How younger social workers and social service entrepreneurs are exploring the use of music in the eldercare space.
Synopsis: Every second Wednesday of the month, The Straits Times takes a hard look at social issues of the day with guests.
In this special edition of In Your Opinion - filmed in front of a live audience at The Foundry - a social service entrepreneur and social worker share how music can transform the eldercare space.
Be it for their loved ones or as part of their advocacy, youths can now find more avenues to reach out to seniors, using the powerful tool in music.
When it comes to engaging the elderly, music can reinvigorate and empower them - all while closing the gap between different generations.
Studies have shown that music can amplify connections between the brain’s auditory and emotional regions, encouraging memory encoding and recall.
In this episode, ST assistant podcast editor Lynda Hong and her co-host - STNow reporter Christie Chiu - speak with two guests who are harnessing the power of music to transform eldercare in Singapore.
The two guests are: SanCare Asia founder Johnson Soh, who uses music-based technologies and services to help dementia patients; and Fei Yue Community Services programme executive Amanda Soon, who taps on music to get seniors more involved in their communities.
Having studied in the UK and worked in the film industry there before returning to Singapore, Amanda now uses her creative skills to empower seniors and youths. At Fei Yue, she uses music to pilot various programmes and workshops with youth volunteers, youths and seniors.
After working in the music industry for almost 30 years, Johnson founded SanCare Asia in 2016. The first elder-care service in Asia to offer person-centered reminiscence music programmes came about when Johnson's father developed dementia.
"I actually used my dad as a guinea pig," he said, adding that he put together a playlist of songs which would resonate with him, songs which he grew up with during his formative years.
"And yeah, it worked wonders, you know, to see him light up, to see him in a different mood just gave me the impetus to start the company."
S1E51: Pet-care leave - do costs outweigh benefits?
Season 1 · Episode 51
Tuesday, February 11, 2025 • Duration 20:43
Why are some Singapore companies willing to bear the expense to implement pet-care leave as a form of benefit?
Synopsis: Every second Wednesday of the month, The Straits Times takes a hard look at Singapore's social issues of the day with guests.
While fewer people are keen on having children, more are becoming pet owners, based on statistics from the Animal and Veterinary Service and an Euromonitor International report.
But what happens if you have a full-time job and your pet is sick?
Instead of requiring their employees to take urgent leave, some firms in Singapore have begun rolling out pet care leave, for "pawrents" who need to take their furkids to the vet.
Only a small number of firms have started implementing it, but the response from employees has so far been overwhelmingly positive.
In this episode, ST assistant podcast editor Lynda Hong and her co-host - journalist Aqil Hamzah - ask their two guests whether having a separate leave category the caring of pets is ultimately a good thing, and whether it’d affect the morale of those without pets.
The two guests are: Emilyn Ang, founder of public relations and marketing agency Brave Communications, which provides three days of “pawrental” leave a year; and Diane Lee, a senior HR business partner for South-east Asia at recruitment firm Robert Walters.
Highlights (click/tap above):
01:34 Considerations behind implementing pet care leave
06:45 Advantages of having pet care leave
09:12 Why employees with no pets shouldn’t feel resentment
14:30 Leave days as an expense, and how firms can balance out the cost
17:30 Are more Singapore firms ready to roll out pet care leave
S1E5: Are young people breaking up with dating apps?
Season 1 · Episode 5
Wednesday, June 5, 2024 • Duration 42:29
Swiping for love used to be the way for millennials to find a connection, but there seems to be growing dating app disillusionment among the young.
Synopsis: The Straits Times’ Natasha Ann Zachariah explores contemporary societal choices and youth perspectives.
Bernice Fong, Dhareeni Shanmugam and John Lim are three under-30s who have had different experiences with dating apps over the years.
John, who runs a content agency, finds that with everyone having many options, he feels “like a piece of meat” - an experience the 28-year-old finds can be dehumanising.
Meanwhile Bernice has sworn off dating apps. The 28-year-old brand and marketing manager felt jaded and tired from swiping through but not quite finding the match she wanted.
Dhareeni, a 26-year-old account executive for a public relations agency, shares why she swiped right on her boyfriend, and why she was drawn to his “niche preference” for fish.
