How can philanthropy, technology and community action come together to create sustainable social impact?
This was one of the questions explored when Li Foundation recently hosted Rachel, Program Director from Tencent Foundation, for a conversation on potential areas of collaboration in Singapore and beyond.
Founded in 2007, Tencent Foundation is guided by the vision of being a “connector and co-creator of a better society”, with a mission to put “Tech for Good” into practice and use philanthropy to drive innovation in sustainable social value. Its work spans areas including youth development, community development, and technology-enabled philanthropy.
Rachel’s visit to Singapore also included a visit to an active ageing centre operated by Lions Befrienders, where she gained a closer look at how community-based programmes help seniors stay healthy, connected and engaged.
The visit provided a natural starting point for our conversation. As Singapore’s population ages, creating opportunities for older adults to remain active and connected will require not only services and support, but also new ways of engagement. This is reflected in the evolution of Relay Majulah. What began as a charity relay event has grown into a year-long movement focused on active ageing for the elderly through ultra-slow jogging, while raising support for Lions Befrienders.
In turn, Rachel shared how Tencent Foundation helps social organisations turn ideas into action — from partnering with tech start-ups to fund and mentor promising youth-led projects, to providing NGOs with subsidised access to digital tools so they can experiment before committing to them. Looking ahead, the Foundation is launching an AI training course for NGOs in September, equipping nonprofit staff with the knowledge to understand and apply AI tools in their work.
Across these examples, a common thread emerged: technology can be most meaningful when it is paired with the right funding, support and human capacity to put it to use.
While our areas of expertise may differ, the conversation highlighted a shared belief: meaningful social impact is rarely created by one organisation alone. It comes from connecting people, ideas, resources and capabilities — and finding new ways to turn them into action.
The book showcases how the participants challenged their limits and conquered the World Marathon Challenge and North Pole Marathon to inspire people to challenge their own limits and pursue their dreams boldly.
The book tells the stories behind the event which saw the largest number of people in history running 1045km round Taiwan in 19 days.