SIIA Executive Director Nicholas Fang was featured in a video for The Good Word Project, an initiative of We Are Majulah. We Are Majulah is a social movement that focuses on community and identity building initiatives in Singapore. The Good Word Project is a documentary video series, collecting advice from everyday Singaporeans in bite sized pockets of inspiration.
Nicholas Fang: It sounds a bit cliche, but can we look at the world around us, and the world on a bigger scale, bigger than our community, our society, our country, and say what is needed to be done, and what can I do to help that along. Nobody has a monopoly on ideas. Everybody can have an idea that is crazy, is out there, that nobody has thought of before. And there are opportunities in Singapore to bring those ideas to fruition. The government is encouraging us in that way, and I think that one of the big challenges going forward is – which direction is our economy going to be. We can’t just rely on the old pillars. It’s going to be about disruption, innovation, new ideas, creative – and those are all driven by people. It’s not going to be driven by the latest software that we buy, or the latest education system or whatever we try to build. It’s going to be driven by people. So what I hope to see are for people to say, I need to think big, I need to think outside the box, and need to think creatively. I need to look at the world around me, draw inspiration, and put out something that could possibly benefit the broader society.
Text: Besides being an accomplished journalist for over 15 years, a former NMP, the executive director of the SIIA and the founder of Black Dot, Nicholas was also awarded the Public Service Medal in 2015. Nicholas believes that sports is vital for the development of a confident and resilient society. From bringing home 3 SEA games medals to being the Chef de Mission for the 2008 SEA Games, sports has always been his driving passion.
Nicholas Fang: In sports you see the character about people, you see people exposed in their worst, and at their best, and how they carry themselves. And of course, I’m a little competitive so having that outlet is useful. I was fortunate to be able to compete and have some Olympic aspirations, but never quite made it to the Olympics, that’s still one box that’s not ticked yet. But being able to see that journey reinforced to me the values and benefits that sports has for people. Teaching young kids good values, building up people who are strong and healthy, who are resilient or confident – confident in themselves, being able to hold themselves on the global stage. There’s no need to feel inferior because I come from a small country or because I’m a certain race, a certain nationality, a certain background – it doesn’t matter, sports levels everything.
