These are the discussion prompts and notes from the March 2021 book club, when we discussed David Graeber’s “Bullshit Jobs: A Theory”.
Author: guanyinmiao
A man of knowledge lives by acting, not by thinking about acting. Carlos Castaneda.
On homelessness and housing insecurity, income insecurity and minimum income standard, and bridging research, practice, and policy: Dr. Ng Kok Hoe
In 2019, Dr. Ng Kok Hoe was part of two important studies in Singapore. First, he led the first nationwide street count of homelessness in the country, and second, he was part of the Minimum Income Standard or MIS study, which in a participatory manner determined the household budgets necessary to meet the basic needs of ordinary Singaporeans. Starting with a discussion of his research interests in housing and income insecurity, we hear more about these two studies and the bridging of research, practice, and policy with regard to social work and social service.
Students for a Safer NUS: Centring survivors, centring the community, and centring the margins
With the aim of improving the way the National University of Singapore handles sexual misconduct through community-led efforts, Students for a Safer NUS – or safeNUS – was formed by a group of concerned students in 2019. With one of its co-founders, Carissa Cheow, we learn more about the initiative and its work to cultivate a safer and more inclusive campus, as well as the challenges the team faces, including coping with burnout and working with the university.
OpenJio and the challenge of sustaining youth volunteerism and interest in social causes
If you’re not on the Telegram channel OpenJio, you might be missing out on the latest events and causes in Singapore’s social sector. But in addition to learning more about the initiative, how do we sustain the interest of youths and young adults in these social events and causes? In our conversation with core team member Amos Liu, we also talk about his personal volunteerism journey and some challenges OpenJio faces.
Mental health at the Singaporean workplace
The last time we discussed mental health on this platform was in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. With former nominated member of parliament Anthea Ong, we examined the levels of awareness, acceptance, and action. Today, with Chirag Agarwal, co-founder of Talk Your Heart Out, we focus on mental health at the workplace. In addition, we discuss the state of professional services and the structural, policy, and cultural changes for the future.
socialservice.sg 