PREVIOUS EDITORS-IN-CHIEF
John Chua (Harvard College AB’22) concentrated in Government. He believes in public service, and is interested in questions about inequality, the role of religion in public life and tech ethics in Singapore.
Russell Yip is an undergraduate at Tufts University (Class of 2022) majoring in quantitative economics and mathematics. He is passionate about the aviation sector and appreciates how it connects peoples and economies together—and of course, looks forward to seeing Singapore’s thrive again. His policy interests include education, transportation, and socio-economic issues. He enjoys a good karaoke session and is always in search of delicious food as well as recipes for his newfound love of cooking.
Lionel Oh is an A.M. candidate for Regional Studies – East Asia at Harvard University and a regular with the Singapore Armed Forces. He previously graduated from Tufts University, where he majored in International Relations (International Security) and Computer Science. He has also conducted research on cyber deterrence and cyber warfare, and takes a strong interest in furthering his understanding in that field. In his free time, he looks for good food haunts and tries his best to ignore his friends teasing him about ORD-ing at age 50.
Wong Shi Le is an undergraduate at Harvard College (Class of 2022) majoring in Applied Mathematics with Psychology. She did a gap year before coming to college, during which she worked at the National Parks Board (NParks). It was through her work that she began to take a deeper interest in public policy, government operations and how these may synergize with public, ground-up efforts. She hopes that SPJ will broaden its article offerings to include more pieces on sustainability, the environment and on gender issues. Her ultimate goal is to return to Singapore to serve the community in a relevant way.
Chong Shu Min (Harvard Kennedy School MPP’20) graduated from Peking University with a Bachelor’s Degree in International Politics. Shu Min is particularly interested in Sino-US relations as well as how science and technology intersect with geopolitics.
Natalie Nah (Harvard Kennedy School MPP’20) graduated with a BSFS from Georgetown University before moving to Boston to work as a consultant. Natalie is particularly interested in issues related to inequality and social welfare, especially for women and children. Despite having lived in the US for the past eight years, she still does very Singaporean things such as trying to find the best places for food, arguing with friends about the best places for food, and finding ways to escape from the cold when winter is coming.
Poh Yong Han (Harvard College AB’20) concentrated in Social Anthropology and East Asian Studies, with a secondary in Ethnicity, Migration and Rights. She cares about migrant rights, social justice, and active citizenship.
Brendan Dean Zhi Min (Harvard College AB’19, Integrative Biology) is interested in perhaps too many academic fields—biology, chemistry, history and English, but also public policy and the future of both Singapore and the world. A believer in service and living life for the benefit of others, he will be a civil servant in the Singapore Government after graduation. He also has fun, but from this biography, you probably couldn’t tell.
Brendan Chia (Harvard Kennedy School MPP’19) has worked with the World Bank on infrastructure and urban resilience projects in Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, Indonesia and China. Prior to that, he was based in Yangon, Myanmar with the United Nations Office for Project Services. Brendan is passionate about issues surrounding infrastructure investment and economic development in Southeast Asia. He started his career at the Singapore Economic Development Board, and holds a B.A. (Honors) in Geography from the London School of Economics.
Chen Xin Xin (Harvard Kennedy School MPP’19) graduated with a LL.B. in International Relations from Peking University and B.A. in International Studies from Waseda University. Xin Xin is primarily interested in East Asian affairs and about how interactions and differing perceptions amongst the various actors in the region, US included, affect Singapore’s geopolitical strategies.
Jia Wen Hoe (Harvard Kennedy School MPP’18) graduated with a bachelor degree in History and International Relations from Tufts University. After graduating from Tufts, she spent some time at a social entrepreneurship in Singapore, and worked as a research officer for a water, sanitation, and hygiene focused international NGO, WaterAid, in London and Dakar.
Benjamin Goh (Harvard Kennedy School MPP’17) is interested in issues surrounding government and cyberspace, especially how the Internet shapes public opinion and the implications of an international cyber regime. Benjamin graduated summa cum laude from New York University with double honors in Economics and International Relations. Passionate about research, he was named the Ellie and David Werber Research Scholar in Social Sciences at NYU, and received the Fiona McGillivray Prize for his senior thesis on the political economy of Internet surveillance. He is the author of Succeed at School (Active Learning, 2011) and regularly contributes articles on current affairs in Singapore.
