In November 2023, I delivered a keynote presentation at the Design Education Summit organized by the DesignSingapore Council. The talk synthesized insights from over eight years of design-led educational practice at UpstartED, exploring how learning environments can cultivate belonging, agency, and collective wellbeing among equity-deserving youth.

Anchored in principles of social innovation and learning experience design, the presentation argued for a more holistic approach to changemaking—one that integrates socio-emotional learning, civic participation, and systems thinking as essential competencies for the future of work.

This talk represented a pivotal moment in my practice, marking the transition from leading large-scale educational initiatives to examining, through research, how the infrastructures of learning and care can be reimagined to sustain human flourishing in a rapidly changing technological landscape.