An idea conceptualised and organised by four SMU undergraduates in collaboration with Habitat for Humanity Singapore, Bare Your Sole 2009 drew over 600 participants who walked bare footed for five and a half kilometres in Pasir Ris Park on 6 June 2009 to raise funds and awareness for needy and impoverished children in neighbouring countries. Over $50,000 was raised and 14,000 pair of shoes collected and distributed to children in Singapore and Sri Lanka. The out-of-the-box approach to social innovation won the team – comprising Benjamin Loh, Tan Siow Yun, Jacqueline Tan and Lim Jun Jie – the Best Team (above 21 years category) and Public Outreach Awards among more than 100 teams in the Citibank-YMCA Youth For Causes 2009 competition. They received a plaque and prize money of $4,000.

A portfolio of eight infrared photographs of cemeteries in Singapore titled Fragments of an Untold Story by SMU final year business management undergraduate Hong Huazheng landed first prize at Spot & Shoot 2009 – Our Landscape, an annual youth photography competition by the National Museum of Singapore. Over 250 participated in this. Apart from a $3,000 cash prize, his works were also exhibited for two months from November 2009 at the museum. His stirring images of burial grounds, captured through his lenses, won judges over for his sensitive perspective of cherished sites and spaces in Singapore. Huazheng owns a photography company, once headed the photography club SMUSAIC, and has directed one television commercial and a short documentary film.

The seventh season of the SMU Arts Festival returns from 22 January to 12 February this year with the theme of CONTENT: CONTENT. Complementing the university’s 10th anniversary celebrations with a play on the word ‘ten’, the festival opens soon after SMU was given the prestigious Patron of the Arts Award 2009 following two straight years of recognition as Friend of the Arts in 2007 and 2008. A kaleidoscopic showcase of student presented. The Singapore Premiere of Just So – the musical by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe – opens the festival. Comedian and thespian Sebastian Tan returns to direct a talented ensemble of SMU students, while local song-writer Jimmy Ye, who is also Festival Director and Associate Director for Student Life, provides vocal direction. New works produced by emerging young artists from Singapore and Southeast Asia under the new SMU-ASEAN Artist Residency Programme lend an international dimension to the festival, while rising director Havana Marking of the critically acclaimed documentary Afghan Star will be on campus to meet audiences.

Visit www.smu.edu.sg/artsfest for details.

The biennial Lee Kuan Yew Global Business Plan Competition (LKYGBPC) has returned for its fifth run. Organised by the Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, the LKYGBPC continues to be a platform for young entrepreneurs to take their business plans to the global stage, attract seed funding and receive mentorship to further their entrepreneurial ambitions. This year, finalists can win up to US$60,000 in cash and funding. Apart from the top six teams, there will also be a new individual Most Promising Young Entrepreneur award. The top performing Singapore team stands to receive investment grant of up to S$100,000 from HSBC, the presenting sponsor, to further develop their business.

One highlight this year is the Entrepreneurship Study Mission in Singapore for finalists to understand the local innovation and entrepreneurship eco-system. They will visit incubators and network with early stage venture capitalists and technology incubation managers.

In the preliminary round, shortlisted local teams will have the chance to pick the brains of senior business leaders in a Tips from the Top session hosted by HSBC.

The LKYGBPC is open to undergraduates from universities, colleges and polytechnics from around the world. Closing dates are 1 March 2010 and 31 March 2010 for Singapore teams and overseas teams respectively.

Visit www.smu.edu.sg/lky for details.