Vol 13 October 2015
The Alumni Magazine of UWC South East Asia
Investigating
the illicit trade in
fake medicines
Alumni stories
Graduation 2015
Reunions
Alumni services
Every student who leaves UWCSEA,
regardless of how long they were
enrolled, automatically becomes a
member of our alumni community.
Some of the services we offer include:
One°North
The alumni magazine is published
annually. Please send contributions and/
or suggestions to: alumnimagazine@
uwcsea.edu.sg.
Alumni website and mobile app
Our password-protected alumni website
and mobile app allow you to maintain your
own profile, search for and contact other
registered members, stay informed about
news and events and more.
Reunions and get-togethers
A reunion of the 40, 30, 20 and 10 year
anniversary classes is held each August
in Singapore. Additional class reunions
and alumni gatherings are held in various
locations throughout the year, planned
by both UWCSEA and our alumni. Watch
the alumni website for updates and
details, and let us advertise your events!
Alumni and Parents of Alumni eBriefs
These are emailed to alumni and
parents of alumni throughout the year,
containing news and information to
keep you updated and informed.
Mentor opportunities
Volunteer to be listed in the mentor
section of the alumni site if you are
willing to be contacted by current
students or other alumni for information
or advice regarding your university or
career, or visit the pages if you have
questions of your own.
Career services
Check this section of the site for career
opportunities or candidates, or post
your own job opening or resumé. You
can also set up alerts to be notified of
new postings.
Volunteering opportunities for alumni
Check the Volunteer page of the website
for short to long term or virtual volunteer
work opportunities in Southeast Asia
working with organisations supported
by UWCSEA.
Old Interscols
Let us know if you would like a soft copy
of your Interscol(s).
Visits, tours and other requests
We are happy to help in any way we can.
If you are in Singapore and would like to
drop in for a visit or a tour, we would be
more than happy to show you around,
any time. Send your requests to us at
alumni@uwcsea.edu.sg or just drop in!
Alumni website:
http://alumni.uwcsea.edu.sg
Alumni email:
alumni@uwcsea.edu.sg
Please stay connected!
Our alumni community
Albania, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belgium, Benin, Bermuda, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria,
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Venezuela, Vietnam, Zambia, Zimbabwe
2 OneºNorth October 2015
Notes from the Head of College and
Alumni Office............................................................. 4
Dover Campus redevelopment comes
to completion
Read about some recent physical updates
at Dover ...................................................................... 5
Cover story
Investigating the illicit
trade in fake medicines
Marie Lamy ’05
investigates the threat
of fake medicines .......... 6
Sustainability at UWCSEA – Students,
staff and alumni heed the call to
action Nathan Hunt, Director of
Sustainability collaborates with
alumni around sustainability issues. ...................... 8
The reality of sustainable change
Sophia Palmstedt ’12 takes UWC
values to university..............................11
Graduation 2015
503 students across both campuses graduated
in May with an impressive average IB score!.......12
From UWC student to UWC teacher
Katarina Beckman ’06 teaches
at UWC Robert Bosch.........................14
Re-enacting The Great Train Race
Michael Heaton ’81 races for
charity, his sister and his dad.............15
Sail away
Barnaby Birkbeck ’16 and his
recent sailing exploits..........................16
UWCSEA year in review
A sample of the huge variety of events
and activities that take place at the College...... 18
Giving back at home in Indonesia
Lailul Ikram ’08 is interviewed
by Dr Linda de Flavis ..........................20
Davis UWC Scholars Program ...............................21
Recent Alumni events
Worldwide alumni get-togethers
and Reunion 2015! ..............................22
Growing food the sustainable and
healthy way
Jeremy Beckman ’04, permaculture
and cooperative farming....................24
Protecting the rights of women with
psychosocial disabilities in Mexico
Priscila Rodriguez Benavides ’06
fights for change..................................26
Paying it forward
Subodh Chanrai ’82 mentors
nephew Suvir ’08................................28
Growing his company and its social responsibility
Luke Janssen ’94.......................................................29
Publishing goes DIY
Sue Grossey ’84 self-publishes
her first two novels.............................30
Alumni giving
Thanks for the support!..........................................32
Weddings
Three weddings – six alumni!............34
Upcoming reunions
Don’t miss out! ........................................................35
One°North is published by UWC South East Asia anually for alumni, staff and friends of UWCSEA. Reproduction in any manner is prohibited without written
consent. Send your address change to alumnimagazine@uwcsea.edu.sg and/or update your profile on the UWCSEA alumni website or through the alumni app. We
welcome your feedback; please send comments to alumnimagazine@uwcsea.edu.sg.
Please send your articles and/or suggestions for articles, for the next issue, to alumnimagazine@uwcsea.edu.sg.
Contents
Editor
Brenda Whately
Design
Nandita Gupta
MCI (P) 135/03/2015
October 2015 OneºNorth 3
Dear Alumni,
You’ll hear it a thousand times from
me: it’s what you’ve done by the time
you are eighty that counts, not what’s
written on the piece of paper you
clutch when you leave this College at
eighteen. Wonderful public examination
results—and they were wonderful this
year—need to translate into action,
and when I meet UWCSEA alumni, I am
humbled by the amount of sheer doing.
It’s been a pleasure to get to know so
many of you over the course of the last
twelve months .
After years of vital building—from a
brand new campus at East to the mighty
High School block at Dover—peace
will soon settle on the College to the
extent that our strategic thinking can
focus on people, ideas and culture.
Indeed, Creative Hubs will appear
on both campuses so that social
entrepreneurship can be nurtured, and
Harvard University’s Graduate School
of Education will prepare a roadmap
so we can subsequently set course for
measuring our true impact on the world.
Bluntly: do we do what we claim we do?
