SAMA Festival

What is the SAMA Festival?

The SAMA Festival was our two-day online festival that sought to explore the overarching theme, “What role do youths play in gender equality?”

 

By connecting experienced gender advocates across the public, private and non-profit spheres, we hoped to offer a platform of balanced discussion where new insights can cross and problems can be examined from a variety of perspectives.

Find out what transpired in our Festival here!

Our Programme

Keynote Speaker – Opening Address

Date & Time: 

Saturday, 30 July, 3:30pm-4pm

Ms. Corinna Lim

Executive Director of AWARE

 Panel Dialogue 1

Date & Time: 

Saturday, 30 July, 4:30pm – 6pm

Topic: 

What role do youths play in advancing gender equality in Asia?

Tin Pei Ling

Member of Parliament for Macpherson SMC

Jacqueline Chua

Chairperson of Inspiring Girls Singapore

Shalini Surandran

Senior Executive at AWARE Catalyse

Kelley Wong

Chairperson of the Young Women’s Leadership Connection

Karen Tay (Moderator)

Board Member of Women’s Forum for the Economy & Society

Address by Ms. Georgette Tan

Date & Time: 

Sunday, 31 July, 3:30pm – 4:15pm

Topic: 

How can we advocate for healthy masculinity in order to prevent sexual violence? 

Georgette Tan

President of United Women Singapore

 Panel Dialogue 2

Date & Time: 

Sunday, 31 July, 4:30pm – 6pm 

Topic: 

What role do youths play in advancing gender equality in Asia?

Natalie Chung Sum Yue

Co-Founder of V’air Hong Kong

Nishi Rai

Co-President of Students for a Safer NUS (safeNUS)

Celeste Chung

Founder of Youth for the Future

Aadya Dixit

Founder of WomenNLeadership

Pearline Pang (Moderator)

Co-Founder of WomenINVEST

For more detailed introductions of each of the speakers, head over to our programme booklet at tinyurl.com/samafestival2022

Wang Yuxuan, Director of Tech

Wang Yuxuan is the Director of Tech of SAMA. His main passions lie in the fields of Mathematics and Computer Science. During his high school days, he was notably part of the Singapore Math Olympiad National Training Team. He also has 4-5 years of experience in programming, and is fluent in 2 programming languages (Python and C++). He has a strong belief in the power of technology, and his dream is that one day, technology can be made accessible on a large scale to address the various challenges faced by disadvantaged groups in society.

Tahamina Abdul, Director of Editorial/Content

Tahamina Abdul is the Director of Editorial/Content of SAMA. She is currently a freshman in Nanyang Technological University, where she will be pursuing a degree in Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering. She is passionate about the sciences and female representation in these spaces. Her interest in gender advocacy stems from her own firsthand experiences with the different obstacles and difficulties that women in STEM face. While studying at NUS High, she attained SSEF Bronze for her team’s research project with the National University of Singapore’s Department of Microbiology & Immunology. Outside of STEM, she enjoys film & literature, and feeds on Substack pop culture critiques. 

Jeriel Tan, Director of Publicity

Jeriel is the Director of Publicity at SAMA. He is a final year student at the National University of Singapore majoring in Psychology. As a former member of the NUS Political Association’s flagship Kent Ridge Ministerial Forum and the current member of CAPE’s (Community for Advocacy and Political Education) Publicity team, he fights for independent political literacy and believes that more can be done, through the efforts of pragmatic resistance. After attending multiple seminars which include politicians from various parties, civil societies and advocates, he is inspired by the sincere non-partisan concerns and efforts from all the stakeholders in our political climate. He believes that regardless of gender, it is fundamental for all to be treated with equal respect, rights and opportunities. No one should feel inadequate because of it. In his free time, he enjoys hunting for good hawker food. 

Yu Jingrong, Director of Corporate/Fundraising

Yu Jingrong is the Director of Corporate/Fundraising of SAMA. With a keen interest in the math and sciences, she loves handling data. Back in junior college at River Valley High School, she was part of both the Math and Science Leaders Academy. She was also the Runner-Up for the 2021 Singapore Statistics Competition organised by the National University of Singapore. Outside of work, her weekly volunteering sessions with the CDAC reaffirms her desire to contribute to the community and raise awareness for causes that resonate with her. While she received undergraduate offers from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and New York University (NYU), she is now studying Medicine at the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine.

Ryan Vinit Bharathan, Director of Art

Ryan Vinit is the Director of Art of SAMA. Growing up under the influence of strong, ambitious and independent women has taught them the importance of gender advocacy. During their years at Raffles Institution, they were Art/Creative Director of ConnectTheDOTs, a project aiming to raise awareness for financially challenged women. They also conducted a research project on gender equality and sexual harassment among Singaporean youths for their A Level Project Work, eventually providing a comprehensive recommendation to improve on the national Sexuality Education syllabus here. They especially love the work of feminist artists like Sophie Xeon and Mj Rodriguez. They currently sell prints at @thehouseofvinit on Instagram!

Bao Ruoyun, Vice-President

Bao Ruoyun is the Vice-President of SAMA. An incoming freshman at Fudan University in Shanghai, she will be majoring in International Relations, on the Shanghai Government Scholarship. Having come from Nanyang Girls’ High School and spending her schooling years in an all-female environment, she has met many strongly passionate individuals who have made her more aware of and interested in gender advocacy. Back in junior college at Hwa Chong Institution, she spearheaded publicity efforts for Gracehaven, a beneficiary for the Salvation Army Singapore and worked with children-at-risk groups. She enjoys kayaking and coaching her juniors from Hwa Chong Canoeing in her free time.

Isabella Ren, Vice-President

Isabella Ren is the Vice-President of SAMA. She will be studying Business Analytics at the National University of Singapore, as a NUS Merit Scholar. An avid baker and ex-treasurer for the Hwa Chong Canoeing team, she spearheaded the Oats Project, going the extra mile back in junior college to cook oats for her team weekly and promote a culture of nutrition. A literary enthusiast too, she is inspired by feminist writing and female literary figures, and loves spreading her pasion for literature through tutoring. She enjoys reading classics and kayaking in her leisure time. 

Shaun Loh, Founder & President

Shaun Loh is the Founder and President of SAMA. Raised by a single mom, witnessing her economic struggles during his formative years led to his interest in gender advocacy. He started volunteering at AWARE in 2019, where he contributed research on Muslim women’s rights to AWARE’s 2021 Omnibus Gender Equality Report. He also contributed research and editorial efforts to AWARE’s Support, Housing and Enablement (SHE) Project for single moms. While studying at Raffles Institution, he co-founded ConnectTheDOTs, a project that raised more than $7500 for financially challenged women through 2 Women’s Month and Mother’s Day book sales with Ethos Books. Passionate about the Middle East and Southeast Asia, he struggles with Arabic in his free time, and is most inspired by youth-led initiatives across these two regions.