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SG CLIMATE RALLY 2023

23 September 2023 (Saturday) 

Speakers’ Corner @ Hong Lim Park 

3:00 - 7:00 pm

Seas Are Rising, So Are We

Are you ready to show up for climate justice? 

Do you want to fight for a greener, fairer Singapore? 

Stand with us at Hong Lim Park this September!


The clock is ticking on climate change. For many in Singapore and in the region, the effects of climate change are already a reality through floods, heatwaves, and rising sea levels. In these urgent state of affairs, we must take bold measures to reduce emissions and establish robust support for populations made most vulnerable to climate change. Join us on 23 September 2023 at Hong Lim Park, where we will hear rousing speeches, explore community booths and collectively call for a more equitable and sustainable future for all.

RSVP now via Facebook or by joining our Telegram channel!

Click here to donate to Rally costs.

Follow us on Instagram for updates!

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Missed the opportunity to write a postcard at the rally? Fret not -- join our collective voice with an email to your MP!

 

Simply follow the guided prompts at this link (https://emails.sgclimaterally.com) to draft your email.

 

MEDIA COVERAGE

Wake Up Singapore: Fighting for our Future: A History Of Environmental Advocacy in Singapore

CALLS TO ACTION

RALLY PROGRAMME

1500 – 1700        Welcome space and activities

1700 – 1715        Musical performance: Cactus Cactus

1715 – 1730        Musical performance: RENE

1730 – 1750        Speeches by Ho Xiang Tian, Dr. Geh Min, Nor Syazwan Bin Abdul Majid

1750 – 1805        Musical performance: Woes

1805 – 1815        Speeches by Madhu Ardhanari and Marlina Yased

1820 – 1845       Closing Action

Activities 

  • Postcards to my MP

  • Nature Nook: Kids’ Play Station! 

  • Earth Emotions

  • Carnival Games

  • Placard Art Jam

  • Climate Justice Learning Corner

  • Climate ARcTion

OUR SPEAKERS

Ho Xiang Tian 

Co-Founder, LepakInSG

Xiang Tian is the co-founder of environmental group LepakInSG and has spent more than 7 years working on various environmental issues in Singapore. 

 

Xiang Tian is usually found wearing slippers and shorts, or trying to spot obscure blobs in nature when not reading government publications, going for engagements on land use planning and other environmental issues, researching on environmental topics, catching up on environmental questions asked in parliament, or meeting with other environmental advocates.

Dr. Geh Min

Ophthalmologist and Former NMP

Dr Geh Min is an Ophthalmologist currently running her own private practice in Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre. She was a former President of Nature Society (Singapore) and has served as a Nominated Member of Parliament from 2005 to 2006. She currently serves on several boards and advisory councils including the NUS Centre for Nature-based Climate Solutions (CNCS), World Wide Fund for Nature (Singapore), The Duke-NUS Medical School, The Master of Science (Environmental Management) (NUS), and Birdlife International (Asia).

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Nor Syazwan Bin Abdul Majid

Founder, Wan’s Ubin Journal

Nor Syazwan Bin Abdul Majid — Wan — is a descendant of the Ubin Orang Pulau and advocates for the conservation and celebration of his community's culture and heritage through his social platform, "Wan's Ubin Journal". Fascinated by the rich sociocultural elements of island living on Pulau Ubin from his mother, he calls for the continued protection of Singapore's last surviving kampung for her Orang Pulau community and their unique way of life. Wan is currently a full-time undergraduate at the Singapore University of Social Sciences pursuing a Bachelor in Social Work with Minor in Sociology.

Madhu Ardhanari

Sustainability Strategist and Researcher

Madhu Ardhanari is a sustainability strategist and researcher. She has spearheaded action-led cross-sector collaborations around food transitions and worker rights in value chains. She is passionate about land justice issues in Southeast Asia. She is a Next Generation Foresight Practitioners Fellow, receiving the Environment Special Award in 2020 for her research on sand extraction in Singapore and its impact on inequalities in the region.

Marlina Yased

Community Worker

Marlina is a 45 year old mother of five beautiful children. She has been living in a rental flat neighbourhood for 13 years. She has volunteered in various community development activities in her neighbourhood for 5 years, where she has had many in-depth conversations with her neighbours about issues such as living space, health, and food security. When she finds the time, Marlina also manages a home-based snacks business.

MUSICAL PERFORMANCES 

Cactus Cactus 

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RENE

Woes

ACTIVTIES

Nature Nook: Kids’ Play Station! 

Family-friendly reading and nature-based art activities for children. A mini library of kids’ environmental books, alongside facilitated activities like leaf printing and nature sharing. 

Earth Emotions

A space for participants to discuss their thoughts and feelings about the climate crisis, share imaginings of the future, as well as explore ways in which participants negotiate their climate-related feelings. 

Climate ARcTion

A showcase of climate themed art pieces for participants to reflect on their own climate crisis experiences. 

Climate Games

Rally participants will be invited to play climate-themed carnival games  of Soup Toss! and Giant Jenga. 

