is to end, then talk, we must.

And that’s exactly what Andrea McKenna Brankin does in her book, Bipolar Phoenix. She talks. She talks frankly, not only about the pain that came with living with bipolar disorder, but how she triumphed and continues to rise above her mental illness.

In a very open and honest interview with Katie Baines, Living in Singapore magazine writer and longtime AAS friend, Andrea, shares her quest to tear down stigma linked to mental illnesses, prevailing over bipolar disorder and her challenges with mental health during the writing process of Bipolar Phoenix.

Why is education when it comes to mental health so important to you?

I’ll be honest, bipolar disorder almost destroyed my life. If I could have avoided that by having educational mentoring through a book like mine that someone handed to me, maybe my life would have been different. My life went the way it’s supposed to go, though; I’m here today in exactly the place I’m supposed to be because of everything I went through. It’s important to say this because I want to share my experience to help others.

At first, I didn’t know how to manage my illness and throughout my journey there weren’t very many people to educate me. There was a fairly wellknown author and speaker named Julie Fast who has written books about bipolar disorder, but at the time, I didn’t have a good connection to her work. She was the only author I knew of who had written about bipolar disorder in terms of education.

It’s through my experiences, though, that I’ve been able to do a lot of work speaking about mental health,

© Serena Lander, 2020

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especially in the United States. I worked with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), which is a community education service, alongside the Chicago Police Department. We talked to the officers about how to handle people with mental illness as part of their Crisis Intervention team (CIT) training. The initiative was to help with awareness so that instead of a person being arrested for an infraction that they didn’t have control over, they would be taken to hospital, or the officers would be able to talk them down and help them.

I also lectured at Feinberg School of Medicine Northwestern University, as well as Loyola University and DePaul University in Chicago, in psychiatry and psychology classes. I also did a segment on NBC Channel 5 NEWS in Chicago about living with mental health and also about my psychiatric service dog, Loki.

When I got to Singapore, however, I thought: How can I do the same thing? People would often reach out to me here and say “I know you’re bipolar, can you help me?” After a few years, I finally started a support group that the American Women’s Association (AWA) called ‘Listen Ladies’. The group is not specifically for talking about mental illness, however; it’s about women supporting women where, if you have problems, it’s a safe place to talk.

October 10 is World Mental Health Day. What are the most challenging and important objectives in building awareness about mental health issues?

We really need to break down the stigma of talking about it because there’s so much misinformation.

Only recently, someone said to me that they thought if people were mentally ill, it meant they were of low intelligence, that they couldn’t get their lives together, that there’s something deficient about their ability to think. This is simply not true; people in treatment can live just the same way as everybody else.

Another fallacy is that people with mental health issues are out of control. Yes, people with bipolar can be difficult, argumentative, maybe a little wacky, but this is when it’s untreated. If it’s treated and identified, then they can be in control and can be living a perfectly normal life.

The last thing that I find a lot of stigma against - and this is a big one - is that somehow being out of control means that bipolar people are going to hurt other people. You see it all the time on TV shows, and it is possible for people with bipolar to lash out, but it’s just as possible for anyone at all to snap and do the same.

However, there is this label on bipolar people that they are in danger of losing control and becoming violent, when the reality is that there are really low instances of this.

Me and Loki

Loki’s service dog licence

You’ve written a book about bipolar disorder. What led you to write your book and what are your goals for it?

I don’t want other people to feel what I felt, or to go through what I went through as far as I did without getting treatment. I want them to have education and information that gets them early intervention, so we can help people who are struggling. If I share my story, then it might touch one person and prevent them from losing it all the way I did.

One of my entrance leads to my book is that I’m still here. I’m here and I want to live now. I want to go for it. I want to live with bipolar. I want to go through it because when you’re really suffering you say: “I can’t do it. I can’t take it anymore.” I wanted it to stop and wanted the pain to stop. Treated, though, I said: “What am I going to do about it?” Through talking about it in my book, I hope to let people who are going through the same experiences know that they’re not the only ones and that there are strategies that work.

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Wedding photo 2011

Daughter Georgia’s birth 2012

Bali Waterfall - me in Bali in 2015 at a yoga teachers’ training

12family LIVING INfrom SINGAPORE Disney photo 2018

What have been your greatest challenges in your own journey with mental health while writing your book?

Going through the writing process was hard and I cried a lot. I had to look at my life and, in my opinion and other people’s opinion, I made a lot of mistakes, especially on relationships and money. I had to admit a lot of what many people would consider failure.

I had to be honest in my self-reflection, but one of the things that was especially difficult was going to my friends and family and saying: “What do you think about me when I’m sick?”, “What was it like during those times when I had a suicide attempt, or failed, or blew all my money?”

It’s still hard to hear people say and for me to write, “You hurt me because of what you did”, particularly when it comes to my family, because I was upset with them, too. When I had a suicide attempt, my family didn’t fly out to me in Chicago. I understand now why that happened that way, though: I had hurt them, too.

I was also afraid of what friends who were close to the situation would say to me if I asked them for an interview. There were a few people who did not not agree to an interview, or to answer questions and, for me, that meant it was too hard for them to talk about it. Maybe they didn’t want to say to me: “Hey, you put me through a really difficult situation”, or “This was horrible and I don’t want to talk about it.”

Worrying about what people say is a normal thing in everyday life, but and this is the success part - I made it. I also have no fear about saying or sharing that I have bipolar because I know people often say to me: “Thanks for telling your story.” Their daughter has bipolar, their boyfriend has bipolar, their husband, their wife, their sister, their mom, and I can connect with these people on those levels.

I have failed and I continue to fail in small ways, regularly. I’m OK admitting that because I know the range of complete, total and utter failure and also of meaningful success. The title of my story is Bipolar Phoenix, because I came back several times from destroying my life and being destroyed by bipolar disorder, and that’s a hopeful thought. The subtitle is My F’ed-Up Life and How I Fixed It - I was struggling with that subtitle but my editor said to go with it because that says what it really is.

So was it personal experience that drove the content of the book?

Totally personal experience. The structuring of the book and deciding on content was absolutely based on stories that happened in my life, but all structured around the things that helped me. My chapters start with how I burn to the ground the first time and how I came back from being in hospital after a suicide attempt.

One of the biggest chapters that I start with is how to put together a treatment plan and my story about that. How you find your family, whether it’s your immediate family, your friends, your work family, or maybe it’s your pets.

I had my psychiatric service dog, Loki, who I trained as a service dog for five years. When he died, it was exactly when my husband, Chris, came into my life - they traded places. It took me a lot to write about that because the chapter dedicated to Loki is a beautiful story unto itself. It’s about my best friend who helped me so much. Chris was there when we had to put him down.

I was in a writers group when I wrote that section and I cried hard reading it aloud, but after, the pain went away; that burden was lifted. I hadn’t yet processed that grief and that was three years after he died.

Having a dog and having a psychiatric service dog, though, are two different things. Service dogs are not pet therapy. They are not companion animals and they are not a therapy dog. They do very specific tasks to have that designation as a service dog and in the book I discuss how you would use one and how Loki was trained.

I also talk about how I used exercise to help with my mental health; talking to a professional and my experience of having a therapist and, in fact, many therapists; how I stayed accountable to the world; meditation; getting help managing money; and dealing with the stigma of my illness.

How did you decide what to withhold and what to share?

I’m still in the process of that, especially talking about my family because I want the story to focus on me. If I’m honest about reflecting my view of family and friends back then, it is not exactly the way I see them now. I’m still sensitive about family and what’s important.

I have to think whether something advances the story, or promotes the mental health message, or whether it’s just sensational: What is the value of adding this part of the story? Do I leave it in or take it out? Maybe a reader who went through a similar situation to me will realize it was not their fault if I leave it in the book, but I have to decide if I want that episode in there.

or be a fireman, a doctor, or whatever you want to be.

Maybe it’s working part time, maybe it’s being a mom or a dad. And just that’s it: It’s your goal.

All of those things are possible with proper treatment and managing your illness, however. You can’t just take medication and you can’t just go to therapy.

My feeling, which is apparent with all the strategies I suggest in my book, is that you have to do the work. You have to work on your mental health and your behavior.

You have to work on the patterns of your thinking to help yourself. The magic pill isn’t going to be the only thing; it can stop certain things, but you have to step forward and adjust your behavior to live your best life.

I survived a suicide attempt for a reason and my feeling was to be able to bring this message that there’s hope and that you can have a full life with mental illness. I’m doing it every day.

Andrea writes about mental health and expat issues, as well as lifestyle articles, for several expat publications, including

Is mental health given the support it needs in healthcare systems around the world?

No, definitely not. I know that the World Health Organization is taking more of a look at mental health.

They’re heading in the right direction and they’re starting to see suicide as a worldwide issue. The thing about mental health is it doesn’t discriminate between different races, different genders, different countries, different incomes or different education. Everyone can be affected equally.

I will give anyone in the world credit for doing more to step up and post suicide hotlines on Facebook, such as mind.org (UK), suicidehotlines.com in the United States or the Samaritans (sos.org.sg) in Singapore. Their volunteers are trained to talk to people who are going through that feeling that they want to kill themselves.

The Finder Singapore, Living in Singapore magazine,

and the Bamboo Telegraph.

Bipolar Phoenix will be out this October

and available from Amazon. Find Andrea at bipolarphoenix.com

What message do you have as to what sufferers of bipolar disorder should learn from your book?

I guess I’m a big proponent of saying: Take your medication. It saved my life. I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t medicated with pharmaceuticals. Medication has given people independence, the ability to overcome the symptoms and live a full and normal life.

I also believe in psychology and I think therapy is extremely important.

I want to send the message that there’s hope, too. There’s hope to live with this, to survive this, to carry on and do wonderful things and get married, have kids, have dogs, be a professor,

Me and Georgia LIVING IN SINGAPORE 13

International Women’s Day

Celebrating Women in a Time of Crisis and Adversity

By Norah Rahamim

While

International

Women’s

Day (IWD) didn’t have the same feel this year as it has in recent

our guest panel Professor Tommy Koh

years, the silver lining over our inability to gather together in person, to network, to support and to learn was that we were able to participate in more IWD events around the globe than in any “normal” year.

The IWD event jointly put together by the American Association of Singapore, The American Club, American

H.E. Margriet Vonno

Chamber of Commerce in Singapore, The Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Singapore and Canadian Association of Singapore this year stands out as one of the most interesting events I attended.

The speakers brought with them incredible perspectives on how each of them is moving the agenda forward with regards to women’s rights and equality. The speakers highlighted initiatives within their home countries that are proof of the

H.E. Lynn McDonald

movement around the globe and everything that we are joining together to achieve.

It was incredible to listen to the SAS a cappella group, The Pitches, singing Colbie Caillat’s song, Try . The lyrics of the song end with, “Take your make-up off, Let your hair down, Take a breath, Look into the mirror, at yourself, Don’t you like you?

‘Cause I like you.” An incredibly powerful message to women of all ages to be focused on individuality and uniqueness as one of the superpowers of being a woman in today’s world.

