YNPACt

18/01/2023

We talked to Ijechi Nazirah (Naz), former DDP student at Yale-NUS about her work at Justice Without Borders helping to improve cross-border access to justice for migrant domestic workers (MDWs) across the region.

"In relation to the work that we do at JWB, I think the law can be a very helpful tool in changing perspectives. I think there’s quite a lot that can be done to change the way Singaporeans in general view MDWs.

It's unfortunate, but it's still common for employers to treat workers like children – they keep their passport, don’t give them ATM cards to their own bank accounts, etc.

Among agencies, it's still common practice to overcharge MDWs for placement fees. There are very pervasive recurring issues in this space. If we're able to build up enough legal cases so that more and more migrant workers get compensated for the wrongdoing done to them, then I think that would discourage or deter these harmful practices among employers and agencies."

Read more at our website below!

Ijechi Nazirah (Naz) is a former student of the Double Degree Programme in Law and Liberal Arts (DDP) at Yale-NUS College. She has a degree in Law from National University of Singapore and currently works at Justice Without Borders (JWB) as their Singapore Legal Officer. Sylvia: Hi Naz! Can you shar...

15/11/2022

"We interviewed one guy who works pretty much everyday. He doesn't take any days off. This disadvantages him, as being homeless, people who employ him can get away with paying him very little because of his precarious position.

Another person we talked to had run away from an abusive household. He said he couldn’t seek help from the government as they might ask for documentation of his family and contact them. We talked to another man who became homeless a month ago. His was just a sad situation of losing his job, running out of money, and ending up on the streets. Simple and clear cut. He has gone to the government for help, but hasn’t been able to get a house yet."

We talked to Melody Madhavan about her volunteering at Tokyo spring homeless patrol, how to balance working in a corporate job while pursuing social justice causes on the side, and ways to help and volunteer even when overseas.

Melody Madhavan is a History major from Yale-NUS College's Class of 2017. Since graduating, she has worked with L'Oreal , the Rémy Cointreau Group and Burger King in Tokyo, Japan. She is now pursuing a double MBA at Kyoto University and MHA at Cornell University. While in Tokyo, she volunteered wit...

14/07/2022

YNPACt speaks to Maline Bungum '19 about her work with GlobalGiving, the power dynamics inherent in most grantor-grantee relationships, the importance of building trust in relationships, and coming to terms with what it means for her to work at a greater "distance" from the communities she seeks to serve.

Maline Bungum is a History major and Anthropology minor from the class of 2019. Since graduating, she has worked for GlobalGiving, a Washington D.C.-based organisation, to support non-profit partners. Aleithia: Hi Maline! Can you tell me more about your work with GlobalGiving? Maline: Since graduati...

16/05/2022

As part of Yale-NUS College's Seniors' Week, YNPACt organised a Human Library on Social Impact Careers.

We opened with an alumni panel, where alumni from the Classes of 2017-2019 shared their perspectives on working in philanthropy, founding charitable organisations, arts management, and climate change organising. This was followed by a casual networking session with 10 alumni who returned to campus to meet with current students.

Getting to meet current students was really enlivening, and we're glad to be able to do in-person events as a collective for the first time!

08/04/2022

"In some strange way, [we were] amazed but also jealous of the Ukrainians who stuck together to fight for their country ... We Afghans were not even given the chance to take up guns and resist the Taliban. We were just handed over to them."

Nobel Peace Prize nominee Zhala Sarmast shares about her encounters with the Taliban, activism in Afghanistan, and where Yale-NUS College fits in.

Nobel Peace Prize nominee Zhala Sarmast shares her encounters with the Taliban, activism in Afghanistan, and where Yale-NUS College fits in