The College is crackling and fizzing with
creative energy, but we are all standing
on the shoulders of those who came
before. Thank you for all you have
accomplished, and for your support.
We are proud to have so many of you
achieving so much around the world.
The UWC fire burns bright.
Chris Edwards
Head of College
Welcome to the 13th issue of the alumni
magazine.
It’s been a year since the last issue and a
lot has happened in that time.
We gained another cohort of young
alumni when more than 500 students
graduated in May from the Dover
and East campuses. Welcome to our
newest alumni!
We’ve had some changes in the College
Advancement Department as people
come and go. Our former Alumni
Relations Manager, Soňa Lippmann
recently moved back to Europe and two
new staff have joined the department.
Sarah Walston has joined the Alumni
team and alumna Sasha Mukerjea ’06
has joined the Foundation team.
In October, we hosted the Round Square
International Conference 2015 with over
1,000 delegates on both campuses and
some amazing alumni speakers including
environmental scientist and explorer
Tim Jarvis, documentary filmmaker
Patrick Rouxel and humanitarian aid
worker Nidhi Kapur.
The IDEAS Hub, a centre for
entrepreneurism, innovation and
social enterprise, is coming closer to
development. If you would like to
subscribe to updates about the Hub, or
offer your advice and expertise, please
let us know.
Reunion 2015, the annual reunion
celebrating the 10, 20, 25, 30, 35 and
40 year anniversary classes took place
again in August, with more than 380
attendees. Thanks to those who helped
to make it a memorable weekend!
Drop in and visit us if you are in
Singapore—you are always more
than welcome.
Brenda Whately
Director of Alumni Relations
From the Head of College
Note from the Alumni Office
4 OneºNorth October 2015
Dover Campus redevelopment
comes to completion
By Simon Thomas
Director of Operations and Facilities
The Dover Campus Redevelopment Plan
was approved by the Board of Governors
in 2008 in order to ensure UWCSEA
Dover had facilities that would enable the
College to continue to deliver a quality
educational programme to its students.
It began that year with the construction
of the two-level bus bay with an astro-
turf playing field on top, next to the
boarding houses. The bus bay provides
organised and efficient undercover
drop off for students and overflow
parking. A permanent guardhouse with
traffic barriers, a covered walkway
out to Dover Road, a playground next
to the Ayer Rajah sports field, the
refurbishment of the ground floor
of the Science Block to support the
Design and Technology programme
and the conversion of the carpark
under the Primary Block into additional
classrooms, was also completed in this
first phase.
The second phase included rejuvenation
of the Art Department and the
construction of the Middle School Block
with 64 classrooms, Middle School and
Communications offices, a student-run
College Shop, multi-purpose Hall and
state-of-the-art gymnastics facility.
This was built on the site of the original
gym, drama and music studios and the
‘temporary’ Middle School office.
The third phase involved refurbishment
of the original Maths Block and an
extension of the Pavilion canteen. The
Ayer Rajah field was converted to high-
grade astroturf at this time as well.
The construction of the main High
School Block is the fourth and final
phase and will be completed prior
to the end of 2015. It will house
High School classrooms, High
School Centre offices, the University
Advising and Examinations offices, an
extensive library and study centre, an
examinations hall, drama studios, a
black box theatre and a large conference
centre. The Head’s office, Finance and
HR will also be located in this block. As
the new official front entrance of Dover
Campus, the Admissions, Foundation
and Alumni departments will be located
on the ground floor, as well as a two-
story Heritage Café—a great place for
alumni and other visitors to drop in for a
coffee and chat.
Being conscious of our impact on the
environment and our commitment to
sustainability, and awareness-raising of
environmental issues being one of the
cornerstones of a UWCSEA education,
the new buildings on Dover Campus
have been constructed to be as ‘green’
as possible and now the campus
complies to BCA Greenmark Platinum
the highest rating in the Singapore green
building standards.
Although the campus has been
renovated and upgraded and some of
the buildings replaced, the Main Hall
remains very recognisable from the
inside with its original wooden floor to
the peaks on its roof outside. In fact
those peaks have been replicated and
now sit on the new High School Block
as well.
Drop in for a tour!
October 2015 OneºNorth 5
Investigating the illicit trade in fake
By Marie Lamy
Marie Lamy
Class of 2005
UWCSEA 2001–2005
When we talk about the health sector
we often think of medical doctors,
nurses or pharmacists. The health
industry is much more intricate than we
might initially think; it encompasses the
expertise of hospital managers, health
policy makers, health sector consultants
or philanthropic organisations to name a
few. Customs officials and police officials
also have a role to play by screening
passengers in times of a global epidemic,
as we have witnessed for Ebola. As
a political scientist it was refreshing,
despite my non-medical background, to
be able to delve into this industry, which
merges both my interests in human
rights (e.g., access to quality healthcare)
and in international development (health
is an inherent part of the sustainable
economic development of a nation).
In both of my previous jobs where I
focused on issues of regional health
governance and the global supply
chain of quality essential medicines,
the problem of fake medicines came
up regularly. I realised that organised
criminal groups unfortunately also
had their spot on the health market.
While we know that the problem of
fake medicines exists, we have limited
information to date about the nature or
the scale of this global health problem.
My professional and academic mentors
agreed that the illicit trade in fake
medicines would make a relevant topic
for a doctorate at the London School of
Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, where
I can pick the brains of bright medical
doctors, pharmacists, chemists and
health policy experts to further advance
in my project.