Thank you to all of the organizations that came together to bring a roster of incredible women that are moving our agenda forward both in Singapore and around the globe, with special thanks to guest speakers, H.E. Lynn McDonald, H.E.

Margriet

Vonno,

Tommy Koh.

14 LIVING IN SINGAPORE

Dr.

Hsien-Hsien

Lei

and

Professor

Photos courtesy of The American Club

Dr. Hsien-Hsien Lei

our community

This Is Eagle Country!

By Michael Fuma, twelfth grade student at Singapore American School I think I echo the general sentiment in saying that I was definitely relieved by the loosening of circuit breaker restrictions this summer. I was also overjoyed by the prospect of returning to the Singapore American School campus for my senior year of high school. After a surreal online semester and a bizarre summer for SAS students, staff and families alike, the opportunity to be back in one another’s physical presence was more than welcome.

However, when SAS reopened in August, it wasn’t the feel-good, back-to-normal moment we had all hoped for. Stringent safety measures had been implemented and it became promptly apparent that this was a much different SAS to the one we had left; the one we had envisioned returning to with our rose-tinted lenses. But these regulations are necessary in order to ensure that we can continue attending campus safely, for which we are grateful.

Yet, despite the seemingly draconic new world, what really strikes me is how positivity remains alive in our community. Although we must cover our faces with masks, we continue to smile with gratitude. Notwithstanding the mandatory meter between individuals, we grow closer to each other than ever before. In just my first week back, I noticed fellow students supporting one another in adjusting to this new way of life with the same resilience and optimism that I saw

last semester while distance learning. Our teachers have also adapted admirably to the new rules and continue to work with resolute industriousness, upholding their commitment to helping us thrive. In these unprecedented circumstances, our school community has not lost its indomitable Eagle spirit, nor its culture of extraordinary care.

Indeed, it makes me incredibly grateful to be in this diverse community of resilience and unity in a world where tumult and division currently abound.

As a kid born in the US and raised in Singapore by a Chinese family, I’ve always struggled to answer, “Where are you from?”, and I know I’m not the only one here who does. For many of us expats and third culture kids, the SAS community has become a home away from home. With people hailing from every part of the world, we Eagles have found home on the Little Red Dot, found home at SAS and found home in the community that’s now back on campus; we’re as strong as ever. And at the end of the day, there’s no place quite like home.

Michael Fuma, currently enrolled as a senior at Singapore American School, is an avid writer. He is also the Editorin-Chief of the high school yearbook, Islander.

LIVING IN SINGAPORE 15

ou r c o m m u n i t y

Troop 07 Summer and Fall Activities

By Charles Leroux Nuclear Science, Troop 07 This summer, Troop 07 hosted merit badge sessions to get Scouts started on earning the Dr. William Temple Hornaday Award, originally called the Wildlife Protection Medal. This award is only available to members of the Boy Scouts of America after they earn a minimum of five merit badges, as well as conduct multiple conservation projects. Classes in Nuclear Science, Energy, Public Health, and Wildlife Management were taught this summer through Zoom or in small groups.

Throughout this coming academic year, more merit badges will be taught on topics, such as Bird Study, Insect Study, and Gardening. The COVID-19 lockdown has helped reverse some of the effects of humankind on wildlife. Scouts will also have Camping, Tr more opportunities to work on conservation projects and oop 07 invite their friends, family and peers to join them in saving the environment. This work is another opportunity to keep going forward in our fight for the environment.

Scouts from Troop 07 with new positions of responsibility within the Troop recently underwent leadership training.

Scouts from Troop 07 also had a camp-in. A tent in the living room, cooking on the grill and outdoor activities on the balcony, adapting to COVID-19 protocols while still having fun and working on advancement.

Charles Leroux is a Star Scout in Troop 07. He is passionate about the environment and spearheaded the efforts to get Troop 7 Scouts involved in earning the William T. Hornaday Award.

Outdoor Activity,

Leadership Training 16 LIVING IN SINGAPORE

Troop 07 Photos courtesy of Christin Gustafson

Scouting in the Time of COVID-19

By Sophia Ragland This past summer, I planned to spend ten days at Nepal Adventure Camp in Kathmandu, learning outdoor skills, hiking and working on merit badges. Kinaree was all set to work as a merit badge counselor at Flaming Arrow Camp in Florida, helping BSA Scouts to earn Eagle-required merit badges. Other Scouts from our Troop were going to Camp Tama and Camp Tiger in Japan and South Korea for a week of Scouting fun. Unfortunately, COVID-19 prevented all of those things from happening.

Although we were sad about the opportunities we missed over the summer, we adapted to our circumstances and found other ways to continue our Scouting advancement.

Scouts joined Patrols in online meetings to work on advancement goals and ideas for future Scouting activities. We had multiple Scouts rank up, complete merit badges and earn fitness badges. Scouts worked on the Nuclear Science merit badge with a merit badge counselor from Troop 7. We learned the basics of nuclear science and explored some of its applications. I had fun building a model of a nuclear reactor using recycled materials to illustrate how a reactor works. Other Scouts in our Troop are working on the Photography merit badge with our Scoutmaster, where they will learn about both the technical and creative aspects of photography.

Through virtual demonstrations, two of our Scouts taught essential Scouting skills to a group of Pack 3010 Cub Scouts during the Pack’s virtual camp-in. Calla taught the Cub Scouts how to fashion a sling and brace for broken arms and ankles while Kinaree demonstrated knot-tying techniques. Both lessons helped the young Cub Scouts gain crucial outdoor skills and prepare them for future Scouting adventures.

COVID-19 may have derailed many of our plans this summer, but we still all worked hard, continued to motivate each other and we were able to adapt to our situation by practicing the Scout motto: ‘Be prepared’.

Sophia Ragland is a Second Class Rank Scout and is the Senior Patrol Leader for Troop 1010.

Photos co u

rtesy of Ju li

Photos courtesy

of Melindah Bush

anne Bro wne

LIVING IN SINGAPORE 17

Girl Scout Singapore Discoverer and Expert Badge By Mina Ohuchi Bregman Girl Scout badges are addictive in their appeal, each representing an experience, an activity, friendships and growth. As a leader and parent, I find that I am highly motivated to support my daughter in earning as many badges as possible and I enjoy the process as much as she does.

We discovered a few summers ago that Girl Scouts has a unique badge for many countries around the world. These badges can be earned individually, or by a Troop, and are specific to the country or area you are visiting. For example, last summer while with family, we earned the Hawaii Big Island badge through the local council by participating in various activities, including visiting Volcano National Park, museums and participating in cultural activities. The badge prompted our family to delve more deeply into the area we were visiting.

Needing positivity and motivation as the circuit breaker began this spring, we decided to jump into the Girl Scout Singapore Discoverer Badge. Due to the circumstances, Girl Scouts were allowed some flexibility in experiencing many of the required visits virtually, so we were confident we could earn the first Discoverer Badge before summer, and continue with the Expert badge over the summer.

The Discoverer and Expert badges are laid out in categories which include Culture, Government, Religion/Festivals, Daily Living, Food, Language, Nature, Current Events, Transportation and Historical Singapore. In each category, there are a number of activities or experiences the Girl Scout needs to do to earn the Discoverer level and even more to become Expert.

The COVID 19 pandemic was a perfect ‘Current Events’ topic and we got in a few visits to the zoo, nature parks and other historical sites right before the circuit breaker rules were put in place.

We took advantage of being home and explored most of the religious places of worship through 3D virtual tours, including Notre Dame, synagogues and mosques, and brushed up on our Singapore history and language online. Circuit breaker was also a perfect time to order in different cuisines for the “Food” section of the Discoverer badge cultural crafts like Batik painting were also ideal during our time at home.

Having completed the Discoverer badge right before the opening of Phase 2, my daughter was excited to continue on with the Expert badge, which she is still working on.

Completing a badge like the Singapore Discoverer and Expert badges has given our family a wonderful opportunity to deeply experience and explore the country we live in. Having a purpose to our activities, especially during circuit breaker and a ‘summer in Singapore’ has given a positive perspective to these past few months, deepening our appreciation of what is on offer.

The area specific badges from Girl Scouts are at a glance fun badges to earn while visiting or living in a country or region. However, upon completion, the depth and meaning of the process of earning such badges becomes clear. They really do give opportunities for greater engagement and understanding of the culture, history and daily life of the country or region. As a Girl Scout, such appreciation for understanding and constant learning is a core part of the Scout identity.

Photos courtesy of Mina Ohuchi Bregman

18 LIVING IN SINGAPORE

our community

Humans of the Embassy Sarbhpreet Sawhney, Federal Aviation Administration

My first love is aviation and my second, international relations - although, aviation is inherently an international career.

As a young child, I was immensely fascinated with how things worked. I took apart all my toys and tried to make them fly. To me, it’s a miracle how mankind has found a way to take something that weighs a million pounds, fully loaded, and get it off the ground.

My career took flight as an aerospace engineer working with Boeing 747 cargo freighters. It was at a small cargo leasing firm that I found my global outlook - I was asked to sit in on contract negotiations with international service providers so that I could contribute my engineering expertise.

I joined the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in 2002 as a certification engineer in the New York field office, then moved to Washington DC in 2004 to serve in a policy position. I finally transitioned to my role in the FAA international office in 2011. In between this time, I worked in aircraft certification policy and rulemaking.

My position now as APAC Senior Representative, though based locally, has a regional responsibility for managing bilateral partnerships in aviation safety.

We oversee the 10 State-level bilateral aviation safety agreements (BASAs) in the Indo-Pacific region, one of which is with Singapore, and collaborate with other civil aviation organizations and industry associations.

The highlight of my professional life is successfully leading negotiations on the implementation procedure agreement for aircraft airworthiness under the US-China BASA, which the FAA and Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) had been working on since 2005. The agreement, which was signed in 2017, has been highly celebrated by both civil aviation authorities and industry. The love of flight, coupled with the fact that we contribute to the safety of the flying public globally every day, makes my work extremely rewarding.

I was born in New Delhi but grew up in Dubai. My family migrated to the United States when I was 10 and I was naturalized as a US citizen in the late 90s.

Growing up as a Sikh-American who maintained my physical identity (i.e, the turban and hair) was tough, but those challenges that I faced in my childhood have shaped me. Out of those difficult times, I found respect for diversity and the courage to stand up for what is not right. I found America is a place that truly celebrates diversity. It is, after all, the source of our strength and success as a global leader. These are values that are embedded in our Constitution and the laws of our country – and very much aligned with the values of my faith.

Photos courtesy of US Embassy Singapore

LIVING IN SINGAPORE 19

3. PROBLEM SOLVER What problem are you solving for your audience?

Ask yourself: Why should anyone listen to me? In a noisy online world, your key message needs to be able to add value to your reader/listener/follower fast. If you can define your audience’s pain-point and have a solution for it, then you are well on your way in creating value for your tribe. Remember people buy solutions to problems.

4. CHOOSE YOUR PLATFORM

Top 11 Tips to Boost your Personal Branding Online

By Dee Khanduja Whether you are searching for a job, launching a business, or simply wanting to increase your ‘worth’ in the market, you may want to look at enhancing your personal branding online. Here are my top tips to help you brand yourself as an expert voice, thought-leader, or person of interest to increase your personal power within your network.

