SINGAPORE, Oct. 2, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- United World College of South East Asia (UWCSEA) in Singapore is set to host one of the world's largest student conferences, running 2-8 October 2015. The gathering will address one of the most important issues of our time: sustainability, under the conference theme 'Act Today, Change Tomorrow.'
The opening ceremony on Saturday, 3 October will honour the host nation, featuring a creative celebration of SG50 through dance, music and a unique visual presentation outlining Singapore's 50-year history. The event will showcase the cultural diversity that makes up Singapore to the assembled audience of nearly 1,300, which is anticipated to include His Majesty King Constantine of Greece, President and Patron of Round Square and Queen Anne-Marie. UWCSEA students have designed and will perform the entire production, which will include Indian vocals, music and dance, a sequence celebrating Malay culture and two Chinese segments based on the traditional ribbon and fan dances.
During the week-long Round Square International Conference 2015 (RSIC2015) 670 visiting High School students from 128 schools in 36 countries will converge on UWCSEA's Dover and East campuses. Total registrations are nearly 1,000 people, including accompanying adults and delegates from UWCSEA. Participants will engage in a range of discussions and presentations designed to help them to identify where they can take individual action and further their understanding of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals.
Guest speakers include Kavita Ramdas from Ford Foundation India, well-known environmentalist and adventurer Tim Jarvis, Shiv Khemka from The Nand & Jeet Khemka Foundation and tGELF (The Global Education & Leadership Foundation), newly elected MP and Founder of ACRES Louis Ng, and Sylvia Lee of Lotus Culture.
Linked closely to the conference theme, visitors will also have an opportunity to discover what makes Singapore such a green and livable city, as they plan their own 'Discover Singapore' adventure day, aided by the Centre for Livable Cities Singapore. Students will design and undertake their own unique Singapore adventures, leading to an afternoon event at Marina Barrage, itself a showcase of Singapore's vision of environmental sustainability.
The programme also features a day dedicated to service, where delegates will work together with their host school to better understand some of the challenges facing social welfare organisations in the Singapore community and across Asia.
"Act Today. Change tomorrow. Few places have fulfilled that mission as quickly as Singapore, the host nation of the 2015 Round Square Conference. UWCSEA looks forward to welcoming guests from around the world to Singapore and is proud to provide an opportunity to showcase our host nation during SG50. We hope to provide our delegates with an opportunity to explore the complexities of sustainability and grow in understanding of how we can take action that is meaningful and measurable. We don't have all the answers, and the Millennium Sustainable Development goals are an enormous challenge to us all, but if anyone can find a solution to our problems, to genuinely 'change tomorrow' it is our young people," said Chris Edwards, Head of College, UWCSEA.
Media invitation
There are no specific media events, however we invite you to the Opening Ceremony, or any one of the following highlights of the programme.
All events will be held at UWCSEA's East Campus: 1 Tampines St 73, S 448908.
Saturday, 3 October
8.45-10.30am - Opening ceremony
11.15am - 12.15pm - Keynote address: Tim Jarvis AM, Adventurer and Environmentalist and WWF Global Ambassador
Sunday, 4 October
10.45-11.45am - Keynote address: Kavita Ramdas, Leader, Ford Foundation
Wednesday, 7 October
9-10am - Keynote address: Nidhi Kapur, Humanitarian Worker in Eastern Congo
Background
Opened in 1971 as Singapore International School by then Prime Minister Mr Lee Kuan Yew, UWC South East Asia became a full member of the United World College (UWC) movement in 1975. For more than 40 years, it has been offering a mission-driven, values-based international education to students from more than 80 nationalities. A K–12 school, with two campuses and nearly 5,600 students, UWCSEA is now recognised as one of the leading international schools in the world.
Founded in 1966, Round Square is a worldwide network of 150 schools in 40 countries. Those schools share a holistic approach to learning built around six IDEALS of learning - Internationalism, Democracy, Environmentalism, Adventure, Leadership and Service.
The UWC movement has the same genesis as Round Square in the figure of Kurt Hahn, and both believe that education should be holistic and experiential: that academic learning is hugely important but in itself not enough. UWCSEA joined Round Square in 2008.
Additional information
RSIC2015 conference website
UWCSEA
Round Square International website
For more information, please contact:
Kate Woodford
Content Marketing Manager, UWCSEA
+65-9488-6167
kate.woodford@uwcsea.edu.sg
Sinead Collins
Director of Communications and Marketing, UWCSEA
+65-8318-9294
sinead.collins@uwcsea.edu.sg