Shao Wei Chew Chia (Harvard College AB’17) served as Co-President of the Singaporean, Indonesian and Malaysian Association. Pursuing interests in international relations, public policy, and social justice, she is a Director of the Harvard College Conflict Resolution Association, works with Harvard Effective Altruism and the Harvard Square Homeless Shelter, and volunteers her time with Health Leads, connecting patients to basic resources to improve health outcomes. Shao Wei is interested in the stories we tell ourselves – whatever forms they may take – and their impact on our lives. She is the author of The Rock and the Bird (Epigram Books, 2013).
Michael Thng (Harvard Kennedy School MPP’16)
The question that keeps Michael up at night is how government can be better designed to propel more innovative, effective and inclusive policymaking. He is currently working on an initiative that seeks to examine that precise question through an interactive case challenge. Michael previously spent time at the Clinton Global Initiative working on issues surrounding education and workforce development. He graduated summa cum laude from the NYU Stern School of Business with a double-major in Economics and International Business, and a minor in Producing from the NYU Tisch School of the Arts.
Kevin Tan (Harvard Kennedy School MPP’15)
After spending some time in finance, Kevin’s interest in using private sector tools to solve social issues led him to work for the British House of Commons, the US Congress, and on Social Impact Bonds in Israel. He is also passionate about giving back to the Asian community and is currently organizing a Harvard-wide symposium to help students tackle racial preconceptions in the US workplace. He graduated from the University of Oxford with First Class Honors in Philosophy, Politics and Economics.
Jeremy Auw (Harvard Kennedy School MPP’15)
A scientist by training, Jeremy has performed cancer research at the University of Cambridge and published in high impact scientific journals. His interest in public issues has led him to work on health policy and scenario planning in the Singapore government and to develop programs for a homeless shelter in Shanghai. He graduated with First Class Honors in Life Sciences from the National University of Singapore and was awarded the Biochemistry Honors Book Prize for the best departmental thesis.
PREVIOUS TEAM MEMBERS
Elaine Yeo is an AM candidate in the Regional Studies–East Asia program at Harvard’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. She graduated from the University of California, Berkeley last year where she majored in history. She has a keen interest in public service, having worked in a number of Singapore government agencies such as the Centre for Liveable Cities and the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment. This past year, she took a gap year to work at a hybrid venture capital firm with an accelerator that invests in alternative proteins. Her policy interests include but are not limited to: bilingualism, food security and tech, education. In her free time, she enjoys karaoke, eating good food, and exploring places in Boston and beyond with friends!
Sarah Anderson is a MPP-MBA degree candidate at the Harvard Kennedy School and Stanford Graduate School of Business. She graduated from Harvard College in 2018, where she concentrated in Government and wrote an honors thesis on the bureaucratization of global terrorist organizations. She has previously worked at Sister Cities International, the City of Boston, and McKinsey & Company. She is interested in topics related to urban governance and innovation, especially as they relate to her hometown of
Singapore.
Marcus Ho is an LLM student at Harvard Law School. Previously, he attended the University of Cambridge, where he graduated with a First Class B.A. (Hons) Degree in Law, having been elected both a Leonard Coling Law Scholar and a recipient of the Sidney Sussex Law Tripos Prize. His main areas of interest in the legal discipline are primarily focused on the developments of law and regulation in the technological ecosystem, and its implications in the world of Corporate Law. He believes this is especially exciting given the rapid advancement of technology, which raises new issues in areas such as artificial intelligence, personal data protection, and the like.
Al Lim is a PhD student in the combined Anthropology and Environmental Studies program at Yale, and his current research explores the intersection of smart cities and water infrastructure in Laos. He was trained in urban studies through the MSc Urbanisation and Development at the London School of Economics and Political Science, and the B.A. (Hons) in Urban Studies at Yale-NUS. He has also previously worked at Deloitte, the Earth Observatory of Singapore, and EF Education First, and his publications have been featured in New Mandala, City & Society, and Academia.SG.
Daniel Ofosu is an MC/MPA degree candidate at the Harvard Kennedy School. Prior to HKS, he spent a significant portion of his career working in investment and commercial banking. He is currently an entrepreneur and a founder of a private investment company where he oversees interests in healthcare, energy and real estate. He is passionate about economic development and has a strong interest in creating solutions that promote public and private sector collaboration particularly in sub-Saharan Africa.
