Internet cafes and computer gaming centers line every major street in Bangkok. With that, Thailand’s new generation of innovators are no strangers to Information & Communication Technology (ICT). But what’s more, they are not satisfied in using these important ICT skills for just pursuing monetary returns.

Thailand is fast becoming a breeding ground for young social entrepreneurs who are harnessing the power of Information and Communication Technology for Development (ICT4D).

Social enterprises like Thoth Media and Chivalry silk are examples of innovative social enterprises that are leveraging new online medias in support of sustainable development.

Dialogue in the Dark Singapore

Terence YueYuen Terence Yiu Kain is a lecturer at the Community College of City University in Hong Kong, and an avid observer of the Social Entrepreneurship movement in Hong Kong. In 2007, Terence’s research culminated in a comparative study of three cities – Hong Kong, Singapore and Taipei that was presented at the SEforum 2007. We catch up with Terence in Hong Kong as he shares with us his thoughts on Hong Kong’s SE development.

Think of “Food” and “Asia” and what comes to mind is a rich and diverse mosaic of landscapes and sentiments: on the one hand, we can imagine golden fields of rice tended by tight-knit communities, abundant harvests at year-end festivals, and sprawling, animated markets; however, we also have unsavory images of grain rotting in the heat, poverty-stricken and hungry children, and food riots in urban centers.
Is it possible for the region to develop alternative, sustainable and equitable food systems? What opportunities and possibilities can social entrepreneurship bring to address this complex and critical situation?

“When people buy in Singapore, life is improved in villages in Cambodia,” said Susan Lee, who runs Beyond Imagination’s (BI) retail outlet at the Girls’ Brigade Headquarters in Singapore. Beyond Imagination is the sole distributor for VillageWorks products in Singapore.