Social Hero

In episode #15 of the Social Hero, I speak with Christopher Quek, the Founder & General Partner of TRIVE VC, on his journey in impact investing within SEA.

TRIVE VC is an impact VC firm investing in high growth, technology startups that create positive social impact, improving the health and wealth of people in Southeast Asia. TRIVE has a $30M asset under management and has invested in > 20 impact-driven companies in SEA.

We delved into Chris's journey in supporting impact-driven startups in making a positive difference in SEA. Besides, we also discussed about the definition of impact investing and how asset owners are able to contribute to the impact investing ecosystem.

Check out our conversation to learn more about his work! 😉

In episode #14 of the Social Hero, I speak with Amy Blair, the Founder & CEO of The Batik Boutique, on her journey to empower Malaysian women and local artisans through fair and sustainable income.

The Baik Boutique is a Malaysian-based social enterprise which empowers hundreds of artisans by offering them a fair and sustainable income-producing beautiful, high-quality fashion and gifts. The Batik Boutique believes that women deserved a fair and sustainable income, and the ability to provide for themselves and their families.

We delved into Amy's journey as an expatriate who travelled across the world from the US, the local arts and crafts industry in Malaysia, and the beautiful stories of women family. 

Check out our conversation to learn more about her work! 😉

In episode #12 of the Social Hero, I speak with Debbie Choa, the Executive Director of Projek57, on her journey to promote unity and patriotism in Malaysia.

Projek57 is a social enterprise, non-political and non-partisan committed to building unity and hope in Malaysia, home for all Malaysians. Its main focus is the youths of our nation. It collaborates with universities and colleges to engage youths in projects to build unity and empower underprivileged youths through retail training.

We discussed the diversity and unity of Malaysia society and the power of youths to make a difference in the nation.

Check out our conversation to learn more about her work! 😉

In this 6-minute episode, I will share about the four ways to support social enterprises in your local community.

Firstly, understanding the social enterprise from the aspects of impact, business models, and processes. Secondly, purchase their products or engage with their services, all with a mindful heart. Thirdly, be their ambassadors and spread your love with your family and friends. Last but not least, volunteer for the social enterprise that you are aligned with.

This bite-sized episode will provide you with a good overview of how to support social enterprises in your local community so that you will fully invest your time, effort, and money to the right channel.

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In episode #11 of the Social Hero, I speak with Soon Seng, the CEO of Teach For Malaysia, on his journey to tackle education inequity in Malaysia.

Teach For Malaysia is a non-profit organisation which commits to ending education inequality in Malaysia. Its flagship 2-year fellowship programme enables fresh graduates and early-year working professionals to involve in the education field through teaching in high-needs secondary schools.

To date, Teach For Malaysia has impacted more than 111,000 students in over 157 secondary schools across Malaysia. More than 400 fellows have participated in the transformational 2-year fellowship programme and are playing pivotal roles in the education field in Malaysia after the fellowship programme.

Check out our conversation to learn more about his work! 😉

In this 6-minute episode, I will share about the true definition of social entrepreneurship, three main models of social entrepreneurship, and several examples of successful social enterprises around the world.

Three main models of social entrepreneurship are The Non-Profit, The For-Profit with a Social Mission, and The Social Impact Investor. Each model brings different values to the table and plays an important role in the social entrepreneurship world.

This bite-sized episode will provide you with a good overview of social entrepreneurship, its business models, and its potentials to make an impact in the world.

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In episode #9 of the Social Hero, I speak with Sai, the CEO of Young Sustainable Impact (YSI) SEA, on his journey to drive social impacts in the Southeast Asia region.

YSI SEA is a Singaporean-based social enterprise which empowers Southeast Asian youths through its flagship incubation programme, community events, and workshops. YSI SEA focuses on creating impact in 3 areas: Energy Transitions, Food & Agriculture and Circular Economy.

Since its establishment in 2017, YSI SEA has impacted thousands of young entrepreneurs in Southeast Asia through its initiatives and has successfully incubated over 20 social enterprises through Innovation Programme, a 5-month fully funded incubation programme.

Check out our conversation to learn more about his work! 😉

In episode #8 of the Social Hero, I speak with Neil, the CEO of Jasberry, on his journey to empower farmers in Thailand with his innovative product, Jasberry Rice.

Jasberry is a social enterprise that aims to solve the problem of farmer poverty in Thailand through innovative organic products with global appeal. Its flagship product, Jasberry Rice, is a new variety of rice that combines both the delicious taste of the world-famous Thai Jasmine rice and the powerful nutritional and antioxidant benefits of berries. Best of all, it has 3 times higher antioxidants than blueberry.