Jovan Lim is an undergraduate at Harvard College concentrating in social studies. He is primarily interested in the intersections of business, language and culture, as well as creating social impact. Having lived in Singapore all his life, he is passionate about investigating public narratives and cultural issues, and takes special pride in showing off his favorite food haunts in the East.
Kagen Lim is a Master of Arts candidate for Quantitative Methods in the Social Sciences at Columbia University. He holds a Bachelor of Social Sciences (Hons.) in Psychology from the National University of Singapore. Kagen’s undergraduate research focused on learning and memory; he has wider interests in crime and security, social policy and education. Kagen volunteers at a youth-led non-profit, Advisory Singapore, as its Chief Content Officer.
Edward Tan is an undergraduate at the University of Pennsylvania (Class of 2023) studying International Relations and East Asian Languages and Civilizations. He was previously a student consultant at 180 Degrees Consulting, a non-profit consulting group. On campus, he is an editor at the Sigma Iota Rho Journal of International Relations. He will join the 2021-2022 cohort of Perry World House Student Fellows and embark on a year-long policy-relevant research project. He hopes to stay engaged with current affairs related to Singapore and develop a deeper understanding of such issues, so as to serve the Singaporean community upon graduation.
Hazel Peh recently graduated from the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) with a Master in Education. Prior to HGSE, she was a Biology teacher at a high school in Singapore. Outside of school-related commitments, she was a volunteer at Meet-the-People’s sessions and she was also part of a committee spearheading public environmental education. She currently serves as a mentor in the Advisory Mentorship Program. Hazel is passionate about issues revolving around education, equity and the environment. She enjoys deep conversations over a good cup of coffee and taking her dog out to explore the great outdoors.
Katherine Enright is an undergraduate student at Harvard College (Class of 2022), potentially concentrating in History. She has lived in Singapore since 2007, and cares deeply about Singaporean politics and public policy. At Harvard, Katherine also plays French Horn with the Bach Society Orchestra and dances Bharatanatyam with Harvard College Deepam.
Kenny Chia is a junior undergraduate at the Singapore Management University (Class of 2021), majoring in Finance. Currently, he is on an exchange program at Boston University for the fall semester. An avid stock investor, he enjoys conducting equity research as well as keeping abreast on market developments.
Liau Wen Rui is a Master of Science ’19 candidate in Computational Sciences & Engineering at the Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a Bachelor’s of Science in Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences. Growing up, his favorite hobby was watching people unbox phones on YouTube. He likes writing about himself in third-person, consumer technology and memes. #stonks #techforthepublicgood
Ming De Sim is an undergraduate student at Tufts University (Class of 2023) pursuing a major in Quantitative Economics. He is passionate about behavioral economics and how technology intertwines with habits to define communities. Closer to his roots, he seeks to delve deeply into understanding the building blocks of a cohesive yet uniquely Singaporean society through active discussion and constructive criticism.
Niu Yihao is a M.A. candidate in Regional Studies – East Asia at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. She graduated with a B.A. in Liberal Studies, with a concentration in International Relations from Waseda University. Yihao is primarily interested in Japanese electoral politics and identity politics.
Paul Kim is an undergraduate at Boston University and majoring in Computer Science. Though his nationality is Korean, he has lived in Singapore for 12 years, experiencing various sides of Singapore and its educational systems. He hopes to stay connected to Singapore and its policies in Boston through the Singapore Policy Journal.
Rachel Hew is a visiting student from NTU, and is engaged at Harvard’s Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology Department (HSCRB) for the fall semester. She’s new to discussing Singapore’s policies but is always open to learning new things about her favourite sunny island! She’s interested in topics related to the environment, sports and wellness.
Samuel Lim is an undergraduate at Singapore Management University, pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Political Science. He is also a Business Development Manager on Monolift, a tech start-up providing HR solutions powered by blockchain technology. Samuel is particularly interested in the development of human rights and public policy solutions to inequality and poverty.
Sean Lim is an undergraduate at Tufts University (Class of 2023), prospectively majoring in Computer Science and Cognitive & Brain Sciences. His intellectual interests are wide-reaching, some of which include programming, data analytics, South East Asian politics, and philosophy. In his spare time, he enjoys playing tennis, hiking and spending hours scrolling through Yelp for the best food spots in Boston.
Sean Ong is a senior at Tufts University (Class of 2020) majoring in history and computer science. He currently researches the histories of colonialism, labor, and protests, with an interest in science and technology studies. He was formerly managing editor of the Tufts Daily, an independent news organization covering Tufts and its host communities.