When talking about fake medicines,
we are not talking about generic drugs,
which are legitimate, quality replicas
of innovator drugs. Instead, we are
concerned with the fake drugs that are
produced illegally by organised criminal
groups, who either replicate the content
of the original drug and its packaging
in precarious backyard facilities or
produce non-identical forms of that
drug. The challenge of fake medicines,
therefore, goes far beyond matters of
intellectual property; fake medicines can
be extremely harmful to one’s health as
they can contain inadequate quantities
or none of the active ingredient or
sometimes even toxic ingredients such
as poisons and metal components. The
World Health Organisation estimates
that 10% of all medicines worldwide
are fake. This figure shoots up to 30%
when considering developing countries
only. The global trade in falsified drugs
is estimated between US$35–75 billion
per year, which is more significant than
the trade in narcotics! What is more, this
criminal activity does not only concern
lifestyle drugs such as Viagra or diet pills,
but also targets life-saving medicines
like ones that treat cancer or malaria.
Counterfeit drugs represent a looming
threat that is hard to quantify due to
the fact that it stems from underground
criminal activity. This threat is also
difficult to eliminate due to its trans-
border nature and the general lack of
adequate regulation and enforcement
measures. A great deal of research has
been done and is still underway to find
new methods to test the quality of
medicines efficiently. However, more
research is needed to understand the
structural reasons of why fake medicines
enter the market in the first place, as
well as to find effective collaborative
solutions to curb this trend!
Fake antimalarial medicines are of
particular concern in the Mekong region
where there is a high demand for this
6 OneºNorth October 2015
medicines
drug due to high prevalence of malaria.
Criminal groups soon understood that
they could make large profits from
infiltrating Southeast Asian markets with
fake antimalarial pills. What is more,
these fake pills pose a direct challenge
to the eradication of malaria as a deadly
infectious disease, in part due to the risk
of antimicrobial resistance to artemisinin
(one of the main components of some
antimalarial treatments). In fact, the
Mekong region has been identified as
the basin of resistance to antimalarial
drugs. Despite past efforts from local
governments of the Mekong region to
tackle this issue, the problem of fake
medicines persists. This regional setting
offers an interesting case study for this
project and so this year, I have travelled
across Thailand, Cambodia, and Lao PDR
interviewing a series of stakeholders on
this issue to find out how the problem
is perceived, how the pharmaceutical
supply chain operates, and why fake
drugs might be able to infiltrate
the market.
I hope that the results of this research
will serve to inform the development of
more effective regional mechanisms to
improve access to quality medicines. I
also wish to make practical application
of my findings and expertise post-
PhD; not just through further research
initiatives but ideally by working
as a consultant on these issues
for governments or international
organisations.
As a final word of caution: be vigilant,
refrain from buying medicine from local
street markets or uncertified pharmacy
booths, which is where most fake drugs
are found. Do not order medicine from
internet pharmacies, even if they are
considerably cheaper, as up to 97%
of these online pharmacies are not
registered. I’ve been guilty of doing so
myself, out of practicality, but I am now
certain that the risk is not worth taking.
I hope that sometime in the future,
the patients living in remote areas of
low-income countries are no longer
confronted with the tragic choice of
fake medicines or no medicine at all,
and are given the opportunity to access
quality medicines easily, at the best
price possible.
Marie Lamy
After graduating from UWCSEA in
2005, Marie embarked on a double-
degree programme studying politics and
international relations at the University
of Kent in England and at Sciences
Po Lille in France. After receiving her
Master of Laws at the Brussels School
of International Studies, Marie started
working as a Research Associate at
the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public
Policy in Singapore. In this role, she
discovered the field of global health and
development. Subsequently, she moved
to Amsterdam and worked as a Project
Officer for a not-for-profit foundation
called i+solutions, specialised in the
supply of quality essential medicines
for HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis
patients. Five years into her professional
career, Marie is now a PhD candidate in
the department of Global Health and
Development at the London School
of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Her
specialisation is on global health policy
and the illicit trade of fake medicines in
Southeast Asia.
October 2015 OneºNorth 7
By Nathan Hunt
Director of Sustainability
The United Nations called for 2015
to be a ‘Time for Global Action.’ With
the adoption by member states of its
Sustainable Development Goals in
September and the hope for a new
Climate Change deal in Paris at the COP
21 summit in December, they are hoping
for a big leap forward in agreement and
action for a more peaceful, equal and
sustainable world.
At UWCSEA the call has been heeded by
both campuses and their alumni, often
in partnership. In early October we
hosted the Round Square International
Conference 2015, with sustainability
as its core theme. World Wildlife Fund
Global ambassador and explorer Tim
Jarvis ’84 was the opening speaker,
filmmaker Patrick Rouxel ’84 showcased
Life is One, another of his remarkable
documentaries on the impact of
rainforest destruction and Nidhi Kapur
’01 spoke about her humanitarian aid
work in the Democratic Republic of
Congo. All three kindly offered to work
with our classes during their stays as
well as inspire the conference delegates.
Despite their very different career
paths after graduating, they share the
same quality of absolute dedication to
their cause as well as the vital skill of
story-telling. It’s very inspiring for our
students to know that these super-
heroes emerged from the very same
environment as themselves.
For this reason, I have actively sought
the advice of alumni, who are either
studying or actively involved in
sustainable development issues. Tejas
Ewing ’98 has worked for the UK Forum
for the Future and has given his expert
guidance on the technical and social
issues regarding carbon offsetting. As
UWCSEA’s travel emissions grow with
our expanding educational programmes
for students and teachers (many of
them with a sustainable development
focus!), we have to face the tough
Sustainability at UWCSEA
Students, staff and alumni heed the call to action
Nathan Hunt at the Rainforest Restoration Project, Dover Campus.