1. WHAT’S YOUR STORY? What is your key message, focus or niche? What do you want to be known for? What narrative do your unique stories take?

Having a focal message is important to garner expert status or thought leadership in a specific area. Defining your story can be challenging, but you may find clues around your hobbies, the topics that you care about, or perhaps the issues you wish to raise awareness around. The key is to be authentic and not be swayed by what others are doing online. This is your chance to answer the million-dollar question: Who am I?

2. DEFINE YOUR VOICE Every brand has a certain ‘voice’ in which they communicate their values and their big ‘why’, both internally and externally.

Your personal voice should capture everything from the words and phrases you use, to the tone of your voice, to the style and manner in which you present your stories.

Are you funny, hip, formal, informative, friendly or serious?

Sometimes it can help to look at what you are not. For example, which words and phrases would you not use? What doesn’t sound like you? What tone of voice would you be uncomfortable using?

Remember your ‘voice’ includes all types of communication you put out, from your written to your spoken word. So your social media posts, blogs, articles, videos, interviews, events, marketing collaterals, right down to your business card, will communicate your ‘voice’. Go for authenticity every time.

Which platform(s) will you use to amplify your personal branding?

• Do you wish to be known as a thought leader?

Perhaps Linkedin is a good platform for you.

• Are you a coach who wants to lead a group?

Maybe Facebook is worth looking at.

• Are you creative and want to show off your portfolio? Maybe Instagram is a solid platform for you.

• Are you a fitness buff or love dancing?

Then perhaps Tik Tok is worth getting your head around.

Every platform has its pros and cons. The key question is, which platform is your audience using? And which platform will you commit to use consistently? You shouldn’t try and be everything to everyone - that would just exhaust you! Start with one platform and take on additional platforms when you feel you can stick to a consistent posting schedule.

5. BUILD CREDIBILITY Marketers often talk about how a brand needs to build their ‘know’, ‘like’ and ‘trust’ score with their audience. Building a personal brand is no different.

When you are trying to amplify your personal brand, you need to produce content that helps your audience to ‘know’ who you are, and what you are about. Once your audience knows who you are, your job is to be likeable. Humans make emotive buying decisions and we don’t like to deal with people or brands that we don’t like.

The best way to build your ‘like’ score, is to be useful to your audience. Help them to improve their lives or understand a situation from a different perspective.

Bring growth to them in some way, shape or form.

Depending on your personal brand, you may wish to bring joy, entertainment, humor or knowledge to your audience. The idea is to not waste your follower’s time.

jobs & career Once people like you, you can work on increasing your ‘trust’ score in the minds of your audience. When they trust you, they will reach out to you, or buy from you, or recommend you. A great way to build credibility is to look at your experience, skills and results. What personal knowledge can you draw out, to add value to others?

6. TELL STORIES People often worry about what content to produce. I recommend that you look into your personal vault - and those around you - and use real life, authentic stories to make your point. You can even cite third party stories, or historical tales. Humans are storytellers, which is no surprise since we are wired to remember stories over simple facts. Telling stories is far more credible than PR talk. Let your tribe see snips of the real you by sharing stories.

9. LEVERAGE CONTACTS Look within your own network and the groups you have joined online to leverage contacts already within your orbit. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when needed, but ensure you have given enough value first before asking someone to do something for you. Ultimately, building your personal brand and networking are a powerful combo when practiced together.

10. CREATE HASHTAGS Certain platforms like Instagram and Linkedin make use of hashtags to help categorize posts and to help users find relevant content. It is worth studying how each platform uses hashtags, so you can make use of them in your own posts. This will help make you more visible online in the category that you choose.

7. SOCIAL PROOF

11. POSTING SCHEDULE

We’re submerged in Google reviews and Facebook ratings, but social proof is still a great way to build a personal brand. A good place to start is by collecting testimonials and endorsements on your Linkedin profile.

You can also ask colleagues, customers, management, clients, suppliers or other professional contacts to provide professional or character references to you.

Today, it is just as credible to create a post with an image of a Whatsapp testimonial as it is to display testimonials on a website and if you are able to get any video testimonials, then you are well on your way to mastering powerful social proof with your followers.

The idea is to celebrate your wins by letting people know about the good work you are doing. When you are building a personal brand online, it won’t serve you to keep quiet and not shout about your wins.

Be visible and memorable by communicating what is happening.

Creating a personal brand is an ongoing commitment and not something you can do once in a while.

Those who stand out online are posting regularly and producing meaningful content. While this sounds like a lot of work, it can pay off in so many ways. This is exactly how the entire influencer industry has blown up. The great thing is that you get to decide how often you commit to showing up online and what type of content (videos, blogs, articles, tips, etc.) would be useful for your audience.

There are also plenty of tools that can take care of auto-posting on your behalf, such as hootsuite.com.

You can also look into hiring a virtual assistant to help you curate and create meaningful content aligned to your personal brand. I recommend having a content posting schedule organised on your calendar and ‘banking’ content a certain period in advance to help you plan ahead.

8. JOIN GROUPS

IN CONCLUSION…

You are probably a member of several groups on platforms like Facebook and Linkedin already. Join relevant groups where your audience is present and use these groups to participate in conversations and bring value to the community. If you can commit to solving problems for other people in these groups, it won’t be long before you are noticed. When you start to get noticed, you can build organic traffic towards your own profile or website. The key is to be consistently visible in these groups while adding value.

It is never too late to start building your personal brand online. While you don’t have to go for influencer status, make no mistake that recruiters, HR, hiring managers, colleagues, associates, suppliers and clients will check you out online. The person with a dull Linkedin profile, zero engagement or zero examples of their work and testimonials will not fare well against the person who has intentionally built up their credibility by adding value to others. If you want to future-proof yourself, start working on building up your personal branding.

Dee Khanduja is a CRCE career advisor, writer, speaker and trainer. Book a career counseling session with her at crce@aasingapore.com. You can email her at deeallan@protonmail.com for workshop training and facilitating and speaking requests.

LIVING IN SINGAPORE 21

CAREER RESOURCE CENTER FOR EXCELLENCE PERSONAL & PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

ARE YOU LOOKING TO DEVELOP YOURSELF PROFESSIONALLY OR PERSONALLY IN SINGAPORE? If so, the Career Resource Center for Excellence (CRCE) is the place for you!

CRCE is for individuals residing in Singapore who are: • job hunting in Singapore • contemplating a career change • looking to get back into the workforce • wanting to further develop their professional skills • considering entrepreneurship • interested in personal development

MEMBER BENEFITS Job Searching

Workshops & Events

• Exclusive access to a members-only jobs board

• Member pricing to workshops and events

• Weekly email alerts with latest jobs

• Complimentary admission to one workshop

• Upload your resume for employers to review

• Complimentary admission to our Living in Singapore Talk

Join CRCE today!

Membership begins on the day you join for 12 months.

CRCE membership is $220.

If you’re a current AAS member, for an additional $100, you can add CRCE access.

Talk to us about joining now! crce@aasingapore.com

22 LIVING IN SINGAPORE

living in singapore

Buried Treasure

By Laura Hubbard We are constantly reminded that Singapore is a global trade center, but it is easy to forget that long before the gleaming skyscrapers and Marina Bay as we know it, the seas around Singapore were already the regional center of maritime trade.

The Tang Shipwreck, found in the Java Sea off Indonesia in 1998 provides proof of active maritime trade in the region in the ninth century, the earliest known in Southeast Asia. Incredibly the ship was constructed from planks of wood sewn together with rope, likely from the Middle East. Even more impressive was that it was carrying over 70,000 ceramic items which had been produced in China and were being shipped for sale in Iran and Iraq.

The Asian Civilisations Museum here in Singapore holds many of the items which were recovered from the shipwreck. These include hundreds of Changsha bowls which are displayed as a rolling sea carrying a replica of the ship. The bowls came from the Hunan province in China and are individually painted with flowers, birds or fish, among other designs. 50,000 of these bowls were found in the shipwreck, cleverly stored in large ceramic urns, all tucked together and packed with straw to protect them on the journey. Other ceramics in the cargo included blue and white dishes, which were made in China but designed for Middle Eastern tastes and used a cobalt glaze that was most likely imported from Iran. Amazing to think that over a thousand years ago manufacturers were designing products to suit the tastes of international markets.

One of my favorite things about this long history of regional trade is the treasures I can find tucked in the antique shops in Singapore. While there are many beautiful shops full of Southeast Asian Buddhas with beautiful lighting, my favorites are the ones with packed walkways and dusty items to be found on the back shelves.

Tong Mern Sern on Craig Road is exactly this type of shop. The owner, Mr. Keng, is the epitome of chill and obviously sees the humor in his line of trade with his giant sign proclaiming “We buy junk and sell antiques.

Photos courtesy of Laura Hubbard Some fools buy, some fools sell”. While I have done a lot more browsing than buying in at Tong Mern Sern, I have taken home beautiful Peranakan tiles and a beautiful Chinese cultural revolution sculpture for my dad. One day, my boyfriend bought a vintage red Italian road bike from the store on impulse and, as it was pouring with rain, we got offered a lift home in the store’s little pick-up truck.

My boyfriend introduced me to East Inspirations on South Bridge Road, where he has already befriended the enthusiastic owner, Mr. Cheong. While their store is certainly not of the dusty variety, Mr. Cheong and his son Jacob both have an incredible knowledge of Asian antiques and their history, we have learnt so much from them over cups of tea. As well as antiques, the Cheong’s sell Chinese tea and beautiful lamps that Mr. Cheong builds from damaged antique pots and jugs. Sitting in the back room, we have been shown fine translucent bowls, hand painted tea cannisters, Ming pots and even some of the Changsha bowls from the Tang Shipwreck.

Another Singapore institution for dusty finds is Junkie’s Corner on Turf Club Road. More suited to DIYers, it is nevertheless a great spot to poke around.

The Heritage Shop on Jalan Sultan is full of vintage items from the last 50 years. The owner, Patrick, loves to chat and discuss the history of his things, a great spot for Singapore memorabilia.

Happy hunting!

Originally from New Zealand, Laura has spent the last decade living and working overseas. She recently returned to Singapore after a two-year solo travel adventure through Europe and Asia. She currently works as an Energy and Mining Consultant.

LIVING IN SINGAPORE 23

Limitless Hours of

Local Literature For many, the notion of reading local literature sounds like a school assignment or a hobby meant to make you appear cultured. And while there absolutely is value in seeking out diverse perspectives on large topics, reading local doesn’t always have to be such a serious undertaking. I think a lot of expats hesitate to delve into works by Singaporean authors for the same reasons they waver over hawker center food: the assumption that it won’t be to their taste. But like the food stalls, there’s such a variety of options that at least one is bound to delight. Sampling a local take on science fiction, mystery, poetry – whatever your preference – might introduce you not only to a side of a beloved genre you haven’t encountered before, but also to a side of Singapore you may not have known existed.

