Pre-Reading Thoughts:
Having already spent some time in this social impact space, I have some insights in working with at-risk youths, elderly in isolation and have personally developed an interest in contributing meaningfully to better the lives of others in the marginalised communities.
Before reading the book, I was quite skeptical that the content might not be able to address the variety of issues as the voices don’t come directly from people who are from the ground, the members of the community themselves. However, I’m surprised that this format of a human library to get industry professionals, changemakers, policymakers, and some advocates with lived experiences to talk about their perspectives turns out to be interestingly eye-opening — I appreciated that the stories highlighted the dilemmas but more importantly, the individuals’ motivations and hopes for the society, that each of their genuineness and authenticity moved me.
The diverse profiles of the 30 individuals featured in the book — social workers dealing with people with low-income and mental health, social entrepreneurs working with differently-abled persons, Co-Founder of non-profit organisations, policymakers, special education teacher, ex-offender etc — highlights and reminds me that the social impact sector consists of many different stakeholders, and how each of them plays an important role to contribute to these efforts of sustainable development goal 10 of reduced inequalities.
Like how it’s been repeated in most of its chapters, it really takes a village to raise a child.
Sustainability Development Goals (SDG)
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), also known as the Global Goals, were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity.
The 17 SDGs are integrated — they recognize that action in one area will affect outcomes in others, and that development must balance social, economic, and environmental sustainability.
Click here to read more on Singapore’s Voluntary National Review Report to the 2018 UN HighLevel Political Forum on Sustainable Development
Personal Favourite Chapter of The Book
I particularly liked chapter 4, “Why Wouldn’t She Just Turn Up?” (page 19–25) of the book, where the writer, a formal senior social worker at a family service centre (FSC), shared her frustrations in comparison with her client’s circumstances, written in first language.
The personal pronouns of using “I”, “me”, “ours”, “we” got me to feel a lot closer to the stories. It was as if a friend was sharing a part of their lives at work, and that it doesn’t feel like a “forced lecture” on the issues that they were sharing about.
It didn’t just stop there — the second segment of the chapter captured “If You Only Knew Shonia’s* Perspective”, which was powerful as it brings the reader to see things in a different light, to imagine the dilemma that the client had to struggle with while trying to accept change. It’s easy for an outsider to judge and make assumptions when we don’t know the stories of others. However, as the title of the book suggests, “Beneath The Rug”, holds many underlying and unsaid sacrifices that the client would have to give up regardless of whichever path she chose. The path, that is often not as visible to the public’s eye when we talk about complex issues like these.
At the end of the book, the creator shared his reflections and views as he worked on this book with the stakeholders, in which he wrote:
“I candidly shared that my team did not know what we did not know, and we needed to learn… Instead of focusing on what we are limited by, focus on what we want to achieve instead. This allowed us to stretch our imagination, and from there, plan what resources we require to make it work.”
I am heartened by the editors’ vulnerability and openness in acknowledging the uncertainty towards running this project. In fact, the world has become increasingly uncertain and volatile, no one really knows what’s the best way to solve these societal issues — We just have to trial and error, reflect, tweak and repeat.
Conclusion
If you’re someone who hasn’t got the chance to explore deeper into the various social issues and the challenges that lie within, Beneath The Rug, will be a great starter material for you to kickstart your curiosity and awareness through each of the individual’s experiences and recount.
I personally feel that it somewhat acts as a good “nursery book” of rich wisdom and insight to people who have little or no clue about the sector. Especially with the breakdown of some of the jargon and concepts familiarity used in the sector, it really alleviates the readers’ understanding of the issue and context.
“Before we are agents of change, we are first agents of awareness.”
There is only so much that each of us can do. And I would like to end my post with two quotes:
And I quote from the CEO of Sheila Mckechnie Foundation, Sue Tibballs:
“When we choose to work apart, it’s a loss for all of us. It reduces our collective power to create change.”
We all have a part to play to make the world a better place. It doesn’t have to be an extremely huge action. There must be something we care about. Start by finding the cause closer to your heart. Reflect on it: Why does it mean so much to you and what can you do about it?
About The Sheila McKechnie Foundation
The Sheila McKechnie Foundation unleashes civil society’s capacity to create profound, long-term change. We call this capacity social power, and believe it is just as important as political and economic power. We work with individuals and community groups, large charities and social enterprises, with those at the beginning of their change journey and seasoned professionals. Together we create the tools people need to make change. Find out more about it here: https://smk.org.uk/
Resources & Opportunities
Here are some resources and platforms to look for volunteering opportunities:
- Openjio Events — related to social issues and doing good
- Openjio Volunteer Channel
- Volunteer SG Telegram Channel
- Youth Corps Singapore
The intention of the book is to inspire the public to join the social service sector, spark more meaningful volunteerism, challenge corporations to adopt better practices in their corporate social responsibility (CSR). Find out more about the book titled “Beneath The Rug” here.