To date, Jasberry has impacted more than 2500 farmers and their family by improving their daily income by from 0.4 USD to about 6 USD. Besides, Jasberry strives to bring innovative healthy and delicious organic products to consumers globally.

Neil holds an MBA degree from Chulalongkorn University and is the Director of Social Enterprise Thailand. Besides, he is also a participant of the Unreasonable Fellowship, a prestigious program which supports entrepreneurs to solve the seemingly intractable social and environmental challenges of our time.

Check out our conversation to learn more about his work! 😉

In episode #7 of the Social Hero, I speak with Dr Lau, the Project Lead of Corona Tracker, on his journey to combat the terrifying COVID-19 outbreak.

Corona Tracker is a community-based project which allows the public to keep track of the latest news development about the COVID-19. The platform is vital for information consolidation, and all gathered information is open to use for the public.

The platform is powered by over 2000 volunteers from across the globe, ranging from data scientists, medical professionals, software developers, to the general public. Everyone is welcomed to contribute through its Telegram channel. It has more than 1 million users across the globe who receive updates on COVID-19 daily. 

Dr Lau holds a PhD in Information Technology from the Queensland University of Technology and is the CEO of LEAD, an education institute focusing primarily on tech courses.

Check out our conversation to learn more about his work! 😉

In episode #4 of the Social Hero, I speak with Kim, co-founder of PichaEats, on her journey to empower refugee families in Malaysia through food.

PichaEats is an award-winning social enterprise in Malaysia which partners with refugee families to produce delicious food for the customers. With a very simple mission which is to serve customers good food, Kim and her team strive to provide an opportunity for refugee families to start a new life in Malaysia.

They specialise in delicacies from the homeland of the chefs – from Iraqi Falafel, Palestinian Hummus to Afghani Dumplings & Syrian sweets – with everything made of authenticity & love. They have fed the employees of many organisations including World Bank Group, Allianz, and Maybank through their catering services.

Check out our conversation to learn more about her work! 😉

In episode #3 of the Social Hero, I speak with Saleh, Founder of Parastoo Theatre, on his journey to empower refugees families to start a new life in Malaysia.

Parastoo Theatre is a non-profit theatre group in Malaysia which is formed by a group of refugees, fighting the challenges and obstacles through performing arts. Since 2016, Saleh and his team use the method of oppressed theatre to bring about social changes, striving to spread the awareness of various social challenges in the community.

Paratsoo Threatre first and most important play, named "The Bitter Taste of History" has received immense positive response by the audience in Malaysia. The meaningful work of this organisation is continuously supported by various philanthropic organisations such as AirAsia Foundation.

Check out our conversation to learn more about his work! 😉

In episode #2 of the Social Hero, I speak with Ita, co-founder of TuneMap, on her journey to empower visually-impaired people in the cities of Indonesia through a mobile app.

TuneMap is a crowd-powered map to navigate visually-impaired people in the cities of Indonesia. Ita and her 2 other co-founders created a navigation app for visually-impaired people which empowers disabled communities to live independently, promoting equal opportunities for people with different abilities.

Since 2016, TuneMap has impacted more than 50 visually-impaired people through the app, creating more than 5000 reports to the governmental authorities to rebuild the pavements for the people.

The meaningful work of this organisation has been featured widely in the regions, including e27, Tech In Asia, and ASEAN Foundation. The organisation has received grants and support from UNDP, ASEAN Foundation, SAP, and MDEC. 

Check out our conversation to learn more about her work! 😉

In episode #1 of the Social Hero, I speak with Zi Xiang Chan (Zi), co-founder & CFO of Langit Collective, on his journey of volunteering a project in rural communities to closing the rural-urban economic gap.

Langit Collective is an award-winning social enterprise that aspires to bring economic empowerment to rural communities and smallholder farmers in Malaysia. Together with 3 other co-founders, Zi leads the organisation in promoting unique and heirloom agricultural produce by smallholder farmers from East Malaysia to larger markets.

Since 2015, Langit Collective has impacted more than 40 farmers in three rural communities in East Malaysia, creating more than RM110,000 of direct payouts to the farmers.

The meaningful work of this organisation has been featured widely in the regions, including Echoing Green, BFM 89.9, and The Edge TV. Zi spoke at TEDxPetaling Street and was named as Acumen Fellow for his incredible work in social entrepreneurship.

Check out our conversation to learn more about his work! 😉