Much like the country itself, Singapore’s literary scene is small yet vivacious. The intimacy of the community makes it comparatively easy to come face to face with the celebrities, especially at the annual Singapore Writers Festival. With the aim of promoting new and emerging Singaporean and Asian writers to an international audience, as well as presenting the world’s major literary talents to Singaporeans, this 10-day event features panel discussions, writing workshops, programs for children, and dramatic performances. The festival is the perfect opportunity to not only attends talks with famous authors like David Sedaris and Roxanne Gay, but also to discover local literature. Alas, the SWF is only once a year, but there is a surprisingly vast amount of activities for book lovers to fill the other 355 days through the SWF Year-Round Programmes.

By Laura Schwartz

As expected, the library offers a wealth of resources beyond simply being able to borrow the latest Elena Ferrante novel. The gallery on the National Library’s tenth floor houses rotating exhibitions on niche topics, such as ancient Malay manuscripts, advertising materials from Singapore’s early years and poems that have appeared in MRT stations. Anyone intrigued by history’s quirky details should also check out the online exhibition, which features highlights from their collection of rare publications, manuscripts, documents, maps and photographs that aren’t physically available to the public.

The Singapore Book Council and The Arts House both run a variety of talks and workshops that allow you to connect with local writers in order to hone your own craft. For years, the Singapore Book Council has taught courses on everything to do with writing, from introductions to storytelling, to adapting a published piece to the stage, to literary translation techniques. Workshops with The Arts House go deeper than craft, often focusing on the very soul and spirit of writing. Their popular ‘Remember When’ workshop blends creative writing and theater to teach participants how to transform powerful memories into vibrant monologues. At the beginning of the lockdown, they launched a ‘Write From Home’ series that explored the benefits and opportunities of writing in this unusual time. Difference Engine, an independent comics publisher, regularly offers classes and advice on writing, drawing and producing comics.

Laura grew up in Tokyo, Singapore and New Jersey before majoring in Japanese Studies at Bard College, upper New York.

Her fiction and non-fiction writing has appeared in The Shanghai Review, Thoughtful Dog Magazine and The Wall Street Journal. A voracious traveler, Laura has visited over 30 countries.

22 LIVING IN SINGAPORE

The Arts House is also experimenting with ways to bring local narratives to audiences in new and creative ways. Their on-going online event ‘Sorta Scary Singapore Stories’ presents urban myths with 360° illustrations and clips from audiobooks. The Arts House is also home to the annual StoryFest, which celebrates the power of storytelling and styles of oral traditions. After all, before we learned to read, we were told stories.

This festival taps into that cozy mental space and offers a unique, active avenue to engage with Singapore’s literary canon. The event moved online for 2020 but will likely return to the stage next summer.

The phrase ‘reading local literature’ often conjures the vision of a prolix tome about a regional historical event packed with unfamiliar vocabulary and inscrutable character motivations, but Singapore’s literature is as dynamic and alive as the city’s hawker centers.

And like good food, a good story is one of the most enjoyable ways to get to know a different culture. Below, I’ve listed a few titles chock-full of enough plot and humor to prove that reading local doesn’t even sort of have to be boring, as well as indie bookstores where you can find them.

Recommended Not-So-Heavy Reading • Aunty Lee’s Delights by Ovidia Yu – The first of a cozy mystery series that follows amateur detective Aunty Lee as she solves the murder of a woman on Sentosa • Ministry of Moral Panic by Amanda Lee Koe – ‘Heartfelt and sexy’ might not be how most expats would describe Singapore, but Koe’s short stories illuminate that side of the nation with gorgeous prose • Harris Bin Potter by The Stoned Philosopher by Suffian Hakim – A funny and uniquely Singaporean take on the wizard series everyone knows • From the Belly of the Cat – A collection of short fiction assembled by Stephanie Ye. If you only read one story, let it be Joshua Ip’s hilarious tongue-in-cheek “ROBOTZ ATTACK THE CITEHR” • Let’s Give It Up For Gimme Lao! by Sebastian Sim – A darkly humorous satire of Singapore’s fixation on education, achievement and social status

Recommended Bookstores • BooksActually (Yong Siak St) – Both a bookshop and a publishing house, BooksActually is a major hub of the Singapore literature scene • Littered with Books (Duxton Rd) - Taking up two stories in a cozy shophouse, this store has the personal air of a librarian’s home • GOHD Books (Bencoolen St) – Specializes in rare tomes and first editions, many of which are regional classics • Woods in the Books (Yong Siak St) – A thoughtfully-curated selection of young children’s books • Select Books (online) – Legendary supplier of books and publications on Asia, with topics ranging from MRT art to historical analyses to romance novels

LIVING IN SINGAPORE 23

A Glimpse of History in Balestier

By Asif R. Chowdhury

In a quiet corner of the otherwise busy Balestier Road in Singapore, sits a beautiful colonial bungalow. The bungalow stands lonely amidst the high-rises that surround it, but any passerby, especially if new to the area, would be hard pressed not to give this majestic colonial architecture with its sprawling garden a second glance. Such a large house with even a larger compound is indeed a rare sight in our small city-state of Singapore. One can’t help but wonder who once lived behind its doors as, indeed, the bungalow used to be a residence. Today, though, it is known as the Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall, serving as a museum since 1964, dedicated to Sun Yat Sen. Sun Yat Sen, a Chinese revolutionary leader from the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, is lesser known compared to some of the country’s other prolific leaders, such as Mao Zedong or Chiang Kai-shek. However, he is regarded as the founding father of modern China by both mainland China and Taiwan, known in both places as “Father of Nation”.

Sun Yat Sen also served as the first President of the Republic of China, even though very briefly.

26 LIVING IN SINGAPORE

Originally trained as a physician, Sun Yat Sen turned his attention to politics amid the unrest in China during the latter half of the nineteenth century and he played a key role in many of the uprisings against the Qing Imperial Dynasty. In 1911, when the last emperor of China Pu Yi abdicated from the throne, the Qing Dynasty was finally overthrown and the Republic of China was established.

Sun Yat Sen’s leadership was instrumental in overthrowing the almost 4,000-year-old Chinese Empire and establishing the Republic. Interestingly, Singapore and particularly this colonial bungalow played a key role in that effort.

There are several reasons for the fall of the imperial system.

The two Opium Wars in the mid-1800s against the West, both of which China lost, had weakened the Qing Dynasty and continual internal politics and military threats created further problems for the Emperor. Dissatisfaction among the common people had started to grow stronger and they felt the Emperor had once again lost the mandate from heaven.

Towards the end of the nineteenth century, there was a push by the people to modernize China. Instead of embracing such demand, Empress Dowager Cixi, who was considered

to be the real power behind the throne, thwarted all such efforts, which only fuelled the dissatisfaction further.

All these gave credence to several uprisings targeted to overthrow the imperial system. During that time, Sun Yat Sen travelled extensively abroad to secure support and funding for his cause against Imperial China from the Chinese diaspora. Among many of his overseas destinations, he found strong support in Singapore from the local Chinese community. He particularly received support from a prominent businessman of Peranakan descent, Teo Eng Hock. Teo Eng Hock had started a free pro-revolutionary newspaper in Singapore targeted at the local Chinese community. Curiously, Sun Yat Sen got a hold of a copy of this newspaper while he was visiting Hawaii and, impressed with Teo Eng Hock’s drive, Sun Yat Sen sought him out during one of his many visits to Singapore in the early 1900s. Having the same end-goal of overthrowing the Qing Dynasty and establishing a Republic, the two hit it off.

Photos courtesy of Asif Chowdhury

So how is all this connected to our lonely colonial bungalow? The bungalow was originally built by a wealthy Cantonese businessman in 1902 and Teo Eng Hock bought it in 1905 as a retirement sanctuary for his mother, Madam Tan Poh Neo. They named it “Wan Qing Yuan” villa. By then, Teo Eng Hock and Sun Yat Sen had established a good relationship. He wanted to offer Wan Qing Yuan villa to Sun Yat Sen as his base in Singapore for the rebellion. When Teo Eng Hock asked his mother’s permission, she readily agreed.

Soon, Wan Qing Yuan villa became one of the main hubs in Southeast Asia for supporting and planning China’s cause. In the subsequent years, Sun Yat Sen visited Singapore several times and always stayed at the villa, where he met with the local Chinese businessman to discuss and plan steps in overthrowing the imperial system. In July 1908, Sun Yat Sen declared Singapore and, in particular, Teo Eng Hock’s beautiful bungalow as Southeast Asia’s headquarters for the revolutionary effort.

With the success of the revolution imminent, Teo Eng Hock sold the Wan Qing Yuan villa in 1910. Since then, the ownership of the villa changed several times. Finally, in 1937, six Chinese community leaders, all members of the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce, pooled resources and purchased the property with the goal of turning it into a memorial hall in honor of Sun Yat Sen. With the support of Nanjing Government, the villa was refurbished and was inaugurated on New Year’s Day in 1940.

The villa went through its share of history in the years that followed. The Japanese used it as their military base during the Second World War, during which time many of the artefacts were unfortunately destroyed. After the War, it fell into disrepair, but after years of refurbishment and restoration, the bungalow was eventually named “Sun Yat Sen Villa” in 1964 and by 1965 it had been converted into a library and museum. The Singapore government declared it a national monument in 1994 and the building was renamed “Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall”.

Through four separate well-decorated galleries, the museum tells the story of Singapore’s involvement and influence towards the creation of the Republic of China. The first gallery introduces some of the prominent Chinese businessmen from the turn of the last century who served as key figures in supporting the rebellion, with special focus on the family of Teo Eng Hock. Gallery Two chronicles the activities of Sun Yat

LIVING IN SINGAPORE 27

Gallery One

Sen with the local Chinese leaders to support the cause in China leading to the declaration of the villa as the local headquarters for Southeast Asia. The third gallery is dedicated to the many insurgencies which finally helped to overthrow the Imperial system and established the Republic of China. The final gallery is about the positive impact the successful 1911 revolution had on the local Chinese communities in the region. One such impact was the collaboration of the local Chinese leaders who had supported Sun Yat Sen to establish many Chinese schools which initiated the modern education system in Singapore. It also proudly displays and highlights the contributions of Chinese business people who pioneered in the building of Singapore as a nation.

The museum has an additional gallery known as Bo Ai Gallery, which houses temporary exhibits, one of which depicted the life and times of Madam Soong Ching Ling, the wife of Sun Yat Sen, a highly educated leader in her own right.

Each gallery displays numerous artefacts from the villa over the course of time, including old

photographs of the local leaders and Sun Yat Sen illustrating the history of the villa and how it was utilized. An intriguing feature is exhibits in the form of 3D holograms recreating various events. One of the other interesting displays is Sun Yat Sen’s bedroom, kept in the same manner as it was during the time when he stayed here during his many visits.

Besides the exhibits, the architecture of the colonial villa with its high ceilings, beautiful woodwork and a pretty patio overlooking the garden, is quite something to see. Spending time in the manicured garden is highly recommended, where there are a few bronze murals; true pieces of artwork, depicting the local life from that time period.