Tim Jarvis ’84
Patrick Rouxel ’84
Nidhi Kapur ’01
Tejas Ewing ’98
8 OneºNorth October 2015
questions of how to mitigate the effect
of these. Clearly offsetting is not enough
(and dangerously may even encourage
more travel), but given the potential
it has to offer funding to make a real
impact in our partner projects such
as Lamdon School and other Global
Concerns, it is highly likely that we
will expand the College’s offsetting
programme in the coming years if we
can rigorously account for the benefits
it brings.
I have been collaborating in researching
this and other complex sustainability
issues with recent alumni too. Felix van
Oost ’12, studying at UBC (University of
British Columbia) in Canada, has helped
in exploring their travel policies and
strong sustainability initiatives. Evelyn
Mayo ’13 has helped likewise, analysing
a number of universities’ policies in
the US, including Barnard in New York
where she studies. Evelyn was a dynamic
leader of LEAF Global Concern in High
School and is proving to be just as
effective a campaigner now. The reason
President Obama vetoed the proposed
Keystone Pipeline Development in
February 2015 that would carry fuel
from Canadian oil sands deposits across
the US, was in no small part due to the
skillful opposition campaign that saw
protesters including Evelyn, choosing
to be formally arrested for zip-tying
themselves to the White House gates
to raise awareness. Evelyn says the
practice she had zip-tying all sorts of
things, and people, during Leavers’
Week served her well! Stopping the
Keystone Pipeline has been a key battle
for many environmental and social
justice groups, so a harmless act of civil
disobedience was certainly justified
and indeed something to be proud of.
Clearly President Obama has forgiven
her for the minor inconvenience too!
Evelyn is now providing insights from
the front line of the growing Fossil Fuel
Divestment movement that is sweeping
university campuses in North America
and Australia. Despite opposition from
the administrators of institutional
foundations, this student-led campaign
is getting stronger and louder and may
even spread to Southeast Asia. With
NUS-Yale a neighbour of Dover Campus,
we should as an institution (that is
now as large as many universities)
start to consider our position on the
sustainability of our investments.
Another ex-LEAF GC leader, Nicole
Yaw ’14 dropped in while on vacation
from Vassar University in New York.
It was encouraging to see Nicole still
active in environmental campaigns there
and likewise she was very pleased to
Environmental projects like Campus Gardening are increasingly popular at both campuses.
Evelyn zip-tied to the White House gates.
Felix van Oost ’12
Evelyn Mayo ’13
Nicole Yaw ’14
October 2015 OneºNorth 9
hear that the GC’s four-year No Plastics
campaign to reduce the food packaging
trash in the Dover canteens looks like it
may finally achieve its goal.
Campaigning is of course not the
only way in which we will address
our sustainability issues. Creative
approaches to understanding and taking
action will be necessary. Leia Jones ’13
who currently studies at McGill
University in Canada, returned to
Dover to lecture to an IB Environmental
Systems & Society class on the religious
and philosophical underpinnings of
ecological consciousness. The absence
of formal religion as academic study at
UWCSEA means we very likely have a
large hole in our understanding of the
values that drive behaviour for much
of the rest of the world and maybe
even ourselves. Leia’s thoughtful and
measured approach was perfectly
tailored to the IB class that studies
environmental value systems but has
few real-life touch points. As many
top thinkers about climate change and
biodiversity loss are starting to claim,
only through a profound examination
of our own values will we start to
be able to make the changes to our
societies and economies that will
address these threats.
This examination of the relationship
between our internal and external
worlds has been beautifully realised by
artist and alum Lucy Davis ’88. Lucy
is Assistant Professor of Art at NTU
Singapore and her recent exhibition
at the NUS Museum, Stories of Wood
was a stunningly original exploration
of how people in Southeast Asia value
and connect with the natural world.
Lucy was a guest lecturer at the Dover
Theory of Knowledge Miniweek in
January and demonstrated to the
Grade 11s how art, science and critical
investigation into culture and society
are all necessary to fully understand the
causes of biodiversity loss in our region
and why we could forge new coalitions
to halt it. Exposing students to the work
of entrepreneurs, artists, academics
and NGOs will hopefully stimulate the
new creative solutions that the complex
problems of sustainability so badly need.
Sustainable development is of course
not just an environmental challenge—it
is foremost a humanitarian one—raising
the living standards of most of humanity
is as necessary as ensuring we stay
within planetary ecological boundaries
if we want to ensure peace and social
justice. Thus the importance of the work
of the College’s Global Concerns and
Service programmes, and the alumni
that continue this work, cannot be
overstated in providing the skills and
qualities that we need to ensure we
achieve our mission. So my thanks goes
to not only those alumni who have
helped the College develop its thinking
and programmes in the past year, but
also to those who are striving for the
same goals around the world.
Nathan Hunt is Director of Sustainability
for the College and Coordinator of
Environmental Stewardship for Dover
Campus, a post funded by a kind
donation from the UWCSEA Foundation.
“The importance of the work of the College’s Global Concerns
and Service programmes, and the alumni that continue this
work, cannot be overstated.”
“I have actively sought the advice of alumni, who are either
studying or actively involved in sustainable development issues.”
Leia Jones ’13
Lucy Davis ’88
Left: Tim Jarvis speaking about environmental sustainability at Round Square Conference 2015; Right: House building with Tabitha Cambodia.
10 OneºNorth October 2015
By Sophia Palmstedt
Sophia Palmstedt
Class of 2012
UWCSEA 2006–2012
Having attended UWCSEA from the
age of 12 to 18, I should be competent
enough to start this article with
assertiveness, energy and captivating
vocabulary. But the fact is, one simply
can’t summarise the impact of UWCSEA
on an individual in one sentence. At
the end of my third and final year as a
Management with HR student at Royal
Holloway University of London, I found
myself thinking about my academic
years, the experiences I’ve had and who
I’ve become as a result of them.
