Producer: Thum Ping Tjin

On 13 March 2020, J-Min, an 18 year old student, held Singapore’s first Climate Strike when she skipped school to protest in front of the offices of ExonMobil. On 22 March, 20 year old Minh held up a placard in front of Toa Payoh Community Club which said “Singapore is better than Oil.” PJ Thum talks to these two Singaporeans about their strike, themselves, their activism, their goals, and their hopes for the future. Support them by making a sign against climate change, taking a photo, and putting it online with #Fridays4FutureSG, #ClimateStrikeSG, and tagging@Fridays4FutureSG.

Thum Ping Tjin (“PJ”) is Managing Director of New Naratif and a historian at the University of Oxford. A Rhodes Scholar, Commonwealth Scholar, Olympic athlete, and the only Singaporean to swim the English Channel, his work centres on Southeast Asian governance and politics. His most recent work is Living with Myths in Singapore (Ethos: 2017, co-edited with Loh Kah Seng and Jack Chia). Reach him at pingtjin.thum@newnaratif.com.