Whether it is to admire a glimpse of Singapore’s history in the early 1900s and its involvement in the creation of the Republic of China, or simply for a stroll both inside the beautiful villa and outside in the garden, this is a wonderful way to spend a lazy weekend afternoon.

Photos courtesy of Asif Chowdhury

Asif is part of the executive management at a global semiconductor company and has written for various trade journals. Asif spent four years as an expatriate in Tokyo, Japan in business development, which led him to travel extensively over the country. He currently lives in Singapore with his wife and son, while his daughter is studying for a BSc at Purdue University, Indiana.

28 LIVING IN SINGAPORE

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www.intlcounselling.com • connect@intlcounselling.com LIVING IN SINGAPORE 29

From Colonial Government Hill

to Fort Canning

Sir Stamford Raffles’ Singapore Treaty with the Temenggong of Johor Abdul Rahman and Johor Sultan Hussein Shah marked the birth of the British colony we now know as Singapore on February 6, 1819. On that very day, Major William Farquhar, accompanied by a few Malaccan Malays, climbed up the hill at Bukit Larangan and set up a post to hoist the Union Jack, marking this historic occasion. Raffles immediately appointed Farquhar Resident and Commandant of Singapore and instructed him to form a colonial administration, coincidently on the same site of what was later revealed to be the seat of the powerful settlement of Ban Zu from the 14th century.

Bukit Larangan, meaning ‘forbidden hill’, had been named as such because kings from Ban Zu were believed to have been buried at the site. Raffles liked the location so much that he wished to be buried there along with the rulers after his passing, although he was buried in London when he died in 1826. The plot of land soon became known as Singapore Hill, but was officially named Government Hill in 1822.

1822 also saw much activity in terms of construction.

Building works of Residency House, a wooden structure of 100 feet by 50 feet with venetian shutters and attap roofing reflecting Malay architecture, began that year and was to serve as Sir Stamford’s residence. Raffles also established Singapore’s first botanic gardens, with 48 acres set aside for crop cultivation as an

30 LIVING IN SINGAPORE

By Marc Servos

experiment, although this ultimately failed and was abandoned in 1829. Today, Fort Canning Park’s Spice Garden is a replica of the gardens as a monument to Raffles’ aspirations of agricultural development on the island.

Residency House was extended and redesigned only two years later in 1824 by its second resident, John Crawfurd, to make room for other residents and governors and was renamed Government House. A couple of decades later, a flagstaff on the hill’s summit was erected with a simple lantern attached to the top of it to signal incoming ships, and a time-ball to announce their arrival.

In 1859, the Government House building was demolished and government functions were temporarily moved to The Pavilion on Oxley Hill before moving again to the 1860s construction of what is today’s Istana, to make way for a new fort. The new military post, named after Charles Canning, who was serving as Governor-General of India at the time, was completed in 1861 with an arms store, barracks and a hospital.

There were several controversies over Fort Canning’s strategic location. The business community, in particular, expressed issues with the military presence interfering in commerce and how the town would be vulnerable in the event of an attack. Seven 68pound cannons facing the sea, eight 8-inch and

two 13-inch guns were added in 1867 in a bid to satisfy concerns of this vulnerability. However, the guns were seen to lack the range to be effective.

Also, it was recognized that nearby Pearl’s Hill was higher than Fort Canning, leading to its top being shaved off to prevent invaders from using the hill to their advantage.

Fort Canning was razed to the ground in 1907 after a number of other fortifications defending Singapore had been established. Subsequent military use included the famed Battle Box, now a museum, which was completed in 1941 shortly before the Japanese invasion. Fort Canning was later used by the Singapore Armed Forces, which opened the since-relocated Singapore Command and Staff College there in 1970.

Of the original site, two of the cannons still remain, as well as remnants of the 1846 Gothic Gateway.

The former cemetery that was located inside the gateway was turned into a ‘Garden of Memory’ in the 1970s when it was exhumed, with the salvaged tombstones embedded into the surrounding wall.

Twelve tombstones that lay in those grounds, however, were not of the original cemetery but were

moved from the former Bukit Timah Cemetery upon its closure in 1971. Today, a modernized structure named Raffles House stands on the original site of the fort.

Landmarks at the location have come and gone, including the Van Kleef Aquarium, which was the first of its kind in Southeast Asia and attracted over 150,000 visitors within three months of its opening in 1955, and had around 400,000 visitors annually by the 1970s until closing in 1996.

The island’s National Theatre officially opened on 8 August 1963 and was once the venue for various international performances, university assemblies and the National Day rallies. However, it was demolished in August 1986 to make way for the Central Expressway along Clemenceau Avenue.

The official name of Fort Canning Park was bestowed in November 1981 by then-Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew, marked with the ceremonial planting of a fruit tree. Being located in the heart of the Civic and Cultural District, it hosts a number of events as well as providing a number of scenic hiking trails and remnants of its history.

Photos courtesy of Marc Servos

Marc Servos is a Hoosier in terms of his home state and alma mater. A Fort Wayne native, Indiana University graduate and U.S. Army vet, he is married to a Singaporean and has been living here for a number of years.

He has two children, ages 18 and 10. In addition to contributing to the Living in Singapore magazine and the Singapore American Newspaper preceding it, he has also contributed to the Canada-based History Magazine.

Cambodia is a bright place, full of sunshine, smiling faces and optimism. In the capital of Phnom Penh, in between bites of scrumptiously fresh baguettes, an interesting byproduct of the long French presence here, one will find charming colonial shophouses, bustling

markets

and

riverside

cafes.

Outside

the capital lies the true adventure though, with mysterious ruins, steamy jungles, ancient temples and idyllic waterfalls. However, the brightness we can feel now in Cambodia did not come easily. No article on this place would be complete without a mention of the 1975-1979 Cambodian Genocide, a period that was highlighted by the book and film

The Killing Fields. Actions by the Khmer Rouge regime resulted in the deaths of 1.5 to 2 million Cambodians, a past that haunts this nation even as it marches ahead to a new future. Yet, from lingering shadows always emerges a ray of light.

32 LIVING IN SINGAPORE

Cambodia:

FINDING THE LIGHT

By John S. Hamalian

The ‘Tin Vessel’ First on the trip agenda was a must-do journey to the ancient city of Angkor, northwest of Phnom Penh. These days, most ‘normal’ people take a nice comfortable airplane flight directly to Siem Reap, the closest city to Angkor. But no, not us. We had to choose the difficult path, the way few people partake of – by water. We took a boat from Phnom Penh to Angkor via a river and lake. Believe me, this was no luxury liner. Looking more like a floating oil tanker than a river cruiser, our boat came complete with no seats and two equally unappetizing possibilities of levels: down into the dark depths near the engine room or up outside onto the stark metal roof. We were relegated to the latter. There we lay, in the hot searing sun, like destitute sardines spread atop their own tin can, as the vessel chugged off into the unknown distance.

As the ride was around five hours, at first there was not much to do atop our little metal container other than choke on the rancid diesel engine fumes, so most of us just snoozed. In a rare moment of forethought, I had covered my face with a shirt while lying down, but some others were not quite so precognitive. They arose from their slumber to find their faces looking like raw steak from the relentless rays of a tropical sun.

It turns out that anyone sleeping through the entire ride would have missed some spectacular sights. The river eventually opened up to a large lake, the great Tonle Sap, with simple boats of all kinds lapping along much as they did centuries before, their proud owners wearing straw hats and content smiles. The bright shining sun was streaming as best as it could do and the whole scene frothed with a sereneness that few may ever know. It was as if one was staring into a living, breathing painting of exquisite natural scenery where the figures actually moved. The last leg of the trip soon became clear when the large open space gave way to a narrow channel no more than the width of two of our boats. With lush green overgrowth spilling out everywhere in sight, an image of the classic film The African Queen came to mind, with Humphrey Bogart steadfastly pulling his scrappy little ship through the tributaries and tribulations of the confounding UlongaBora river. We finally, and thankfully, reached land, and after a short car ride crossed the threshold of the legendary ancient metropolis of Angkor.

LIVING IN SINGAPORE 33

Persevering Remnants of Wonder

As Shadows Fall

Angkor – one of the world’s greatest wonders.

The mere mention of it conjures up fantasies of ancient cultures, of fierce kings and of aweinspiring structures. Angkor was the capital of a mighty empire that ruled a vast territory from 802 to 1431 CE, once spread across much of what is now known as Southeast Asia. This Khmer Empire was one of the strongest, richest and advanced civilizations known to humanity, reaching heights at which were virtually unknown to the Western world. The latest satellite-based scanning analysis concluded that Angkor had been the largest pre-industrial city in the entire world, stretching to a massive area of 1,000 square kilometers (390 square miles). The sheer immensity of the sprawling ruins of Angkor is difficult to comprehend, quite literally breathtaking, and perhaps rivaled today only by the combined treasures of the Valley of the Nile.

While the whole Angkor site consists of a nearly dizzying array of spectacular temples, palaces, moats, towers, lakes and fortifications, it is Angkor Wat (temple) that undoubtedly stands out as the ultimate in Khmer architectural achievement. Said to be the largest religious complex in the world, Angkor Wat was popularized by the movie Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and covers a staggeringly large area of 500 acres with a 200 meter (650 ft) wide moat forming its perimeter. With the sun playfully bouncing off of intricately carved stonework in the distance, to walk across the moat’s causeway and gaze at the temple’s soaring 65 meter (210 ft) high towers is both a tremendously rewarding and truly belittling experience.

Back in Phnom Penh, we visited a former Khmer Rouge prison (‘Security Prison 21’) now known as the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. This was originally a schoolhouse that the regime mercilessly converted into a detention, torture and extermination center - for those who did not comply with its ‘ideology’. Many of the poor souls that ended up in this shadowy place never left alive, ending up buried in outlying killing fields. The demented jailors took existing classrooms and made little mini-cells in each one by laying short brick walls, just barely enough space for one

34 LIVING IN SINGAPORE

human in each ‘cell’. No bed, no chair, just a chain and shackle fastened to the bare floor. In one dark corner, I noticed a dusty old blackboard that still lay on the floor as if frozen in time, no doubt one of the last lessons ever held in that doomed place.

The unknowing students were learning French when their class, and the entire world they had known, came to an abrupt end.

The schoolyard is a symbol of the final struggle of the Cambodian people with some of the darkest hollows of humanity itself. How many tears were shed on this very site? With one of my own drops streaming down a numbed cheek, that aquatic sign of sorrow fared a far simpler fate than the innocents who

were dragged into the fields of terror. While it is crucial that we see this history with our own eyes, I was glad to get out of that place.

About an hour or so outside of Phnom Penh lies one of the actual killing fields. Today, all that remains are dug-up mass graves and a morbid tower monument filled with the skulls of the victims who were buried there. They never refilled the graves in order to remember the atrocities committed. To walk amongst these enduring reflections of a tragic past must be one of the most somber experiences one could have in their lives. Each burial pit has a sign describing its grim contents and the grisly fate endured.

And all of this happened within the lives of many of us, not so much old history as recent news.

Into the Light Darkness lingers over the empty field, in the middle of a forgotten season from an era no one wants to remember.