Host Natasha wants to find out why there’s no love lost between young people and dating apps.
Highlights (click/tap above):
2:16 Are younger people ditching dating apps?
7:52 Making dating intentions clear
16:20 Getting dating app fatigue
27:54 Have young adults lost the art of conversation?
38:38 Is it more difficult for young people to date these days?
Follow Natasha on her IG account and DM her your thoughts on this topic: https://str.sg/8Wav
Edited by producers: Teo Tong Kai, Eden Soh and Zachary Lim
Executive producers: Ernest Luis and Lynda Hong
Filmed by: Joel Chng and Marc Justin De Souza, ST Video
S1E4: Titus Low: From SG's most famous OnlyFans creator to real estate agent?
Season 1 · Episode 4
Wednesday, May 15, 2024 • Duration 26:17
Singapore’s most well-known OnlyFans creator Titus Low is slowly moving on from the platform that has brought him fame, money and drama. Lots of it.
Synopsis: The Straits Times’ Natasha Ann Zachariah explores contemporary societal choices and youth perspectives and digs deeper into issues of the day.
Sitting down with The Usual Place’s host Natasha Ann Zachariah, Titus opens up about asking to work with his family’s business and pursuing his childhood dream of becoming a real estate agent.
He shares the lessons learnt and the fallout from baring all online.
Highlights (click/tap above):
1:10 What is Titus up to these days?
9.00 His post-pandemic popularity has dipped, no thanks to today's economic situation
14.26 Dealing with mental health issues
23.30 Why he has become more cautious about sharing his life online
Follow Natasha on her IG account and DM her your thoughts on this topic: https://str.sg/8Wav
S1E42: Do Gen Zers really have no savings for the long term?
Season 1 · Episode 42
Sunday, May 12, 2024 • Duration 39:40
This generation, it appears in a survey result too, is not afraid to spend immediately for happiness or instant gratification, but they do so within their means.
Synopsis: Every second Monday of the month, The Straits Times takes a hard look at Singapore's social issues of the day with guests.
It used to be that avocado toast was the symbol of millennial extravagance, infamous for dashing that generation’s chance of ever owning property - at least, according to Tim Gurner.
The Australian real estate millionaire in 2017 said that millennials should stop spending $19 for avocado toast if they ever want to own homes. Over half a decade since the rise of the avocado millennial, Gen Z - those born 1997 to 2012 - have outstripped them in splurging. And mostly, for pleasure.
Just in Singapore, we’re seeing 20-somethings fork out $10,000 for holidays and almost just as much to catch Taylor Swift overseas. But a recent IPS study found that the young are still spending within their means.
Still, are they putting aside enough funds for a rainy day in the future?
In this episode, ST assistant podcast editor Lynda Hong and co-host and STNow reporter Carmen Sin speak with their two guests to find out if youths are caught in a financial jam between spending and saving the fruits of their labour.
Having saved his first $100,000 at age 28, He Ruiming, now 35 and co-founder of personal finance blog The Woke Salaryman, urges disciplined financial perspectives for Gen Z.
Joining the discussion is Daisy Anne Mitchell, 26, who is British but has lived and studied in schools in Singapore since she was five. She has worked two full-time jobs after graduating from school, but made a U-turn to freelancing and working as an influencer now - where she has gotten flak online for being candid about her cashflow.
Highlights (click/tap above):
2:15 Eating broccoli and chicken for three years? Freelancing as a career - Ruiming and Daisy share their habits on saving, earning and spending
S1E3: Youths on their expectations of Singapore's next PM Lawrence Wong
Season 1 · Episode 3
Thursday, May 2, 2024 • Duration 47:19
Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong becomes Singapore’s fourth prime minister on May 15, 2024, when he succeeds current PM Lee Hsien Loong.
Synopsis: The Straits Times’ Natasha Ann Zachariah explores contemporary societal choices and youth perspectives and digs deeper into issues of the day.
The upcoming leadership transition - when Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong becomes Singapore’s fourth prime minister on May 15 - has ignited discussions about where Singapore goes from here.
In particular, what issues are youths most concerned about before they go to the ballot box in the next General Election?
