The inaugural Singapore prize was awarded at a glitzy event in state-owned media corporation Media Corp’s theater on Tuesday night. The ceremony was co-hosted by actors Hannah Waddingham and Sterling K. Brown and featured performances by the bands One Republic and Bastille, as well as US singer Bebe Rexha. In keeping with the event’s sustainability theme, the presenters walked the “green carpet” wearing recycled outfits. William wore an old dark green suit by Alexander McQueen, and Yen donned a 10-year-old suit from the brand, while Mbatha wore a bright navy blue gown by Stella McCartney—an ecofriendly label.
The prize was set up to honor individuals and organizations whose work has the potential to bring about real-world changes in the face of climate change. It is not intended to be a replacement for the Global Goals or other international agreements on climate change, but to supplement them and give more urgency to their efforts. The award’s first winners include a number of philanthropic individuals, organizations and businesses.
In addition to the winner’s monetary award, the prize also provides funding for the winning projects. The winning projects will be able to use the funds to scale up their operations and deliver measurable impact.
The NUS Singapore History Prize was launched in 2014 to spur interest in Singaporean history broadly understood, and to make the complexities and nuances of Singapore’s past more accessible to non-academic audiences. The prize is administered by the Department of History at NUS and is open to book-length works in English, Mandarin or Tamil on any aspect of Singapore’s history and culture.
NUS is also managing the S$500,000 donation — matched dollar for dollar by the government of Singapore — in an endowment fund that will help to sustain the prize. The money will be used to award the prize annually for a period of three years.
This year’s winners at the President’s Volunteerism & Philanthropy Awards (PVPA) 2024 showcased the diversity of changemakers in Singapore. In the Leaders of Good (Adult) category, Dr Vasoo Vasudevan embodied the spirit of the award with her tireless advocacy for senior citizen volunteerism. She took a hands-on approach as the chairman of RSVP Singapore, The Organisation of Senior Volunteers, to actively promote and galvanize seniors to give back to society.
The winners in the People of Good (Open) and Organisations of Good (SME) categories exemplify Singapore’s commitment to social change. Foreword Coffee, a social enterprise in the latter category, aims to empower its employees by providing training and employment opportunities for people with disabilities and mental health issues. It is also a leader in advocating for inclusive hiring and conducting outreach programmes to educate the workforce on this topic.
The winners at the People of Good (Open) and Leaders of Good (Adult) categories also exemplify Singapore’s commitments to social change. Mdm Tan Swee Hock was recognised for her long-standing dedication to promoting the social integration of Singapore’s Chinese community, while Mr Koh Juay Meng has dedicated more than 40 years to driving and supporting change in the grassroots and social service sector. His work as the chairman of RSVP Singapore, The Organisation for Senior Volunteers, has been instrumental in galvanising more than 200,000 seniors to volunteer and giving back to society.