Yet, a few kilometers away, not far from a decaying old torture center, lies a gleaming new school. Its green yard full of laughing children under a sunny sky, they merrily frolic in their pristine playground, swinging their way to a bright future. Resewing fields with a new breath of life, a people that had been living in the shadows are once again looking into the sun.

And the light of humanity shines anew.

John is a US citizen and an avid explorer with a passion for travel journalism and photography. He has visited over 65 countries, including the entire Far East of Asia. He has written for the Singapore Straits Times, Shanghai Daily, The Armenian Mirror-Spectator, My Paper, The American Women’s Club of Korea and the in-flight magazine of Royal Bhutan Airlines.

LIVING IN SINGAPORE 35

FUTURE OF TRAVEL

PRODUCES ‘TRAVEL GRIEF’

Birchwood Cottage in Michigan

Lakeside together time with sunset smores

Tori’s older son on the far left, her brother 2nd from right and his three teenagers playing outdoor games in front of the family cottage

By Andrea McKenna Brankin

Grief is usually associated with things like death, losing a job, missing friends or moving. But in this new COVID life as we know it, we’re feeling what it is like to miss travel in our lives. Many expats in Singapore have been affected in one way or another and we’re all missing vacation spots and, more importantly, home.

When asked what expats feel about the future of travel, the resounding answer is bleak. “Every day, I hear different suggestions of when it might reopen and I think that everyone is just guessing at this point,” says Linda Cochrane of Seattle.

“With this pandemic, we’ve had to learn to look at things differently and I do not think we have a grasp on our view of what our ability to travel overseas looks like.”

One of Linda and husband Scott’s goals of moving here was to travel to a new place every month. “We had trips booked up through July and I have a whole spreadsheet of places to hopefully go one day. We were also supposed to go to the States in June to see family and friends.”

Aside from missing her first trip to Australia, as well as hosting her son and his wife in Singapore, Tori Nelson has missed out on her family trip. “I was supposed to be at my family’s summer cottage on a lake in Michigan this month [August],” she says. “Most of the rest of my family will be there in two weeks and my mother said ‘we can do a video call with you when everyone is here’. Of course, I’ll be on the call, but it will also break my heart a little since I can’t be there in person.”

Tori was also relieved to be able to give this feeling of missing travel a name. “It was also helpful to hear a friend describe this emotion as actual grief. It helped me to realize that this sadness is legitimate and it’s OK to feel really bummed out.”

News from the front lines is not good: The Geneva-based International Air Transport Association (IATA) released in late

Photos courtesy of Tori Nelson

36 LIVING IN SINGAPORE

July an updated global passenger forecast showing that the recovery in airline traffic has been slower than expected. Recent trends are the impetus behind this pessimistic outlook, including weaker consumer confidence, reduced business travel and slow virus-containment in the United States and in developing countries. Their best-case scenario projections are: Global passenger traffic will not return to preCOVID-19 levels until 2024, a year later than previously projected.

The recovery in short haul travel is still expected to happen faster than for long haul travel. Recovery to pre-COVID-19 levels, however, will also slide by a year from 2022 to 2023. For 2020, global passenger numbers are expected to decline by 55% compared to 2019, worse than the April forecast of 46%.

Indeed, that elicits a big sigh from Singaporebased expats.

Based on these projections, however, many are hopeful regional travel may be possible as we ease into the rest of 2020. Singapore expat-turned-nomad Michael Johnson, meanwhile, is hunkered down in Thailand and is able to take advantage of not only local travel within Thailand but is hoping to be able to go to Vietnam soon, too.

Travel consultant, Dave Kartagener, President of Kartagener Associates Inc, a Hoboken, New Jerseybased firm that consults to the international travel industry, said at the time of this writing in August that “borders are starting to open around the world but most countries in Southeast Asia seem a few months away from welcoming tourists still.” He notes a recent trend is for people to take domestic holidays.

But Kartagener and many others are hopeful that travel will resume with a combination of factors: A vaccine (which would speed things up exponentially), open borders, airlines to operate at a higher capacity to make international destinations

accessible and also for the virus to be under control at home in the US. “Most people’s concern isn’t necessarily the country they are visiting or the actual travel; people fear that the US borders could close while they are abroad and they’d be stuck.

Linda shares her other concerns: “Our main consideration is whether it is safe to travel to places that have less stringent standards of social distancing and mask wearing than we see here? Our other consideration is after borders open, when will we feel safe to travel?”

Californian Joe Foggiato and former AAS Executive Committee member is really missing his four trips home, especially to hit Costco and bring back some good treats for his annual barbeques in Singapore. He is not particularly optimistic about the holidays. “I think some countries in SEA will open with reciprocation from Singapore, but open free-flow travel will not happen until a vaccine is available… I think Christmas will be in sunny Singapore this year!”

Linda’s family also hit the internet to battle COVID travel blues.

“The hardest was not traveling home, but I am so thankful that we live in a world of technology,” she says. “We play trivia once a week with our kids and then we also play trivia with a group of friends all via Zoom, which has helped to keep us connected and not feeling alone in Singapore.”

Photos courtesy of Linda Cochrane

Tori has had a very comprehensive list of how to manage ‘fear of missing out’ (FOMO) over missed trips.

“I manage the disappointment by doing video calls with my family and loved ones back in the US a lot more frequently than before the pandemic. It’s wonderful to connect with them and I’m grateful for the technology to be able to do that. But it’s just not the same as being there; giving them a hug, holding their hand and not having to deal with weak internet connections and that awkward pause or talking over each other during the online calls.”

She’s also been doing a lot of reading, both for fun and for educational purposes. “I’ve resumed regular journaling and sticking to a pretty strict daily exercise routine to keep my sanity. I even turned our guest room, which may never be used for that purpose again, into my own gym. I’ve upgraded the canvas bags of books and cans of soup I’d been using as weights to resistance bands and some hand weights, inherited from former neighbors who went back to the US.” The final plan for Tori and her husband, Larry, is to have an actual plan to definitely fly home to the US. “Our apartment lease is up here in Singapore on May 31,

2021, so I am planning to be on a plane back to the US on June 1,” she says. “Whether it’s a round-trip ticket or one-way, I don’t care right now. But knowing there is a firm date when I will see my family again is really helping me overcome all the uncertainty at the moment.”

As far as the future of travel goes for 2021, Tori nails it by stating what’s important: “The health of everyone on the planet is paramount. And it really feels like we won’t be able to resume travel to the pre-COVID level until there’s an effective vaccine that is widely available.”

At the time of this writing, we’ve also seen parents laboring over the decision to escort their kids back to college, where dealing with possible quarantines and the risk of not being able to return to Singapore are prominent and excruciating. Other families are mulling over their options of whether or not to even stay in Singapore based on the no-travel life and other restrictions. By all accounts, we still have no idea what the future of travel will hold and what that might look like for all of us living overseas. Still, we’re hopeful we can get home in the coming months and all the sights, sounds and feels of home will be that much more appreciated.

Michael Johnson,

Castaway in Phuket I was in Mandalay, Myanmar, for a client event in mid-March and it was clear that this would likely be the last event of the year my client would be running. As part of this trip, I flew from Mandalay via Bangkok to Phuket (service out of Mandalay is poor, basically you are either going to Yangon or Bangkok) for a two-day visit to see a good friend as I felt like some form of lockdown was coming in Singapore so best to get in some R&R! Once I got there, the news broke about all inbound arrivals needing to serve a 14-day stay-athome-notice (SHN) in Singapore. I felt then that long period of lockdowns, curfews and who knows what else was on the horizon and, while my friends with wives and girlfriends said come back to Singapore, I felt like having a “buddy” to go through this with was a good idea. So I chatted about it with my pal, and he was totally up for it. Also, I knew the Thai medical system is world-class and solid and while the military government may not be beloved, they would be

good at responding to this situation. Further, I could continue to work with clients remotely and do what I coined - WFV - working from villa!

Thankfully, my decision thus far has been a good one; the Thai’s took the situation seriously and continue with mandatory masks, track and trace, social distancing and so on, but at the same time, anyone who wants to reopen their business can. Phuket was viewed as a hotspot with a few hundred cases in total and they did a lockdown at district level for three to four weeks to isolate these areas, but you could travel within your district for essentials (food, medical, etc). Three districts remained closed after this period and the others reopened, then two weeks later, the others were reopened once no new cases were found. In these three districts, they did door-to-door temperature and health checks; again, an effort to attack and eliminate the virus from the island. Thailand has now gone about two months with no local transmissions.

Photos courtesy of Michael Johnson

38 LIVING IN SINGAPORE

ON THE ROAD AGAIN…?

Frequent-flyer Michael Johnson talks more to Andrea McKenna Brankin about how the travel restrictions have affected plans to see family, managing disappointment and gut feelings about travel in 2021.

Where were you going this year and how have you managed the changes and the disappointment in not seeing friends and family?

I normally visit my mom and other family in Ohio in May and October, but this will be the first year that won’t happen. On top of that, my sister lives in an extended care facility and due to the high risk of the residents my mom has actually not been permitted to visit her since February. I worry about making a trip there for two reasons: Mom’s health and the return risks and costs.

My mom has rheumatoid arthritis, which is an auto-immune disease and at 78 years old, she is at highrisk. A close friend’s mom got COVID and died at just 62. The same friend also contracted it from her mom and is still not back to 100% health after four months of fighting it; she is 42. So, a visit would require me to isolate for 14 days before seeing her and there is a cost related to that. Another factor is being put back into a country that is still in the "fighting" stage of this virus, versus Asia which has better control at the moment.

I think going is one risk, but there is an even greater risk of returning to Singapore, as well as the cost.

There’s the potential refusal, or required application for permission from Singapore, and the 14-day quarantine, which here is $2,200 for the hotel and testing.

I was also meant to be in London and Denmark for a friend's trip to coordinate with the Euro Cup on TV, which has, of course, been cancelled.

What are your feelings about the future of travel? How do you see our world and your life changing?

One extreme is that international travel will only be for very important events and international airline services will have to consolidate as the demand will be too low. The

pricing of international flights could rise as well, as opposed to the bargains we were experiencing pre-2020.

Also, the rise in frequency of domestic carriers and flights is already happening. Vietjet has moved many of its grounded aircraft from international flights into Thailand. They have six flights a day between Bangkok and Phuket and many other routes to the north.

The other factor on travel will be decided at a macro-economic level in how countries weather everything in the next three to five years. Some will fare better than others and that buying-power will also affect demand for flights and hotels.

My life changed business-wise in that I lost both of my clients as a result of COVID. One was in the event industry and the other in F&B. Prospective clients also either slowed or stopped projects until the first quarter of 2021. Being in Bangkok now, I have had a lot of good meetings in the past two weeks and some businesses are thriving, so I’m hoping to get a project here to help either a business scale further, or come up with ‘new normal’ solutions for businesses if they have suffered from no inbound foreign travellers.

quarantine’ as people do essential travel for family events and so on.

I would do this for the US trip next year to see my family once versus my normal two times, but the visit would be much much longer.