Placard Art Jam

Participants can create signs and placards to hold at the rally. Our volunteers will also be offering climate themed face painting stations. 

Climate Learning Corner

An educational space with information about the climate crisis, climate justice, and SGCR’s Calls To Action. SGCR Volunteers and Translators will be available to engage with rally participants.

POSTCARDS TO MY MP

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Take concrete steps towards climate justice!

Here, you can write postcards to your MPs and other policymakers, following the rally’s Calls to Action and tell them that we need to do more to stop the climate crisis. 

 

This is your chance to not only show up, but also take action ✊ The thousands of Postcards that we collect today will be mailed to our MPs, and help push for more ambitious climate action policies in Parliament! 

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RALLY MAP

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ACCESSIBILITY

General accessibility measures

  • Rest area 

  • First aid area

  • Reserved seating - near the front of the stage, an area is reserved for folks who need chairs, need to be close to the SgSL interpreter, or places to enjoy the rally from their assisted mobility devices.

  • Toilets and drinking water - water dispensers and portable toilets are available since the public toilets are currently closed for upgrading

    • Individuals with mobility issues can use toilets at imPAct@Hong Lim Green (community club) until 5.30pm. Other accessibility toilets can be found at Clarke Quay MRT and at Cross Street Exchange.

  • Tables and seating at activity booths - available for rallygoers who might find it difficult to participate in placard making and painting or postcard writing without a table and chair (finding it difficult to sit on the ground)

Family friendly accessibility measures

  • Childcare - Kids play station (see “Nature Nook”) with kid-friendly reading and nature-based art activities to accommodate families.

Safety accessibility measures

  • First Aiders - First-aid certified volunteers are available and on standby

Participation accessibility measures

  • Wheelchair access: Wheelchair users can visit the booths by travelling along the pavements

  • “Double-sided” community booths - boothers will engage on both sides of the booth (i.e. the grass side and the pavement side) to also engage visitors who may be on assisted mobility devices using the pavement rather than the grass

  • Translators - volunteers are available for translation in Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil, especially for the calls to action and educational banners.

  • SgSL interpretation - Singapore sign language interpretation will be provided near the front of the stage, where the speeches and interpretation will also be livestreamed

  • Online participation - Speeches and performances will be livestreamed to YouTube and Facebook. Rallygoers who are unable to be physically present or unable to enter the park can follow the speeches and performances live online. Postcards to my MP will also be available as a virtual activity with a template provided.

FAQS

What is this event?

 

SG Climate Rally is an event bringing together climate-concerned everyday Singaporeans who want to stand for a greener and fairer Singapore for everyone. The impacts of climate change in the forms of heatwaves, floods, and rising sea levels are already being felt in Singapore and in the region. We gather today because we believe that Singapore must take stronger and swifter action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and offer robust support to communities most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. 

 

Who organised this event? 

 

We are a completely volunteer-run and ground-up group. Many of us are youth and students, but the group also has working professionals like artists, scientists, writers, engineers, and more. 

 

Why organise this event?

 

At the heart of SG Climate Rally’s work is climate justice: the recognition that those who are least responsible for the climate crisis are often the most vulnerable. While we are heartened that the government has taken on some of our previous recommendations, such as setting a target of reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, Singapore’s climate efforts must be more ambitious and inclusive for a liveable future for all of us. 

 

We believe that gathering together at Hong Lim Park today in large numbers is a way for us to demonstrate our commitment to climate justice, signal that climate change is a bread-and-butter issue, and that much more needs to be done. Gathering at the Speakers’ Corner is also a way to be a part of a longer history of active citizenship, claiming public space, and making our voices heard. 

 

What is climate justice? 

 

Climate justice is about making sure that nobody gets left behind in Singapore’s transition to a green future. This means urging governments to adopt policies to support groups that are most impacted by the climate crisis. It also means holding the major climate polluters responsible for their fair share of climate action. Most importantly, it means listening to and supporting marginalised groups e.g. low-income families, Indigenous communities, migrant workers etc. 

 

What are the goals of the Rally? 

 

We are organising the Rally to call for a just and inclusive roadmap to net-zero emissions. We have three demands: 

 

Accelerate the transition: 

We call for more transparent and ambitious goals in Singapore's plan to transition away from fossil fuels and towards renewable energy. This includes strengthening the carbon tax, investing in green and public transportation, and mandating carbon reduction targets for large companies. 

 

Protect the ecosystems: 

We seek stronger environmental laws and consultative processes to protect and restore Singapore’s precious ecosystems. More institutional support is needed in financing conservation and facilitating biodiversity research and engagement. 

 

Empower the people: 

We appeal for meaningful engagement with the broader public, especially low-income communities, indigenous communities, and workers in sunset industries, in developing Singapore's climate action strategy and initiatives. On top of strengthening environmental education in schools, sustainability must centre Indigenous histories and cultures.

 

We have also produced a long and detailed list of policy recommendations that we want the Singapore government to take action on. You can find them on our website, or by scanning the QR code on the poster. 