I think we can all agree that it is only
when you leave UWCSEA that you
realise how good your life actually
was. Going through the IB seemed
at the time unbearable. Only now
do I understand that having to take
part in a Global Concern and commit
time to social service once a week
as a curriculum requirement from a
very early age only sounded unfair at
the time. At some point I stopped to
question why we had to do it and found
that I wanted to do it. This is why we
UWCSEA students aren’t like the rest
and it is the reason I joined the Enactus
community on the third day after
arriving at university.
Enactus is like a Global Concern taken to
the next level. It is a global, non-profit
organisation operating in 37 countries,
run by a force of 1,600 students all
over the world with a common goal—
to empower communities through
entrepreneurial projects. During my
second year of university I took over
as the president of the Enactus Royal
Holloway team. With the help of local
partners such as NGOs and community
centres, we worked with groups of
individuals to identify their specific
needs and the needs of their community
and to tailor a project aimed at tackling
those needs. Through the transfer of
business and economic concepts, we
were able to teach individuals ways
to improve their quality of life and
standard of living.
Along with the Vice President of our
Enactus team, I traveled to Seenigama,
Sri Lanka in January 2014. There we
set up a jackfruit chutney enterprise
that empowered 12 women to
gain an income and raise their self-
confidence. At the same time, we ran
a project called ENTYRE in the UK
that empowered four people with
mental health conditions to run a
tire-recycling project. The year before
that, I witnessed the growth of a
project in India called SEW, Sustainable
Empowerment for Women, empowering
40 women through an incense stick
business that managed to raise the
women’s income by 70%.
Aside from making it to the semi-final
round of every Enactus UK National
competition, where projects are
presented in front of a panel of judges
from Enactus sponsor companies, just
being part of the Enactus world was
an incredible experience. I got the
chance to help people, teaching women
about break-even point or the basic
principles of marketing; concepts that
I have learnt in my university lectures.
Along with that, leading a team of 30
members, managing weekly committee
meetings, overseeing four social
projects, running guest speaker events,
coordinating yearly fresher’s week,
liaising with our business advisory board
and communications with university
officials have taught me invaluable
skills in leadership, public speaking,
project management, team work, risk
assessment, networking, and maybe
most important of all, experiencing
failure and learning from it.
What UWCSEA and Enactus have in
common is that making a sustainable
impact in this world isn’t done over
night; it takes time and commitment.
Despite the uncertainty of my future
plans, I am certain of my values, beliefs
and personal strengths because of the
lessons learnt at UWCSEA and Enactus.
The reality of sustainable change
Sophia at a women’s workshop in Sri Lanka and with the Enactus Royal Holloway team.
October 2015 OneºNorth 11
CONGRATULATIONS T
The guest speaker at Dover’s graduation ceremony this year was former student
Sophie Syed ’09. During her address, Sophie had this advice to offer to the graduates,
“One – use the values and etiquette that being part of the UWC community has
instilled in you to make a difference; two – don’t underestimate yourself, keep working
on what you’re good at, but never give up on things you are bad at; and three – don’t
be afraid of making tough decisions, ask the hard questions and find the path that
you are most proud of taking. It is not easy to ignore expectations set by others, but
something I’ve learned, and I am still learning every day, is that you need to know
when to set your own expectations, and fulfil your own dreams. I challenge you to
become the person you want to be.”
Sophie Syed ’09
12 OneºNorth October 2015
Average points
30.1
Worldwide
(2014)
36.2
UWCSEA
Outstanding IB Diploma results of Class of 2015
For further details, please see the UWCSEA website, www.uwcsea.edu.sg
Pass rate
98.4%
UWCSEA
79.3%
Worldwide
(2014)
TO THE CLASS OF 2015
Parth Chhabra ’15, East graduation speaker
Ricarda Filsinger ’15, Dover graduation speaker
October 2015 OneºNorth 13
Percentage receiving 40+ points
out of 45
Percentage receiving bilingual diploma
25.9%
UWCSEA
6.8%
Worldwide
(2014)
26.1%
UWCSEA
28.6%
Worldwide
(2014)
By Brenda Whately
Katarina Beckman
Class of 2006
UWCSEA 2001–2006
Katarina Beckman, who attended
UWCSEA from Grade 7 through 12,
now teaches Theatre Arts and English
at the second newest UWC, located in
Freiburg, Germany. Katarina was invited
to speak at the Mayor of Freiburg’s
reception that welcomed and celebrated
the opening of UWC Robert Bosch in
September 2014.
The following is a recent email chat
with Katarina.
Where did you go after you graduated
from UWCSEA?
I went to the University of California
San Diego and completed a Bachelor of
Arts in Theatre in June 2010. After that,
I actually returned to UWCSEA to do an
internship with the Drama Department
for about one month. This experience
made me realise that teaching at UWC
would be something that I would love
to do but I knew I would have to gain
more teaching experience and further
qualifications first.
I went to China to work as an English
teacher for one and a half years at
the Capital University of Economics
and Business in Beijing and then on to
Oxford University to complete a Master
of Science in Applied Linguistics and
Second Language Acquisition.
What influenced you to want to teach
at the new UWC in Freiburg?
The opportunity to be part of the
founding team of a brand new UWC was
an incredibly exciting prospect. I was
also very drawn to UWC Robert Bosch
College’s focus on sustainability and its
location in the green city of Freiburg.
Two weeks after submitting my MSc
dissertation, I found out that there was a
new UWC opening in Germany and saw
that there were teaching positions open
for both Theatre Arts and English B, so
the timing was incredibly fortunate!
About two months after that, just five
days after my graduation, I received the
job offer and I was absolutely thrilled.
How did it happen that you gave
a speech at the Mayor’s official
welcome ceremony?