Finally - and this is a strange one unrelated to travel, but related to the situation we are all in - over the past few months, I find myself putting the date as March… all of the time. It's like life or a traumatic event happened and it is stuck in my brain. So, I will write "see you March 23"... when it's June 23 or July 23! I told this to a friend here and they said they are doing the same thing! Wild.

Andrea McKenna Brankin has been a writer and journalist for more than 25 years, covering business and lifestyle topics in the US, Europe and Southeast Asia. Hailing from Mystic, Connecticut (USA), Andrea now calls Chicago “home away from home.” She has lived in Singapore with husband Christopher and daughter Georgia since 2012.

What is the most important consideration as you look towards travel in 2021?

My gut says not much will change in 2021. I'd like to be hopeful, but even with a vaccine, implementing one globally will take time, be complex and not be universally successful either.

I guess people's acceptance of the reality of quarantines along with an acceptance of ‘work from home’ culture will likely breed ‘work from LIVING IN SINGAPORE 39

health & wellness Strong Mommy, Healthy Baby:

A Primer in Prenatal & Postpartum Fitness

By Amanda Lim If you’d told me while six months pregnant that I’d have my “old” body back and more after delivering my daughter, I’m not so sure I’d have believed you. I had a rough first trimester, gaining more weight than my fellow pregnant friends and suffering from awful “morning” (or as I argue, all day) sickness for nearly four months. I felt heavy, slow and clumsy in my own body, and when my extremities started swelling and aching after long days on my feet, I felt weak and discouraged, despite keeping a consistent exercise routine and having a generally healthy pregnancy.

I should comment a few things here before I go on. First, I was and am a personal trainer, which means that during my pregnancy I spent over eight hours on my feet every day, starting at dawn. Second, I am a weight training, hot yoga and CrossFit enthusiast, meaning that during my pregnancy I had to adjust to a very different intensity of movement than I was used to. And finally, though again I had a relatively normal and healthy pregnancy, my daughter was breech, so I needed to deliver her through C-section, which wasn’t in my original birth plan.

Writing this, I am exactly six months postpartum and in those months I have developed a deep appreciation for the power of the female body.

Though I loathe the term “bounce back” (as though pregnancy is simply a quick trampoline routine from which we dismount and return to our regular lives, seamlessly), the unique ability for a woman to grow, birth, nurse and raise an entire

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human being in the course of a single calendar year is pretty darn amazing.

I earned my postpartum personal training and corrective exercise certification with FitForBirth in 2013 and have been working with women in all stages of pregnancy and postpartum since that time. In doing so, I realized first hand that the mantras guiding my practice – that every birthing body is different and every birthing journey is, as well – were not always well-communicated to mothers. I trained women who had never had their pelvic floors checked after giving vaginal birth, had never reconnected their diastasis recti after having twins and had never contracted their transverse abdominis again after undergoing C-section. I worked with women whose doctors scared them away from exercise early in pregnancy, only to watch them struggle twice as hard to regain fitness after their deliveries.

While shocking to me as a fitness professional, I now understand that unless you are a strong and informed advocate for yourself before, during and after pregnancy, it is very unlikely that you will receive adequate resources for a fit and progressive recovery after delivery. Though OBGYN doctors and prenatal classes do their best to provide crucial health information surrounding labor and delivery, they are not specialists in perinatal fitness, nor can they advise throughout an entire postpartum recovery process. This is why I recommend following a few steps if you are committed to an active pregnancy, healthy delivery and strong postpartum recovery.

First, visit a women’s health physiotherapist throughout your pregnancy to monitor your physiological progress and mobility and address any issues in a timely manner. A prenatal chiropractor can also help with specific alignmentrelated aches and pains. I recommend employing a perinatal-certified personal trainer for at least a few sessions for a minimum of one session per trimester (though weekly visits are most effective) to make sure you have a safe exercise routine for each stage of pregnancy. I also recommend hiring a knowledgeable instructor to correctly lead you through the movements.

Once you’ve delivered your baby, whether vaginal or via C-section, consider another visit to the women’s health physio in conjunction with your six-week OB-GYN check-up to ensure you and your healing are on track; from examining your pelvic floor to checking for diastasis recti, to addressing any persistent pain or alignment problems. Once you are cleared for exercise, typically around 8-12 weeks, though, there is absolutely no common timeline or deadline. Start slowly and resume only the activities you were doing throughout your pregnancy – not jumping right back into the intensity and regularity of the workouts you did before you were pregnant.

Though it may seem slow at first, walking, core activation and deep diaphragmatic breathing should be the foundation for at least your first month of workouts after having a baby. If you were weight training before, you can introduce some light (think

30-50% of what you used pre-pregnancy) and simple weighted movements, but hold off on heavier weights, plyometrics, heated rooms, or compound movements until you’ve been back to exercise two to three times weekly for at least four weeks, or longer if your doctor suggests so. As the saying goes, postpartum is forever – so there is never any rush to get “back” to a certain type of exercise; it will always be there once your healed, strong body is ready.

Finally, don’t forget that exercise and fitness are only one part of a complicated and multifaceted postpartum recovery. If you are breastfeeding, making sure you have balanced and adequate nutrition for milk production is paramount. Sleep is also crucial for you, your partner and your child. A rested parent is a functional one and no amount of exercise can replace sleep, so prioritize getting your household onto a sleep routine as a precursor to getting back to the gym. If you need help finding time to eat, sleep and take care of yourself, ask for it – postpartum mood disorders, such as depression and anxiety, can flourish in the early months and make establishing a fitness routine seem daunting.

Pregnancy and postpartum are challenging, often mysterious times, for a woman and her body.

Making sure you go into them with a positive mental attitude, comprehensive health and wellness plan and dedicated time for recovery will set you up for a strong, healthy transition to parenthood and beyond.

Amanda is a certified trainer and nutritionist and director of Singapore -based fitness consulting firm Peak Health. With over a decade of experience in the health and wellness industries, Amanda has coached and transformed over 200 individual clients, and consulted for large multi-national companies.

She has also contributed to fitness publications such as SELF magazine and SHAPE.com.

food & drink

Thanksgiving in Singapore: A Culinarian Perspective

By Julian Chua The classic Thanksgiving dinner is usually a family affair, in whatever form that may take. Visualize a feast on the dining table - a juicy roasted turkey as the centerpiece and a variety of traditional dishes, such as creamed potatoes, green beans, ham, stuffing and cranberry sauce.

Celebrating this most American of holidays in the tropics may seem alien, but just because you are living abroad doesn’t mean that you have to abandon your traditions, though, and chefs from all kinds of culinary backgrounds are only too happy to get involved in offering up a feast for celebrants.

I spoke to four Singapore-based chefs and got them to share their take on Thanksgiving from a culinary perspective.

Bao Vuong, Chef De Cuisine at Grand Hyatt Singapore’s mezza9 restaurant Bao Vuong started his career in Las Vegas in 2003 and has worked alongside renowned chefs such as Joel Robuchon, Guy Savoy, Bradley Ogden and Mario Batali. In Los Angeles he worked as a Sous Chef at Spago in Beverly Hills, after which he went to Eleven Madison Park to be under Chef Daniel Humm, voted the best restaurant in the US and number four in the world.

Chef Bao joined Grand Hyatt Singapore in October 2019 as the hotel’s Chef De Cuisine at the award-winning open showcase kitchen concept restaurant, mezza9.

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Bao’s Take on Thanksgiving My experience of Thanksgiving in the US is an American spin on Chinese New Year, without passing out the red envelopes. No matter where each of my family members are around the world, they would try to come back home to spend time with family and friends over a fulfilling dinner and to give thanks for what we have.

Top Three Favorite Thanksgiving Dishes I would kick off Thanksgiving at the dining table with a Roasted Brussel Sprout Salad with crispy chopped bacon, dried cranberries and toasted almonds tossed with baby kale.

This would be followed by a slowroasted turkey, which is a staple for any Thanksgiving dinner. Brining the turkey overnight the day before is the key to having the meat juicy for the next day. The turkey is then slow roasted with compound butter under the skin to add flavor and to help keep it moist.

A classic way to finish a Thanksgiving meal would be a pie and my favorite is a Banana Cream Pie with a crunchy pie shell, a smooth banana filling and whipped cream.

Bao’s Tips for Cooking at Home The trick to any successful Thanksgiving dinner is to buy all your ingredients a couple days in advance and to know exactly what you want to put on the table.

It would also help to start your preparation a day or two before Thanksgiving as many of these dishes would need lots of prep-time, such as defrosting the turkey and brine. Don’t try doing everything on the day, you will most likely run out of space to prepare everything.

With a proper game plan, you will have enough time to sit down with the family and enjoy all the food you have cooked!

Eric Neo, Executive Chef of InterContinental Singapore, Ash & Elm, Man Fu Yuan, Lobby Lounge and Victoria Bar Having started out as a chef at the age of 16, Eric Neo brings with him close to 23 years of culinary and catering experience. He rose through the ranks to become Marina Mandarin hotel’s Executive Sous Chef in 2006 and joined Crowne Plaza Changi Airport as Executive Chef in 2008.

He was appointed InterContinental Singapore’s Executive Chef in October 2011. He is currently the President of Singapore Chefs Association, a member of Chaine Des Rotisseurs Singapore and the Chairman (Panel of Advisors) at the Asian Culinary Institute.

Eric’s Take on Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a day that I would arrange to have a home-cooked dinner with my close friends and family and thank them for their love and friendship.

Top Three Favorite Thanksgiving Dishes As an appetizer, a nice salad of rocket leaves, spinach, beets and carrots with my favorite honey mustard dressing. For the main course, I would make a roast turkey with potatoes, boiled peas and a thyme gravy. Lastly, for dessert, I would go for a maple pecan pie topped with vanilla ice cream.

Eric’s Tips for Cooking at Home Thanksgiving is a time to get together, not just to eat, but to prepare and cook the dishes. It can be a fun and fulfilling experience, especially when you give each family member or friends a role to play in the process.

Everyone can be proud of the fact that they played a part in the final outcome - this makes the Thanksgiving experience at the dining table even more special.

Alasdair McKenna, Group Chef at Burnt Ends & Meatsmith, Telok Ayer, Little India and MS Xpress Alasdair McKenna’s experience in the F&B and hospitality industry spans 35 years. He has opened eight successful restaurants across the globe and has been named in the Australian Good Food Guide and the UK Restaurant Guide for his excellence. Before assuming his current position in 2017 at Meatsmith, Alasdair was Head Chef for Macquarie Bank, popular Mediterranean restaurant Fix St. James and Onde, a modern French concept in Sydney.

Alasdair’s Take on Thanksgiving For me, thanksgiving is all about bringing the family together. But in my situation, having to be stationed overseas, I don’t really get the chance to be with my extended family during this time of year. What I would do is instead bring a group of friends together, inviting them to the table and getting to know them better.