 

What activities are happening at the Rally? What can I do today? 

 

From 3 – 5pm, there is a wide range of activities happening:

Postcards to my MP

The main activity for all Rally-goers is to write a Postcard to their Member of Parliament (MP), or any other political representative of their choice (e.g. PM Lee, Minister Grace Fu, President Tharman) You can write or draw anything you want on this Postcard, as long as it communicates to the government that we need to do more to stop the climate crisis. 

Your Postcard can include the climate action policy changes you want to see (based on our Calls to Action), or something more personal like why you personally care about climate justice in Singapore. 

 

The thousands of Postcards that we collect today will be mailed to our MPs, and help push for more ambitious climate action policies in Parliament! 

Community Booths

Visit the 12 different booths to meet various environmental and civil society groups, and learn about how the climate crisis intersects with the work they do.

Learning Corner

Visit our pull-up banner area to learn more about the climate crisis in Singapore, and why climate justice is so important. 

 

Climate Games

There are two game booths with fun and simple activities, suitable for anyone above the age of 5.

  • Soup Toss: Try throwing soup at paintings like climate activists worldwide! 

  • Giant Jenga: Answer our climate questions and help the tower of collective action stand!

 

Placard Art Jam

This is a creative art space where you can make a sign if you didn’t bring one, or use face paint to get your message across. 

 

Earth Emotions

This is a social activity where you will get to have casual conversations about the climate crisis, with a focus on the difficult emotions that most of us feel when it comes to climate change. You can have these conversations either with who you came with, or meet new people! 

Climate ARcTion

This is a showcase of local art inspired by the climate crisis and environmental justice movement.

 

Nature Nook: Kids’ Play Station!

This is a family-friendly space for children to learn about climate change through books and art activities. 

From 5pm – 7pm, we will be gathering in front of the stage for a special programme of speeches and performances. 

 

Who is performing at the Rally? 

From 5pm onwards, we have 3 performances by Singaporean musicians: 

  1. Cactus Cactus is kicking us off with an energetic performance. They draw from diverse genres to create a dizzying combo of experimental garage-rock fury.

  2. Next up, RENE is an independent artist from Singapore. Meaningful and relatable lyrics, rich vocals, and catchy guitar lines are what create her signature sound.

  3. Woes is the final performer. Woes is a 5-piece math rock band based in Singapore. By juxtaposing uplifting choruses with poignant lyrics, Woes weaves narratives that are sincere and invigorating.

 

Who is speaking at the Rally?

 

We will be hearing from 5 inspiring residents about their lived experiences of climate change and why and how Singapore must take bolder climate action. 

  1. Ho Xiang Tian is a youth climate activist who will speak about the need for stronger corporate climate action. 

  2. Nor Syazwan Bin Abdul Majid is a descendant of the Ubin Orang Pulau and he will highlight the importance of indigenous practices as climate action.

  3. Madhu Ardhanari is a sustainability strategist and researcher who will speak about the importance of regional climate action.

  4. Marlina Yased is a community worker and mother who will speak about the impacts of climate change on low income families in Singapore. 

  5. Dr. Geh Min is a doctor and former Nominated Member of Parliament who will highlight how the climate crisis impacts both human and planetary health.

 

What accessibility services or other support is available? 

 

The Rally hopes to welcome Singaporeans and PRs regardless of age, disability, languages spoken, and more. To make this event as inclusive as possible, we have: 

 

  • Priority entry for senior citizens, wheelchair-users, and anyone with accessibility needs. 

  • A Rest Area and First Aid Zone if you are feeling unwell, with volunteer first-aiders on standby. 

  • Volunteer translators are available for translation in Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil.

  • Singapore Sign Language interpretation from 5pm onwards, for the speeches. 

  • Reserved seating with chairs for those needing sign language interpretation, or proper seating with a back-rest. 

  • Dedicated Accessibility volunteers if you need any additional assistance.

  • Rented portable toilets and water refill stations for use in case of emergency. Otherwise, we encourage you to use the toilets at the Havelock 2 or Chinatown Point malls.

 

How is the Rally funded, and where is the money going? 

 

The rally is fully crowd-funded through the kind support of members of the public. All the money raised has been used to organise programming including sign-language interpreters, acquiring logistics and equipment such as tentage and sound systems, and ensuring safety and security measures such as first aid and crowd control. 

 

I have already made significant lifestyle changes such as recycling, using public transport, gardening, doing beach cleanups etc. Isn’t that enough? 

 

That is great, and you should continue! There are also many other organisations that focus on individual actions, which are important since Singapore has a high emissions per capita. However, even with personal changes, our impact is limited as households are only responsible for 7.6% of our national emissions as reported in 2020. Also, not everyone has the time or resources to make these changes. Thus, we believe that collective action is just as important — protests and rallies all around the world like this one have helped to push governments to enact stronger climate policies. You can check out our community booth to learn more about what has changed since our 2019 rally!

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