Laurence Nodder, our Head of College,
informed me that we had been invited
to speak at the Mayor’s reception. He
asked if I would like to speak about
why I applied to teach at UWC Robert
Bosch College.
Who was there for the opening
ceremonies?
We had an initial opening for UWC
alumni, organised by the UWC Germany
National Committee. Former UWCSEA
teachers, Anthony and Thea Skillicorn
were there and it made the event all the
more special for me because Thea was
my IB tutor when I was at UWCSEA. I
am incredibly grateful for their support
and encouragement.
Two days after that, we had an official
opening organised by the Robert Bosch
Foundation. The guest speakers included
two UWC Pearson graduates—Dr
Abiodun Williams, President of The
Hague Institute for Global Justice and
noted academic in conflict prevention,
peacekeeping and conflict management,
formerly a senior official at the United
Nations—and Rahila Muhibi, originally
from Afghanistan, the founder of the 100
Mothers Literacy Program to teach young
mothers from Dari, one of Afghanistan’s
most remote areas, to read.
In addition to the Skillicorns, is there
anyone else from UWCSEA who
influenced your life and career?
Yes—I’d like to say a huge thank you to
Lynne Arrol for her amazing support.
She has helped me grow and develop
my love for theatre ever since my first
theatre production in Grade 7! This past
summer, she welcomed me back to the
UWCSEA Dover Drama department to
shadow her, as well as Karen Balthazaar
and Jamie Cant, who I would also
like to thank for all their advice and
encouragement. Jonathan Carter, who
was one of my IB Theatre teachers, also
continues to be an inspiration to me.
My experience there was life changing.
Ever since graduating, I have sought
ways to apply UWC values in my life.
From UWC student to UWC teacher
L to R: Former teacher and Head of Global Concerns Anthony Skillicorn,
Christoph Nguyen ’02, Katarina Beckman and former teacher Thea Skillicorn
14 OneºNorth October 2015
By Brenda Whately
Michael Heaton
Class of 1981
UWCSEA 1976–1979
In 1955, Mike Heaton’s father Brian,
then 24 years old, pitted himself against
a steam train in a cross-country race in
Devon, UK. He and two fellow soldiers
on National Service, decided that they
would jump off the train they were
travelling on, at a spot in Devon where
they knew they could run a 1.15 mile
short cut across Dartmoor while the
train did a 2.75 mile route around the
hills, and hop back on as it travelled
through the next town.
What they didn’t realise was that the
train’s fireman would catch wind of what
they were doing and stoke the engine
to top speed, cutting four minutes from
the normal journey time. It was a tight
race but two of the three soldiers made
it, applauded enthusiastically by fellow
passengers and reported in the Western
Morning News, 17 November 1955.
Mike had heard this story from his dad
many times over the years and last year,
at the age of 50, he decided to re-enact
the race as a tribute to his dad, now
82 years old, bed-bound and suffering
from advanced vascular dementia.
He says, “My objective was to try and
simulate a bit of the past and to share
that moment with him.” Mike also used
the run to raise money for two charities.
One was Bowel and Cancer Research, an
organisation that, as its name suggests,
supports research into bowel cancer,
the disease that took the life of his sister
Lesley (UWCSEA ’79) in 2008. The
other charity Mike chose to include was
the International Child Campaign, an
organisation co-founded by his former
classmate Florence Kiff (UWCSEA ’81)
and her husband Alan.
The great train race re-enactment took
place on 9 August 2014. The three
soldiers were replaced by Mike, his son
Joseph 23 and his cousin, Paul Hindle 52.
The steam train was replaced by a Land
Rover because the railway line between
the two towns where both races took
place is now a cycle route. The Land
Rover was driven at an average speed
of 18mph to simulate the steam train’s
speed while the three men set out at
a run over the hills—and they won.
Afterwards, Mike played the film they
had created of the race re-enactment
for his dad. Mike says, “It was a fantastic
way to make a connection and a very
special way for us to tell him how proud
we are of him.”
Mike continues to challenge himself
while raising money for charity. In
July 2015 he was instrumental in
choosing the charity that his employer’s
bicentenary appeal would support and
he joined 41 co-workers in a three-peaks
challenge to climb Ben Nevis (1,344m),
Scafell Pike (978m) and Snowdon
(1,085m). The timing could have been
better—over the two days of the climb,
the group experienced all four seasons.
The charity’s website reports, “They
battled against snow, wind and rain
and amassed more than 70 blisters but
42 heroic staff … conquered the Three
Peaks Challenge and raised a staggering
10,000 GBP for charity … Mike Heaton
was brilliant at the summit of Ben Nevis;
he went up and down time after time,
helping people through the snow so
they could reach the top.”
For fans of all things eccentric, we
recommend Mike’s nostalgic amateur
video of his train race re-enactment,
which can be viewed at www.
devontrainrun.co.uk, where a photo
of his sister Lesley and links to both
charities supported can also be found.
Re-enacting The Great Train Race
Mike and the team on the ‘train’ at the finish line.
October 2015 OneºNorth 15
“Daddy,” I said, “please can we put my
Viper into a container and send it to the
Viper World Championships in France
this summer?” It was apparent that
Daddy wasn’t quite as excited as I was! I
wanted to compete somewhere new, to
be out in the open where not everything
is easy and where I might want to wear
a bit more than my Singapore attire of
board shorts and a hat. This was the
summer of 2014 and after months of
planning and training, there I was, a
16-year old standing on a beach that
seemed bigger than all of Singapore,
with close to 40 Vipers lined up behind
me. I had never seen so many in one
place and all were crewed by world-class
athletes, here to prove a point.
