SE Asia’s first centre for philanthropy to open in Singapore next year

SE Asia’s first centre for philanthropy to open in Singapore next year

News

South-East Asia’s first Center for Social Entrepreneurship and Philanthropy (CSEP) will be opened by the National University of Singapore Business School (NUSBS) in early 2008.

Utilising funds that will be drawn from a recent donation of £6.7m made by the philanthropist Stephen Riady and the Lippo Group to NUSB, the Center’s aim will be to instil a sense of philanthropy among businesses in the region, to educate students on their broader social responsibilities, and to offer assistance to needy individuals and supporting organisations through social entrepreneurship.

Professor Christopher Earley, Dean of the NUS Business School at the National University of Singapore, told Philanthropy UK that the decision to create the new Center is the result of many influences.

“At the heart of the decision is our commitment to providing the type of leadership amongst Asian business schools concerning the importance of having a direct and strong impact on the larger community of Asia and not simply on business itself,” he said.

The Center will have both a strong research and outreach focus and will conduct research on SEP in the Singapore and Asian contexts. It also will hold academic conferences, public seminars and forums, as well develop case studies of social entrepreneurs, social enterprises, philanthropists, and philanthropic organisations for use in teaching.

“Unlike the few centres that exist in Asia on Social Entrepreneurship, we have enhanced and broadened its mission to include financial philanthropy because there is a tremendous amount of wealth that has been created in Asia this past twenty years and we want to help potential donors understand how to best maximize the reach and impact of their generosity.”

The Center will also provide financial guidance, outreach, and expertise to help philanthropists invest their gifts to maximize impact. This will include conducting social enterprise management programmes, non-profit management programmes, and leadership programmes focusing on community development, in collaboration with established educational institutions and non-profit organisations.

In addition, the Center will assist social enterprises to host consulting projects by NUSBS’s students, and to supervise these students on their consulting practicum. It will also partner alumni in projects with local and overseas non-profit organisations and social enterprises.

“To our knowledge, there is no centre anywhere in Asia that has this broad agenda for the region and we are proud to move forward and provide leadership for other business schools in the region."