Steven Gu is a Master in Urban Planning ’21 candidate at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. Prior to arriving in Cambridge, he worked at the United Nations ESCAP in Bangkok, was a US Fulbright Scholar hosted by Singapore’s Centre for Liveable Cities in the Ministry of National Development, and was an advisory services consultant in Washington, D.C. He graduated from Swarthmore College with Honors in Urban Studies and Political Science. Steven is interested in urban governance, public-private partnerships in urban development, transportation and infrastructure, as well as community-based planning.
Tan Yi Chern is an undergraduate at Yale University (Class of 2020) majoring in Computer Science and Ethics, Politics, and Economics. He is fascinated by language + X ∈ {representation, learning, bias, reasoning} and technology + Y ∈ {ethics, government, culture, security}, and has published at natural language processing and machine learning conferences. Cautiously optimistic about technology for public good, he has worked towards the cause in both engineering and policy roles. He was also previously Co-President of the Malaysian and Singaporean Association at Yale.
Faisal Halabeya is an undergraduate student at Boston University (Class of 2022). He lived in Singapore for thirteen years and attended the Singapore American School, where his involvement in public policy and geopolitics grew despite being neither a citizen nor a permanent resident. His academic passions include physics, mathematics, creative writing, and anthropology. He is particularly interested in government-citizen interactions, and the ways in which policy, public opinion, and local/global trends coexist and push against each other.
Izzah Haziqah Binte Harisfadillah is a Politics, Philosophy and Economics (PPE) student who is keen on understanding issues of social, racial and education inequality in Singapore. Passionate about minority empowerment through education and service, she has been working at Mendaki for the past two years, and has created more volunteer opportunities for students to serve the community during her leadership term in the NUS Malay Language Society (PBMUKS). She also previously served in the Yale-NUS Student Government and Yale-NUS Community Impact (ComPact). In Fall 2018, Izzah was a Visiting Undergraduate Student at Harvard College, and she seeks to explore the potential of policy by pursuing a Master’s in Public Policy.
Kuek Jia Yao ’19 is an avid globetrotter who looks forward to serving in the Singapore Armed Forces upon graduation, and loves reading and horse-riding in his spare time. He is an AM student in the Regional Studies-East Asia (RSEA) Program at Harvard University. His research interests focus on Chinese-Indonesian identity, the political economy of Sino-Indonesian ties, and general Southeast Asian economic development.
Mok Xiao You ’19 is a A.M. candidate in Regional Studies – East Asia at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. She is also a Harvard-Yenching Fellow and co-chairperson of the Harvard East Asia Society. Her research lies in the fields of modern socio-cultural history and organizational sociology with a focus on East Asia. She is particularly interested in bringing interdisciplinary perspectives from the humanities to applied, “real world” problems. She holds a B.A. in East Asian Studies from the University of Tokyo, where she was awardee for best thesis.
Tan Kuan Hian is an A. M. in Regional Studies – East Asia ’19 candidate at Harvard University. All other academic and professional information can be found on his LinkedIn profile, because why have LinkedIn otherwise? Kuan occasionally enjoys debating, sometimes enjoys watching Arsenal Football Club (when they win), and always enjoys watching anime (unless it’s Boruto, which he gave up on). Please reach out if you have an idea for a snarky Facebook post or can help him get a new profile picture.
Ang Wee Keong is a mid-career Master in Public Administration (Class of 2018) candidate at the Harvard Kennedy School, an Edward S. Mason Fellow, and a Fulbright Fellow. Prior to HKS, he was the Deputy Chief of Mission and Minister-Counsellor at the Singapore Embassy in Beijing, where he honed his Mandarin-speaking skills. He has also served in the Singapore Embassy in Jakarta, several stints in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs HQ, and in the Public Service Division (PMO). He graduated from the University of Chicago with an A.B. in Economics and A.M. in International Relations.
Kahyin Cheong is a Master in Education ’18 candidate at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She graduated with a Masters of Studies (Distinction) and Bachelors of Arts (Honors) in History from the University of Oxford. After graduation, she had worked as a curriculum planner in the Ministry of Education, and a strategic planner in the Ministry of Home Affairs. She is interested in issues about equity, education, socio-cultural history, organizational change, and leadership.