In this episode of The Usual Place, Natasha hosts three guests:
Joel Lim, 31, host of Political Prude: The Podcast
Gautham Vijayan Kumaran, 26, a final-year student at the National University of Singapore
Carissa Cheow, 28, the chief strategy officer for a tech firm and a career counsellor
From expectations of DPM Wong when he takes over as prime minister, to their thoughts of how the impending general election will play out, these three guests candidly share their views and shed some insight on what youths might want to see from their future political leaders.
Highlights (Click/tap above):
4:18 Qualities youth are looking for in Singapore's next PM
12:19 What youth are looking for when the next election comes around
19:31 Is there a dichotomy between traditional bread-and-butter concerns and wider, all-encompassing issues such as climate change and civil liberties?
21:58: Are younger voters harder to convince?
31:51: How will scandals of politicians in 2023 factor into the next election?
34:28: Will social media be the dominant platform among voters at the next GE?
Host: Natasha Zachariah ()
S1E2: TMI: Has social media made us oversharers?
Season 1 · Episode 2
Thursday, April 18, 2024 • Duration 42:59
How much is too much when sharing details of your life online?
Synopsis: The Straits Times’ Natasha Ann Zachariah explores contemporary societal choices and youth perspectives and digs deeper into issues of the day.
Why do people feel so comfortable sharing intimate details of their lives online?
The Usual Place’s host Natasha Ann Zachariah sits down with TikTokers Candice Gallagher and Shaun Elias Chua, and Twitch streamer Jacey Vong, to find out why they started sharing personal details of their lives online.
When everything now becomes free game, is there a line that crosses into oversharing and how do they deal with negative comments?
Highlights (click/tap above):
4:33: Why do the three of them put out so much of their lives on social media?
16:36: Is it weird that virtual strangers know small details about their lives?
23:15: Dealing with haters - why not just quit instead?
33:20: Being cancelled - the risk of sharing their opinions
Produced by: Natasha Zachariah (natashaz@sph.com.sg), Ernest Luis, Lynda Hong, Teo Tong Kai, Eden Soh, Joel Chng and Marc Justin De Souza
Edited by: Teo Tong Kai & Eden Soh
Follow The Usual Place Podcast here and get notified for new episode drops:
S1E41: Why volunteering is worth our time and effort: 2 young working adults
Season 1 · Episode 41
Sunday, April 7, 2024 • Duration 21:50
Two youth volunteers - adults with full-time jobs - explain what motivates them to spark change in the community.
Synopsis: Every second Monday of the month, The Straits Times takes a hard look at Singapore's social issues of the day with guests.
Youth Corps Singapore, which is under the National Youth Council, turns 10 in 2024. It is a division under the council that champions youth volunteerism to ignite positive change in society through community service.
In this episode, ST podcast assistant editor Lynda Hong speaks with two volunteer leaders Afzal Hadi and Valerie Kwa, to find out about their experience with Youth Corps Singapore.
Afzal is currently the Welfare Lead in the Engagement Taskforce Cluster and is a member of the Ambassadors Team cluster, while Valerie is Publicity Team Lead within the Mental Health Cluster. The two young working adults - Afzal is in business development while Valerie is in social service - also offer tips on how to pick a cluster to volunteer with.
Clusters can be thought of a “specialisation” - youth-led, youth-run interest groups within Youth Corps. They include: Children, Youth and Family, Eldercare, Special Needs, Beyond Singapore, Mental Health and Sustainability.
This podcast is brought to you by National Youth Council: https://str.sg/wFbf
Highlights (click/tap above):
1:30 Life-changing experiences from volunteering - Afzal's U-turn from business school to study social work instead, and Valerie advocating for mental health
5:50 How youths can pick their preferred cause from Youth Corps’ 12 clusters - specialisation areas
7:40 Discovering leadership style through volunteerism
11:04 Afzal and Valerie on Youth Corps allowing interested youths to try out in a small way, before deciding which cluster to volunteer in
S1E1: Having babies: Natural next step after marriage or thank you, next?
Season 1 · Episode 1
Thursday, April 4, 2024 • Duration 35:55
Our guests discuss if parenthood is an expectation or choice.
Synopsis: The Straits Times’ Natasha Ann Zachariah explores contemporary societal choices and youth perspectives and digs deeper into issues of the day.