Top Three Favorite Thanksgiving Dishes Thanksgiving is never complete without turkey and all its trimmings. Every year at Meatsmith, we throw a big Thanksgiving meal. It starts off with a 48 - 72 hour brine for the turkey, dependent on its size. We use a lot of fruits and the usual hard herbs like juniper, rosemary and thyme. After it’s been brined, we put it in the smokers where it’s smoked at an even heat, this is where the skin gets super crispy while the meat inside stays juicy.

To start with, I’m a big fan of fried chicken, so that will be my entree. As for dessert, it would have to be pecan pie. Every year I try to make one that’s better than the previous year’s.

Alisdair’s Tips for Cooking at Home My top tips for home cooks this Thanksgiving: Buy your turkey early and make sure there’s room in the fridge to store it!

When you are ready to roast it, defrost it slowly - a few days in advance is ideal. And most importantly, make sure your turkey fits in your oven!

Emmanuel Stroobant, Chef-Owner of Saint Pierre and Owner of Shoukouwa Sushi Restaurant, SQUE and Kingdom of Belgians Emmanuel Stroobant is a Michelinstar chef who learned the ropes from culinary maestros, such as Pierre Romayer and Francis Dernouchamp. His focus on modern fusion cuisine led him to start Saint Pierre back in December 2000 and, with his team, the fine dining restaurant earned its first Michelin star in 2017, retained it in 2018, before upgrading to a second Michelin star in 2019. Emmanuel also expanded his footprint with other concepts, including Shoukouwa Sushi Restaurant, SQUE and Kingdom of Belgians.

Emmanuel’s Take on Thanksgiving As a Belgian-born Singaporean, my first Thanksgiving wasn’t until a few years ago, when I had to cook for a large group of American friends at Saint Pierre. It was a real discovery for me, as I had to learn about recipes that were totally outside the scope of my background in classical French cooking. Instead of our usual Michelin-level fine dining, our team created a warm "family style" dinner. It was one of the most memorable evenings I’ve had at Saint Pierre.

Top Three Favorite Thanksgiving Dishes For that first Thanksgiving dinner, I made something similar to buttery brioche as an appetizer, using Japanese cornmeal and sugar with organic honey, adding buttermilk with French “lait ribot”. As for the ever-important turkey dish, I used a farmed organic turkey, which is much smaller in size but very tasty. The turkey is first smoked with hay then stuffed with a classical combination of garlic, rosemary, lemon and thyme.

For dessert, I did sweet potato and marshmallow, where I used ayamurasaki, a purple sweet potato traditionally used for Japanese snacks and desserts, with my own marshmallow scented with cinnamon and orange zest.

Emmanuel’s Tips for Cooking at Home I always recommend preparing ahead as much as possible to avoid spending too much time in the kitchen while your guests are waiting in the living room. Go simple, choose the best possible ingredients and remember that the company of people is as important as the food.

Since there could be limitations on how many people can gather at home during the pandemic period, an idea is to gather a few family members and get them to prepare different dishes and send them to each other, essentially a potluck. The difference is that family members living in different households can then meet online via a video conference and celebrate Thanksgiving together!

Photos courtesy of Julian Chua

Julian is an entrepreneur who runs several businesses that deal with consulting and brokerage in Singapore. He combines his love for food and writing with his business experience to provide readers with a balanced perspective on the F&B scene here in Singapore. For the past decade, he has been a freelance writer for NTUC Lifestyle, Business Times, Spin Asia, and Time Out.

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education All You Need to Know about Gap Years

By Andy Lee Gap years, where students take time off between high school and college, have long been an attractive option for high school graduates across the world. Commonly, graduates would spend their gap year traversing the world to immerse in new cultures, brush up on foreign languages and meet people from different walks of life. While traveling remains a popular way of spending a gap year, travel restrictions and public health concerns associated with the COVID-19 pandemic have meant this type of sabbatical is not currently an option. However, there are actually a myriad of options for students who are open to the prospect of taking a break from formal education.

Is taking a gap year right for me?

Taking a gap year may be an attractive option for students who need more time to prepare their college applications and add more experiences to enhance their profile. While many students take a gap year after they have applied to and have been admitted to college, others choose to apply to college during their gap year. Here are some profiles of students and the approach they might take when considering taking a sabbatical after high school: STUDENT A Some students may find it too overwhelming to apply to college during the final year of high school, while they juggle the demands of school work, standardized exams and other personal obligations. For students who struggle with multitasking and time management, they should think about applying to college during their gap year instead. By extending the university preparation process by an additional year, students may be able to better focus on excelling in each component of their applications.

STUDENT B Increasingly, there are many students who do not possess a clear sense of what they would like to pursue in college and beyond. Students who fall under this category who want to embark on a gap year should consider filling their time out with different internships and externships so that they can gain exposure to different professional fields.

By taking a gap year after high school, they would enter college with a renewed sense of purpose and direction.

STUDENT C For students who are interested in playing college sports, or studying art, film, or music, taking a gap year may prove to be invaluable. For aspiring college athletes, artists, filmmakers and musicians, taking a gap year to hone their craft and build up their portfolios would increase their chances of getting admitted to their dream school. Students who fall under this category may spend their gap year refining their athletic training or artistic skills so that they truly shine when they submit their college applications.

How should I spend my gap year?

Beyond traveling, here are some ideas on how your gap year may be spent: • Interning • Shadowing • Volunteering • Teaching English • Becoming an entrepreneur • Taking part-time courses • Learning a new language Final Thoughts Before taking the plunge, students should reflect on the purpose and goals that they seek to accomplish during their gap year. Not only should they write out action plans for each goal, they should also devise a system of rewards and consequences to hold them accountable. For students who have already committed to a particular college, they should communicate with their university to ensure that they are complying with institutional guidelines for students deferring admissions. For the right candidates, with careful research and thoughtful planning, a gap year may result in tremendous personal, educational and professional growth and transformation.

Andy is a a seasoned American university and boarding school admissions consultant with nearly a decade of experience.

He is a graduate of Columbia and Cornell and has provided comprehensive educational counseling to over 100 students, many of whom have gone on to attend institutions like Columbia, Cornell, Penn, Berkeley, UCLA, Georgetown, NYU and USC.

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business

Diversity & Inclusion affects Company Performance

By Richard Hartung One of the key societal themes in recent years has been ‘diversity and inclusion’ (D&I). From a societal perspective, it’s important; it’s critical for employees and investors, too, as companies with superior D&I practices perform better than other firms.

While the push for corporate D&I might seem like a recent phenomenon, with events in the US in 2020 pushing it to topof-mind worldwide, it dates back to at least the Civil Rights Act in the US in 1964 and the principles of multiculturalism that have underpinned Singapore since its founding in 1965.

Despite the long history, corporate D&I can be lacking.

Singapore was the second-worst performing country in terms of workplace D&I practices among 14 developed countries in 2019, according to a survey by consulting firm Kantar. And in the US, according to CNBC, a multitude of statistics on minorities and women also show a lack of progress among the corporate workforce.

That lack of D&I has a significant cost to companies, employees and investors. A diverse and inclusive workforce can generate huge advantages for companies, according to consulting firm BCG, making them more innovative, more profitable and better able to retain their most talented employees. BCG found that companies with above-average diversity on leadership teams report 19% more innovation and 9% higher EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) margins. Bank of America Merrill Lynch equity strategist, Haim Israel, similarly said that gender diversity can boost return on equity, profit, dividends and market capitalization at a lower risk rate.

Yet diversity beyond gender affects performance.

While companies comprising more than 30% women on executive teams outperform those with fewer women, for example, consulting firm McKinsey said the likelihood of outperformance continues to be higher for ethnic diversity than for gender.

Despite the benefits, D&I is not rising everywhere.

McKinsey also found a “widening gap between D&I leaders and companies that have yet to embrace diversity” over the past five years.

Since diversity and inclusion are so important, it is essential to look for it when you search for a job or an investment. And while it isn’t always easy to evaluate, you can assess which companies are more diverse by doing some research.

Thomson Reuters, Refinitiv, Kantar and Universum are among the growing number of firms that have developed a D&I Index that measures diverse and inclusive workplaces at hundreds, or even thousands of companies, though access to full data can be limited. Fortune magazine compiles a Great Place to Work list showing the top 100 US companies that create diverse and inclusive cultures. Here in Singapore, the Council on Board Diversity has data on gender diversity in large companies.

You can also evaluate companies on your own.

Investment management firm, Green Alpha Advisors, suggests looking at whether the board and executive team have sufficient diversity of gender, experience, education, age and race.

It notes that leadership teams with at least three women have better decision-making and fewer governance controversies. More companies are also publishing a D&I statement - and it’s even required in Canada - so you can look for and evaluate what the company says. You’ll need to be cautious, though, as the 2020 Hays Asia Salary Guide noted that just 50% of companies have D&I policies and only 18% of employers said they were “well-adhered to.”

While increasing diversity and inclusion is clearly the right thing to do, D&I has a broader impact than might be expected and looking for it, as well as pushing it forward, can benefit companies, investors and employees alike.

Richard is the Managing Director of Transcarta and a freelance writer for Today, Challenge, The Asian Banker and other media, as well as writing for corporates. He is also the author of Changing Lanes, Changing Lives.

Richard is a consultant in retail banking, focusing on payments strategy and efficiency, with more than 20 years of experience in Asia.

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Our Singapore:

LIVING IN IMAGES

How do you see Singapore? Every issue we’ll showcase moments captured by AAS members in a photography competition depicting our island at its finest; from the throng of the city to the wild wetlands, from the characters among its people to its varied landscape.

1st: Mallory Reynolds - A Little Bird Told Me...

Mallory is from California and arrived in Singapore in 2016 with her husband, Stuart. She took this shot while visiting Jurong Bird Park.

Mallory wins $100 in Lawry’s The Prime Rib vouchers.

3rd David Kingsbury - Waterfall at Gardens by the Bay David is from Cape Town, South Africa. He photographed this before ‘circuit breaker’ while at Gardens by the Bay with wife, Laura.

2nd Christin Gustafson - Morning Rain

David wins $25 in Hard Rock Cafe vouchers.

Christin is originally from California and took this photo while out for a walk in the Botanic Gardens after a rainy morning.

Christin wins a ‘To Be Calm’ room infuser.

Submit your photo of your Singapore!

Just snapped a cool picture? Send it on to our Editor-in-Chief, Katie Baines, at communications@aasingapore.com with ‘Living in Images’ in the subject line.

The competition is reserved for AAS members only • Members may submit images that are 300dpi and 1MB in size (minimum half A4 paper size) • Each entry must include name, short photographer biography and complete caption • Readers must own the rights to the picture submitted and must have obtained permission to photograph human subjects depicted • Judges’ decision is final • Entries are automatically disqualified if they do not meet our criteria and stated T&C • Winners will be notified via e-mail when the prize is ready to be sent out • Prizes cannot be exchanged for cash.

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LIVING IN SINGAPORE 47

SINGAPORE AMERICAN SCHOOL

THE LION CITY THE EAGLE WAY Botanic Gardens

JOIN THE SAS FAMILY AT WWW.SAS.EDU.SG/ADMISSIONS Singapore American School CPE Registration Number: 196400340R Registration Period: 22 June 2017 to 21 June 2023 Accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges

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