No, we didn’t end up packing my boat
into a container. I had to find another
way. It came in the form of a Swiss man
called Martin who wrote that he would
be travelling to France with his boat
to race and needed a helmsman. After
liaising for what felt like a lifetime, I had
a confirmed spot on the boat for both
regattas. It was very exciting!
The Viper World Championships were
held in Erquy, France. It was a very small
town, but obviously a hub for multihull
sailing, able to attract teams from as far
away as Australia and New Zealand. The
first day lived up to all expectations—
the wind picked up to close to 15 knots
and we had extremely competitive
racing across the bay. Unfortunately for
the rest of the week there was much
lighter wind and with a combined crew
weight of 150 kilograms, we struggled
for speed.
Having never sailed in waters of less
than 25 degrees, each splash over the
bows came as quite a shock to me. As
my lips numbed and the water in my
hair froze, my crewmate couldn’t believe
how warm it was! Before that week I had
never got out of the water so quickly
after a capsize. I can’t complain though,
because I was covered head to toe in
fabulous equipment that I wouldn’t have
been able to race without, supplied so
kindly by our sponsor, Lloyd Marine.
I hadn’t gone all the way to France for
one week of racing. It was followed
by a second week in the Formula 16
European Championships, held in Le
Touquet. That week was a true test
of the all-round sailor. The conditions
went from 25 knots gusting 30 with
three-metre swell, to half a knot
gusting 2, with a 4-knot current in the
opposite direction—in other words,
backwards sailing.
The first two days were the windiest
conditions I have ever sailed in. A simple
bear-away in the prestart would sink
the bows and get the rudders so far
out of the water, that I would lose all
control of the boat. So I sat 50 metres
back from the line trying to get the
boat to a standstill and with 10 seconds
to go, we pulled the main on, hooked
onto the trapeze and started the race.
All we had to do for a good enough
SAIL AWAY
By Barnaby Birkbeck
Barnaby Birkbeck
Class of 2016
UWCSEA 2002–2016
16 OneºNorth October 2015
position in these conditions was keep
the boat upright! I think we went over
about seven or eight times during the
two days, most often when in a very
good position. The most memorable
one occurred as I was out on the trapeze
building speed, when the trapeze line
broke! As I hit the water, I looked up to
see the boat sailing off and capsizing in
slow motion. In my hand was half the
tiller extension. Although it wasn’t my
fault, it pushed us out of the top ten to
the finish.
We got off quite lightly after the two
days, with only a broken jib halyard,
broken tiller extension, a broken trapeze
line, four broken mainsail batons and
a gash on my crewmate’s face. And
although it sounds like sarcasm, it’s not.
Two boats snapped their carbon fibre
masts in half, two rudder blades were
snapped, a side stay got ripped out of a
hull and someone broke a leg. The fastest
F16 was the strongest F16 at that point!
The rest of the week was not quite as
exciting for the spectators due to lighter
winds but it was more of a race, with
the fleet very closely packed together
and the helms having to know the racing
rules inside out, to get through without
a protest. I had some good races, some
not as good, and overall I dropped from
12th to 18th place, as the youth teams
were so light they could pop a hull out
of the water in 5 to 6 knots, something
we couldn’t do.
Overall the regattas were an incredible
opportunity for someone of my age and
experience. Since the events in France I
have raced in numerous championships
here in Singapore and my developing
skills and experience have led to
some convincing championship wins.
Unfortunately at this year’s Singapore
National Championships I finished
third after splitting my sail in half so
training is on hold until I find the funds
to buy a new sail! I am now aspiring to
the ISAF Sailing World Championships
in Melbourne later this year, where
I will be crewed by my sister Tanika
(UWCSEA ’17). We can’t wait!
October 2015 OneºNorth 17
By Mai-Khanh Pham and Kavya Madan
Mohan, members of the UWCSEA
Student Alumni Council
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
More than 50 Dover High School
students brought A Midsummer Night’s
Dream to the stage as performers and
crew members. This production is one
of many examples of opportunities for
UWCSEA students to learn and develop
through the Arts.
UWCSEA students compete in
Touch World Cup 2015
Dover students Rebecca Lambrou and
Saphia Petard played on the Singapore
Open Women’s team in the Touch
World Cup held in Coffs Harbour,
Australia. The team came in third
place and Lambrou was awarded MVP
for the Singapore team. East student
Fiona Song played in the Singapore
Open Mixed Touch team (13th place)
while Dover students Horatio Price,
Matthew Grundlingh and John Tolton
played on the Singapore Open Men’s
team (12th place). Eleven Dover
Campus alumni also participated
in the event, representing seven
different countries.
UN Night
The annual UN Night at Dover Campus
again showcased the joyful diversity
of nationalities and cultures that
makes UWCSEA so special. The dance
production is organised, produced and
presented by students and the food
from around the world, filling the tent
plaza, is always exquisite.
Hair for Hope 2015
The 4th annual Hair for Hope event
on East Campus motivated 48 brave
students and staff to make ‘a bald
statement’ by having their hair shaved
for cancer awareness and to raise funds
for the Cancer Patients Aid Association
(CPAA) in Mumbai, India. The event
raised over $65,000 for CPAA’s
programmes for cancer prevention
and to provide care for patients with
financial need.
20 years with Tabitha
Cambodia
2015 marked 20 years of the
partnership between UWCSEA and
Tabitha Cambodia. In the 2014/2015
academic year, the UWCSEA
community raised over S$282K for
Tabitha to build houses, schools and
wells, for the family partnerships
savings programme, and to sponsor the
supply of innumerable chickens and
pigs to help families secure an income.
SEASAC 2014/2015
The UWCSEA SEASAC teams had
impressive performances and brought
home a number of championships
to both campuses. Notably, the East
Dragons won both boys and girls
swimming as well as Division II boys
football. The Dover Phoenix won boys
and girls cross country, girls basketball
and touch, and boys football. In
addition, gymnastics teams from both
campuses won at specific levels.
