CAPTISS 2018
Sharing Spaces:
Diverse Approaches and Communities
CAPTISS 2018 saw over 400 attendees throughout the day with over 60 presenters at our 9 panels and poster sessions. We welcomed people from CAPT, the wider NUS community, other tertiary institutions, NGOs, government agencies and various community-based organisations from both Singapore and overseas.
Our keynote speakers, Ms Yin Myo Su, Founder of the Inle Heritage Foundation, and Ms Anthea Ong, Founder of Hush, The Silent Teabar, kicked off the symposium with their insightful stories on how they implemented the concept of sharing spaces in their work.
Throughout the day, we showcased over 40 projects and organisations that helped us understand the concept of Sharing Spaces from different angles. We also saw the return of the Human Library which was, once again, well-attended with over 60 participants and 13 “books”. Furthermore, as a testament to the potential of CAPTISS being a space for innovation, an Art Gallery and an Applied Theatre session was also held to give attendees the chance to interact with thought-provoking art and cultivate empathy.
A huge thank you goes out to all our participants, presenters, volunteers and committee members. We couldn’t have done it without you!
Collaboration
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The Collaboration panel aimed to feature organisations and projects that focus on forging partnerships between various communities in order to achieve a common aim. Whether a social enterprise which connects charities to volunteers, or a project which brings together other relevant groups who are experts in their own field to effect social change, this panel provided a platform for these inspiring organisations to share, discuss, and inspire. |
Heritage Conservation
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The Heritage Conservation panel aimed to raise awareness on preserving heritage through exploring the current efforts taken to conserve and protect the heritage, languages and traditions unique to the many different communities in Singapore/South East Asia. By presenting the initiatives and projects implemented, coupled with the challenges met during the project execution, the importance of conservation of heritage and culture will be further explained and understood. |
Gender Issues
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The Gender panel focused on illuminating the enduring issues and struggles that arise from gendered norms, to confront and bring awareness to gender discrimination in contemporary society and uncover how and why this social problem persists. We embrace empowerment and the plurality of perspectives, understanding the far-reaching impact of awareness and in-depth knowledge on a new generation of students and citizens. This panel is a necessary platform to discuss how we can contribute to the ongoing dialogue on detrimental and limiting effects of gender norms on individuals and society. Furthermore, the effective actions we can take with the experience and expertise of the esteemed guest speakers and organizations invited to the symposium. |
Exploring Inequalities
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The Exploring Inequalities panel explored the idea of inequality between various communities in society. The inequality that these disadvantaged communities face can manifest in different forms, through the unequal or lack of access to certain resources, which in turn impacts their livelihoods. As the panelists discussed the methods they have adopted in attempts to resolve some form of inequality, this panel proceeded to evaluate the effectiveness of such methods. Parallels were drawn between the different projects, to identify the lessons that can be learnt in attempts to resolve inequality. |
Arts
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Prima facie, the creative arts seem like a highbrow pursuit that is mostly for entertainment. In reality, the Arts is a medium that lives and breathes within every single individual. It is the expression of the human soul, it is capable of connecting the community as a whole. Through the presentations of our panelists, who explore different ways of engaging communities and bringing people together through different art forms, participants realised how the arts is a voice to many and to inspire integration through conversations between various communities. |
Health and Well-Being
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The Health and Well-being panel brought together a diverse range of practitioners working on engaging communities on issues pertaining to mental health and physical health alike. With panelists who approach such issues from various angles and methods, the panel aimed to foster an exchange of insights, ideas and best practices from the different experiences that could be applied to any area regarding the health and well-being of individuals and communities from diverse backgrounds sharing common spaces. |
Challenging Stigma
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Social stigma arises from unflattering characteristics perceived by society, giving rise to a disapproval of a person or group of persons from the rest of society. The problem arises when these persons’ lives are adversely affected, either through discrimination, inflammatory remarks and misconstrued stereotypes arising from labels. Within a globalised world, the problem is more pronounced when people from different cultures have to share their spaces. Yet, it is difficult to raise a conversation. The Challenging Stigma panel aimed to gather different communities who have attempted, or possibly succeeded, the uphill challenge of changing perceptions, in the hopes of providing a platform to share and learn from one another. |
Environment
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The Environment panel focused on the methods by which various stakeholders care for the environment and motivate others to do so. Ultimately, this panel aimed to surface the fact that every individual has a share in the environment, and a very real capacity to influence the importance that society places on environmental issues. |
Children and Youth
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The Children and Youth panel aimed to expose participants to projects which have successfully benefited the vulnerable children and youth. Together, participants explored the journey these projects have gone through and how they have overcome the hardships as well as their future plans going forward to inspire participants to play their part in projects under children and youth as well. This panel allowed participants to understand the real needs of this community through debunking what we would commonly think they need but actually do not. With what was heard from our panelists, participants were encouraged to think about how they could start making a difference to the children and youth in need and give back to them in any way they could within their means. |
Children and Youth
The panel raised awareness on the population of vulnerable children in Singapore and abroad. Using successful projects as examples, speakers shared about how we as youth can effectively and meaningfully contribute to improving the well-being of these children through both direct and indirect action.
