Welcome Remarks by Ms Christie Lee, SIF Programmes Director, at the Welcome Session of Asia’s Rising Circle 2026

Good morning, everyone! A very warm welcome to Asia’s Rising Circle, or ARC. On behalf of the Singapore International Foundation (SIF), I am pleased to have all of you with us in Singapore for this inaugural edition of the programme.

Many of you have travelled from afar to be here, and for most of you, last night marked the first time meeting one another in person. For all of you, this also marks the beginning of a shared journey over the coming days. Thank you for making the time, and for showing up fully.

When we first started shaping ARC, we spent a lot of time thinking about who this platform was really for. Across Asia, young people are stepping up in powerful ways – leading initiatives, building organisations, shaping policy, and caring for communities. At the same time, many are doing so while navigating pressures, uncertainty, and expectations that are often intense and not always visible.

ARC was therefore designed as a space not only to discuss impact and opportunity, but to start with something more foundational: resilience and well-being. Without these, leadership is difficult to sustain, and change is hard to carry forward over time. The first edition of ARC is anchored on this belief.

What makes this space special is not just the programme design, but the people in this room. You come from different countries, sectors, and lived experiences – including public health, education, technology, social services, creative practice, and community development. Some of you work at the policy or systems level, while others are deeply rooted on the ground, working directly with young people and communities.

ARC brings together individuals working in diverse contexts: within large and small systems, and across both fast-changing and emerging environments. As we reviewed your profiles, what stood out was not just what you do, but why you do it: a shared commitment to dignity, access, and creating conditions for people to thrive.

ARC brings you together not because you do the same work, but because your perspectives complement one another. You will hear ideas shaped by different national contexts, scales, and systems, and part of the opportunity here is to listen for what resonates, rather than to seek direct comparisons.

Over the next few days, you will engage in conversations, workshops, and small-group sessions with practitioners, facilitators and one another. These sessions are not designed to provide all the answers, but to help you ask better questions, and to explore how ideas around resilience and well-being can translate into real-world practice.

We encourage you to participate actively and approach each interaction with curiosity. Often, the most meaningful insights come not only from formal sessions, but from the conversations in between, especially when we listen generously and remain open to learning across contexts, even when solutions cannot be directly transferred.

I also want to highlight something important. You are the first of three cohorts of Asia’s Rising Circle. ARC is envisioned as a three-edition platform, with each edition building on the one before. That means you are not only participants, but the first anchors of this community. The way you engage, the relationships you form, and the ideas you carry forward will help shape ARC in the editions to come.

Beyond this programme, you will also become part of SIF’s wider youth alumni community, connecting you with changemakers across our regional networks. We have invited alumni from previous programmes, and you will have opportunities to meet some of them over the next few days.

At SIF, we believe deeply in people-to-people connections – that lasting change happens when individuals build trust, understanding, and shared purpose across borders. This belief is reflected not only in this room, but also in the partners and speakers who have contributed their time and perspectives to shaping ARC.

Our hope is that ARC becomes a space where you feel supported, challenged, and connected – and that what begins here continues long after the programme ends.

Once again, welcome to Asia’s Rising Circle. We are excited that you are here, and we look forward to the journey ahead, together. Thank you, and I wish all of you a meaningful and rewarding week ahead.