This is just a sample of some of the activities and events that took place on both campuses during the 2014/2015 academic year.
UWCSEA year in review
18 OneºNorth October 2015
IB Art shows 2015
The 2015 IB Art Show at each campus
this spring exhibited the work of Higher
and Standard Level IBDP Visual Arts
students in Grade 12. Guests to the
show openings were invited to engage
with the artists and explore the deeper
meaning in the artwork.
Asian Arts and Culture Week
Based on the premise that a deeper
understanding of the arts and culture of
a nation leads to a deeper appreciation
of that nation, East Campus held its
second annual Asian Arts and Culture
Week in February, celebrating the arts
and culture of Singapore during the
50th jubilee year. Students engaged in
a range of performing arts workshops,
including Beijing Opera and Dikir Barat
and had the opportunity to visit the
Singaporean ‘village’ built by parents in
the plaza, which represented Chinese,
Indian, Malay and Peranakan cultures.
To read more UWCSEA news, see eDunia
at www.uwcsea.edu.sg/edunia
CultuRama
East Campus’ second annual
CultuRama production amazed
audiences as it celebrated the
College’s panorama of cultures with
music, dance and food. CultuRama is
completely organised and performed
by students and also includes a global
array of food offerings, from Irish
smoked salmon to Korean kimchi to
Swedish kanebulle.
UWCSEA Initiative for Peace
(IfP) students host Peace One
Day in Singapore
The Peace One Day Conference 2014
was centered around the theme of
inner peace, and specifically how
discrimination affects our inner peace.
160 delegates from six international
schools across Singapore gathered
at UWCSEA Dover for the day-long
conference led by IfP facilitators from
both Dover and East. One of the
subjects explored was discrimination
based on ethnicity, gender and
sexuality, and class status.
THIMUN Qatar Northwestern
Film Festival
Several Dover High School students
saw great success in this year’s
THIMUN film festival for their film
submissions on the theme of advocacy
which they produced for their Grade
10 Global Perspectives course.
Barnaby Duffy won Best Picture,
and Best Junior Film was awarded
to Sneha Srinivasan and Mahima
Singh. The three-day experience was
filled with museum visits, workshops
and interacting with people from all
over the world who share a similar
passion in telling meaningful stories
through film.
October 2015 OneºNorth 19
by Dr Linda de Flavis
University Advisor
Lailul Ikram
Class of 2008
UWCSEA 2006–2008
On 26 December 2004 the world’s
deadliest tsunami hit the coastline of
countries all around the Indian Ocean,
leaving hundreds of thousands of people
dead and many others injured, displaced,
or grieving, their lives changed forever.
One of the worst affected places was
Aceh, a province in northern Sumatra—
a region that had already endured nearly
30 years of civil conflict. Parents and
teachers from UWCSEA joined forces in
the relief effort, helping not only with
the immediate crisis but also choosing
to make a longer-term investment in the
future of the region—through education.
The Tsunami Education Fund supports
children in local schools, while the
UWCSEA Trafigura scholarship fund has
brought a number of Acehnese scholars
to join our school.
The first of these scholars to join our
school in Grade 11 was Lailul Ikram.
He arrived in 2006 and went on to
attend Earlham College in the US, as the
recipient of a Davis UWC scholarship.
Throughout the years Ikram has
remained involved with the Tsunami
Education Fund, assisting in many
ways. He travelled to regions where the
orphans were living, helped with the
selection of beneficiaries, and liaised
with the schools. He remains the ‘go
to’ person for our school, overseeing
all the financial transactions of the
fund and regularly making time to visit
Aceh. While at college he also set up
his own project, after winning an award
from the Davis Projects for Peace. He
used the grant to launch an arts centre
where tsunami widows could generate
an income by producing traditional
arts and crafts. Three years ago Ikram
made the decision to leave the US and
return to his country, taking up a job
with Citibank in Jakarta. Ikram recently
spoke to Linda De Flavis about the way
his UWC scholarship transformed his life
and empowered him to become a leader
in his community.
Giving back at home in Indonesia
Tell us your story—where did you
grow up? What were the formative
experiences that shaped your life?
I was born and raised in Aceh, a
province in the northern tip of Sumatra,
Indonesia. In 2004, my province was
struck by the Great Asian Tsunami.
Having experienced not only the tsunami
but also the civil conflict, I had a strong
urge to make Aceh a better place.
In 2006, I was granted a scholarship
to study at UWCSEA and I took this
opportunity as a stepping-stone to reach
my goal. I learned about this scholarship
from my school student counsellor.
Thankfully, I was later selected, after
going through the selection process by
the Indonesian National Committee,
which at that time was managed by
Sampoerna Foundation. None of my
friends at my high school supported
me to leave my high school as I was the
head of the student council and had
several other responsibilities. However,
I wanted a different challenge and an
experience that I believed could broaden
my scope of knowledge.
What were some of the challenges you
faced when you came to our school
and how did you overcome them?
UWCSEA was the first institution that
I attended that used English as its
primary language. I had to deal with
extensive adaptation, both socially
and mentally, in order to do well. A lot
of patience and practice eased these
challenges. The IB Diploma Programme
is a lot more challenging than my
previous high school curriculum. The
Indonesian curriculum was a lot more
theoretical compared to the IB. In
UWCSEA, I had to push myself to learn,
not only by understanding textbooks
but also by doing well in the lab and
other practical assignments. Most of
my teachers at that time were very
supportive in helping me adapt through
all of these challenges.
“I have experienced how UWC
can change lives and I wanted
to do the same for others.”
20 OneºNorth October 2015