Azfer A. Khan is an LL.M. Candidate at Harvard Law School (Class of 2018). He graduated in June 2017 with the Slaughter and May Prize in law from the University of Cambridge. Previously President of the Magdalene College Law Society and an avid mooter, he now serves on the editorial board for the Harvard Business Law Review, Harvard National Security Journal and Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy. He writes avidly, with two works forthcoming and two more in progress.
Taro Tan is a Master in Law Candidate at Harvard Law School (Class of 2018). Previously the President of the Cambridge University Law and Business Association and Sir David Williams Law Society, he is interested in the intersection of law, business and government, as well as public policy and social entrepreneurship. He will be working in either New York or London upon graduation, and seeks to be an ambassador for Singapore on the global stage.
Darrell Lian (Harvard Kennedy School MPP’17) is interested in general critical approaches towards Singapore policymaking, and historicizing current policy debates in the social, education, and economic spheres. He received a B. A. (Hons) in History from the National University of Singapore and was also a graduate of the interdisciplinary University Scholars Program. Darrell previously served as the co-founder of the thINK writing mentorship program, based in New Town Secondary School, that is now in its third year of operation. He served as the co-chair of the Harvard Kennedy School’s Southeast Asia Society.
Sujith Kumar is an Assistant Manager at the Lien Centre for Social Innovation at Singapore Management University. Prior to joining SMU, Sujith was a research and events associate with the United Nations Development Programme and spent a year as the Graduate Coordinator for Campus Education at the Harvard College Office of BGLTQ Student Life. He studied communications, human rights, gender and religion at the University of South Australia, Columbia University, and Harvard University, learnt Chinese at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and was was a Kathryn Davis Fellow for Peace at Middlebury College. He actively volunteers in access to health initiatives, and is committed to exploring identity, life narratives, health, emotion and suffering through qualitative approaches.
Akshar Saxena is a doctoral student in global health economics at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health. He is interested in economics of aging, non-communicable diseases and primary care provision in Africa, Asia and the USA. He is currently working on macroeconomics of aging, analyzing the dynamics between health, retirement, pensions and insurance. He has previously worked for Ministry of Health in Singapore. He holds a B.A. in Economics from the National University of Singapore and a Master in Public Policy from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.
Deepak Warrier is an undergraduate at New York University, where he studies economics and is part of the multidisciplinary Global Liberal Studies program. A volunteer for five years at the Movement for the Intellectually Disabled of Singapore (MINDS), his current interests lie at the intersection of education and equity. He is also passionate about Singaporean history, literature, and art, having volunteered with TEDxSingapore, the National Heritage Board, and UNESCO. He sees public policy offering compelling solutions to pressing problems around the world, and is excited about the future of policy and public discourse in Singapore.
Mark D. Heller (Harvard Graduate School of Design MUP’15)
Mark is passionate about cities, and seeks to investigate how sound infrastructure policy can engender beautiful and accessible urban design. Towards this end, he has extensive experience using geospatial data and cartography to inform municipal policy decisions. Mark formerly lived in Singapore while working as a lecturer at Ngee Ann Polytechnic, and hopes to return to the region upon graduating. He presently works for the Real Estate Academic Initiative at Harvard, where he researches the impact of children’s housing on their long-term economic outcomes. He received an A.B. in Government and Asian & Middle Eastern Studies from Dartmouth College.
Rachel Loh (Harvard Kennedy School MPP’15)
Rachel has a keen interest in public policy issues at the intersection of government, business and civil society. She believes that the changing distribution of global economic power provides many opportunities for each sector to create and capture value through collaboration. Her convictions stem from having worked in Singapore in the public sector for the past 7 years–at the Singapore Tourism Board, and the Singapore Economic Development Board. Most recently, she published a chapter on Singapore’s transition after 50 years of development in the Center for Asia Leadership Initiatives’ Experiencing Asia: Essays from the Asia Leadership Trek.
Jeevaraj Suppiah (Harvard Kennedy School MPP’15)
Jeevaraj worked as a Service Request Manager in British Telecommunications for a year, where he managed a large client contract and focused on expanding the client’s business across South East Asia. He believes that Singapore’s future lies in the effective transition from economic to social policy. As part of Sinda’s STEP initiative, he has also mentored numerous youth through dedicated coaching and guidance. He graduated with a double degree from the National University of Singapore receiving two First Class Honors in Business Administration and Social Sciences.