In Singapore, where preliminary estimates indicate its Total Fertility Rate hit a record low of 0.97 in 2023, some are opting to remain child-free.
In the first episode of our new podcast series, The Usual Place’s host Natasha Ann Zachariah brings together two guests who hold opposing views on being parents.
Joan Chong, 35, never wants kids. She never yearned for them before she got married, andflat out told her partner when they started dating, that she did not want to be a parent.
Meanwhile, Dainial Lim is a passionate voice in favour of embracing the joys of parenthood. To him, having children is a natural path in life after getting married, and it would have been a relationship dealbreaker for him if his wife was not for it.
They sit down with Natasha to dissect their personal choices in a candid and unfiltered conversation. What unfolds is a discussion about their choices and dissecting the misconceptions that come with it.
Highlights (click/tap above):
3:56 Is it still taboo to say you want to be childfree
6:48 Do women still bear the burden of raising children?
9:44 Joan’s realities of being childfree
14:31 The scary part about having children
17:16 How kids changed Dainial’s life
23:05 Does Joan feel left out for not receiving government incentives?
25:17 Are Singaporean parents entitled?
31:25 If anyone’s on the fence about having children, what would Joan and Dainial tell them?
With Singapore’s resident total fertility rate dropping below 1 for the first time - hitting a historic low at 0.97 last year in 2023 - we discuss how the birth rate can be boosted.
Synopsis: Every second Monday of the month, The Straits Times takes a hard look at Singapore's social issues of the day with guests.
For many years in Singapore, we have not had enough babies to replace ourselves, with the Total Fertility rate, or TFR, remaining below the replacement rate of 2.1.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Indranee Rajah - who assists in oversight of the National Population and Talent Division in the PMO - said in Parliament on Feb 28, that preliminary estimates indicate a resident TFR of 0.97 in 2023, posing twin demographic challenges for Singapore alongside an ageing population.
In this episode, ST podcast assistant editor Lynda Hong hosts Ms Indranee to find out how workplaces here can become more family-friendly, and debates what an “excellent parent” should ideally mean in this day and age.
Two young parents - unmarried to each other - are also in the studio to ask Ms Indranee about how Singapore's workplaces can be made friendly for parents juggling child-rearing responsibilities.
Mr Daniel Lim, a 31-year-old research analyst, is a father of three. Ms Deniece Grace Foo, 37, runs Emerge Arts and Media Academy, a performing arts school for children. She has two young children.
They also share their personal challenges and joys in raising a family.
Highlights (click/tap above):
1:40 The government-paid paternity leave has just been doubled to four weeks on a voluntary basis; Minister Indranee on how the take-up rate is at just over 50% for now
2:33 Deniece asks the Minister: What can be done to support manpower challenges faced by SMEs?
7:38 Minister Indranee addresses the fear of a lack of mobility in one's career due to flexible work arrangement requests, and why Singapore employers who are hesitant to adopt such practices, should see it as a competitive advantage in hiring
12:30 How much time Afzal and Valerie spends on volunteering?
14:40 Despite working full-time jobs, hear why Afzal and Valerie are still volunteering
*Youth Corps will also organise a 10th Anniversary Carnival at *Scape Playspace in Somerset on July 6, 2024.
*Interested youths can also participate in the Do Good Fest, which will be held from May to July, providing over 3,000 opportunities to learn about volunteerism.
9:20 Daniel’s experience as a "young parent employee", on "wanting to succeed at home and at work", and Deniece’s experience as an young employer helping "young parent employees"
23:24 Daniel asks the Minister: Would there ever be a form of grandparents childcare leave, especially if they will be the new "young working seniors" in future? Can Singapore be branded as one of the most "family-friendly nations" globally?
31:20 Minister Indranee on a line in her Parliament speech, on how “pressures to be an excellent parent” is one of the concerns to having children;
35:10 Daniel and Deniece on juggling pressures to be "excellent" young parents
Produced by: Lynda Hong (lyndahong@sph.com.sg), Ernest Luis, Hadyu Rahim & Amirul Karim
Discover shows related to In Your Opinion, based on actual content similarities. Explore podcasts with similar topics, themes, and formats, backed by real data.
