– Charlie “Tremendous” Jones, author and motivational speaker
There are many issues that the community is facing. And only when we take the effort to find out more and keep ourselves up-to-date, can we be part of the solution and change can happen, to truly build a community that cares.
WATCH THIS: Super Doctors – Dr. Plastic
Meet the man who's doing everything right. Uncover an inspiring tale about an Indonesian doctor, Dr Yusuf Nugraha who combines his commitment to saving the environment with providing free healthcare. Watch the video below: Source: Zoomin.TV, 30 April 2018
More people seeking help for mental illness
More people are seeking help for mental conditions such as depression, alcohol abuse and obsessive compulsive disorder, and the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) hopes to have more of them treated in the community. Last year, 42,663 people went for outpatient treatment...
Integrating special needs kids into mainstream schools
An initiative has been launched with the aim of integrating special needs children into a mainstream school setting. It is one of several in a pilot programme by the Ministry of Social and Family Development to better cater to the diversity of children who are taking...
Upcycling gains fans in Singapore
From shabby furniture getting a funky facelift to threadbare dresses finding a new lease of life as cushion covers, the art of upcycling is very much alive in Singapore. Upcycling is the process of converting old or discarded items into something of better quality,...
Changing mindsets about upcycling
Step into the Arab Street office of social enterprise Terra SG and you will be greeted by the sight of upholstered seats made from tyres, juice cartons-turned-coin pouches and vodka bottles filled with fairy lights. One man's waste is another man's treasure - and the...
Microplastics in Arctic sea ice troubling
Researchers warned of a "troubling" accumulation of microplastics in sea ice floating in the Arctic ocean, a major potential source of water pollution as global warming melts the sheets of frozen water. A team from the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine...
Learning from Sweden’s e-waste recycling push
On average, each person in Singapore generated 19.5kg of e-waste in 2014, second only to Hong Kongers in Asia. By this year (2018), the figure will have grown to 21kg as estimated by the Global E-Waste Monitor 2017. Of this amount, just 6% is known to be recycled,...
Singapore’s first zero-waste grocery store
The first zero-waste grocery store is launching in Singapore. Called UnPackt, the store’s goods will be sold without any packaging and customers will be encouraged to bring their own containers. Dispensed in self-serve gravity bins to reduce food waste, dried food and...
The world’s biggest plastic polluters
Earth Day 2018 is dedicated to mobilising the world to end plastic pollution, by launching a multi-year campaign to curb consumption of single-use plastics. Celebrated annually on 22 April, Earth Day is a global annual event with more than 1 billion people in 192...
It takes a community to help dementia patients
Across rapidly greying Japan, there are cities like Matsudo which have built community-based support networks and rolled out initiatives to help dementia patients and caregivers. Matsudo, a city of 500,000, has the country's second fastest-ageing population. The city...
Sweden unveils road that recharges vehicles
The world's first road that will allow vehicles to be recharged while being driven has been launched in Sweden, according to a joint press release from eRoadArlanda and construction firm NCC on Wednesday (Apr 11). The road works by transferring energy to the vehicle...
39,000 kids dream big to give back to the community
From April 2018, 39,000 children from more than 670 pre-schools will be participating in an annual initiative that encourages them to be involved in community service through everyday acts of kindness. This is almost one-third of all the pre-schools in Singapore....
New green method to strengthen buildings
Researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) have found a way to use wood waste to strengthen building materials. The new method uses biochar, which is a material produced when heat is used to decompose sawdust. The researchers from the School of Design...
NUS study could lead to better flu medication
More effective flu medicines could be in the pipeline, with a recent breakthrough by National University of Singapore scientists in understanding how the flu virus infects people. The Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine study found that flu viruses can hijack a class of...
‘There’s still hope he can live a normal life’
Twelve years ago, Anglo-Chinese Junior College rugby captain Lee Wei Kong sprinted through a pedestrian crossing to catch a bus – and was bulldozed by an oncoming taxi. The severe, traumatic head and spinal injuries he suffered needed three major operations within a...
Sweet drinks still being sold on government premises
Many businesses on government premises have yet to clear their shelves of sweet drinks, with less than a month to go for the implementation of the Healthier Drinks Policy. The Health Promotion Board's (HPB) Whole-of-Government Healthier Drinks Policy, which takes...
Firms rework recipes as sweet drink sales slump
Sweet drinks are falling out of favour among health-conscious Singaporeans, forcing beverage firms to reformulate old favourites to try and retain their appeal. These range from low-sugar variations to zero-sugar editions sweetened entirely by artificial sweeteners....
Colour a kid’s world and help him heal through art
Art therapy is a mental health profession that is becoming more popular here, particularly with children, who tend to take to art naturally. The Art Therapists' Association of Singapore, which started in 2008, now has 45 members compared with 30 in 2013. More art...
Social enterprise helps single mums find independence
The traumatic experience of finding himself and his family homeless for two years proved a life-changing event for Mr Mohd Affendy Abdullah. He was just 16 when his mother divorced his abusive father and was left to fend for her four children alone - and they had to...
Online shopping scheme to cut food waste on trial
A scheme that aims to help shops reduce wastage and offer cheaper food to lower-income families will be trialled in Little India. Shop owners in the area who have goods like fruit and vegetables that are close to their expiry date can put them up for sale on the...