Participants learned about the importance of helping vulnerable youth get out of the cycle of abuse and hurt. They also learned that they should make use of their current skillset and value-add to existing programs, as creating new programs is not always the right solution.
Special Needs
The Special Needs panel aimed to advocate the importance of inclusiveness and awareness for Persons with Disabilities (PwD). Youth efforts have shown how people are trying to make our society more thoughtful and inclusive by trying to create a communal space for everyone in Singapore.
Participants learned that they need to be patient and open-minded when starting a social cause project, as it is certainly not easy! They also learned that they should keep the physical, behavioural, intellectual and latent needs of the community in mind, as well as the fact that not all problems can be solved by technology.
Mental Health Advocacy
The panel highlighted the general lack of awareness of mental illness among youth, as well as the different ways in which student-led organizations have made a difference in the local youth mental health landscape.
Participants learned that one-on-one interaction is a good way to dispel stigma against mental health issue sufferers, as it challenges pre-conceived notions and builds trust. In addition, they also learned that each individual has the ability to make a difference – by stepping out and talking about it, and reaching out.
Human Trafficking
The panel delved into the causes and consequences of human trafficking, bringing to light the complexity of this issue. It discussed how we, as youth, can do our part in improving the situation while human trafficking is perpetrated by several industries,
Participants learned that they can make a difference by making the issue more personal and intimate, without pushing responsibility to certain groups of people, by modelling positive behaviour and going against the norm, and by giving people something real that they can do to support the cause.
Social Enterprise
The Social Enterprise panel aimed to show different project initiatives for a good cause by youth across Asia. Here, the presenters talked about their main inspirations, the challenges they encountered on their entrepreneurship journey, and how they managed to overcome them.
Participants learned that starting a social enterprise requires both a thorough knowledge of the community’s needs and assets, and the courage to take a leap of faith. They also learned that in order to create sustainable impact, they need to co-create solutions with the community.
Measuring Outcomes
The panel explored measuring the success, sustainability and effectiveness of projects in order to fully utilize and allocate limited resources efficiently. Experts shed light on a relatively unknown topic and highlighted its importance to people who are unaware.
Participants learned the importance of conceptualizing abstract outcomes by turning them into specific goals, and collecting data on those. They also learned about the importance of having an attitude that encourages constant improvement in developing community projects.
Minorities and Languages
The panel explored the development and treatment of minority languages in various countries, examining history, current speakers and governmental policies. Experts provided us with an insight into a basic aspect of our lives that is a complex issue for others.
Participants learned about how government policy as well as social attitudes can greatly influence how a language is viewed and used in everyday life, as well as the importance of individual speakers in keeping endangered languages alive.
Migrants
The Migrants panel aimed to raise awareness of the unique issues faced by the various sub-groups of migrant communities in Singapore, as well as the methods of engagement which youth have adopted for their projects.
Participants learned about the importance of making participation meaningful for both migrants and volunteers by constantly engaging stakeholders, in order to enhance the sustainability of the project.
Health
The panel looked at the efforts of several projects to bring basic health screening to groups locally and overseas.
Participants learned about the importance of connecting with people in the community and building trust, as well as the difficulty in measuring this important outcome.
Sustainable Development
The panel discussed how the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can be applied to our daily lives through the sharing of both local and overseas projects. These projects showed us how we could then change our lifestyles to be in line with the SDGs.
Participants learned not to underestimate the effect that small changes can have, so long as they are focused toward the final goal.