We celebrate the many simple acts of kindness and generosity that are often understated, undertaken by individuals such as you and I.
We aim to capture the details and deeds of those who are working towards helping others in the community, whose stories would otherwise go untold.
We are a group of professional storytellers keen to document Singapore’s everyday heroes during the COVID-19 crisis. As a group of volunteers, we are working towards building a repository of visually led pieces that capture how the people of Singapore are coping with challenges of the situation, their collaborative nature and problem-solving spirit.
"Heroes are made by the paths they choose, not the powers they are graced with."
~ Brodi Ashton
Our Storytellers
Bryan van der Beek
Bryan is an award-winning commercial and editorial photographer based in Singapore. His images span Asia, North America and Europe. A former Executive Photojournalist with The Straits Times in Singapore, Bryan has also worked with newspapers in the United States. His photographs have appeared in several international publications including: Time, Time Asia, Newsweek and The Washington Post. In addition, his photographs known for their artistic sensibility can be found in the permanent collection of the National Museum of Singapore. A graduate of the Indiana University School of Journalism, he has lectured at the School of Art, Design and Media at Nanyang Technological University, Temasek Polytechnic and the Objectifs Centre for Photography and Film.
Caroline Chia
Caroline has notched international accolades recognising excellence in photojournalism in her career. She was previously with The Straits Times Picture Desk for more than 12 years, after graduating from the University at Buffalo, New York. Over the years, she has covered both local and international events, including the 2013 Malaysian Elections, Singapore Grand Prix and the 2015 SEA Games. Caroline is currently a freelance producer and photographer.
Serene Goh
Serene believes that human-centered narratives define civilisations, and is driven to innovate content that solves for happiness. She is an award-winning correspondent, editor and content director who has worked in local, regional and global organisations over her three decades in the media ,leading teams to global standards of excellence for multimedia storytelling.
Before founding Brango Pte Ltd to champion brave new Asian writing, she worked at publishing organisations such as Singapore Press Holdings Ltd, The Edge Singapore, and Australian Consolidated Press (South-East Asia), among others. She is a longtime youth advocate who served on the 13th and 14th National Youth Councils, then on the advisory committee for the Youth Corps Singapore. She is currently a board member of Advisory.Sg and enjoys sharing hacks over pie with her mentees.
Stacey Rodrigues
Stacey is a content strategist and creator who believes in always finding the human, personal side to every story. A former journalist, she works with brands, corporates and social outreach organisations to tell their stories across multimedia engagement channels.
Stacey has led high-performing teams at ELLE Singapore and Edelman Singapore, and has contributed to media such as Channel NewsAsia, The Edge Singapore, and Harper’s BAZAAR Singapore. When she’s not furiously typing on her laptop, Stacey enjoys being behind the camera capturing short-form, doco-style video content or diving into the deep blue to dabble in underwater photography.
Our Patron: Speaker of Parliament of Singapore, Mr Tan Chuan-Jin
Mr Tan Chuan-Jin is the current Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore, elected by Members of Parliament (MPs) on September 11, 2017 as the 10th Speaker of Singapore since the First Legislative Assembly of 1955.
Supporting our work, he said: “There are so many simple acts of kindness and generosity that are often understated and fade into the background. We must celebrate these! Media and creative folks are powerful storytellers. They see things that we don’t. Through their eyes, these stories can inspire and catalyse action. When more people give and care, we will build a fundamentally different Singapore. So we hope that more storytellers will join us to celebrate the good that is happening and to document the Singapore spirit in action all around us. These are the stories for our lifetime.”
He strongly believes that as Singapore develops as a nation, its people also need tend to its heart and soul. He started the SGCares movement to create opportunities for giving and caring, ultimately, to nurture a sense of others — of ‘we’ and not just ‘me’ — that drive love, compassion and empathy.
The process of helping others changes those who help, and cumulatively, drives change in society. When Singaporeans are prepared to go the extra mile for each other and the country, he said, there is every chance that Singapore can weather any storm and thrive.
Tell Us Your Story
If you know of an individual or organisation doing inspiring work throughout the COVID-19 crisis, get in touch with us at https://m.me/whatareyoudoing.sg, and let us know how we can be a part of telling their stories.
We believe that calling attention to how people are finding creative ways to identify and solve problems will add to narratives that help motivate others to do the same.
