Temasek Foundation-NUS Heritage Champions Programme marks a year of documenting lesser-known stories of Singapore’s past

Temasek Foundation-NUS Heritage Champions Programme marks a year of documenting lesser-known stories of Singapore's past

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"Aren't libraries supposed to just shelve books and collect resources? Why run a youth heritage ambassador programme?"

These are common questions that NUS University Librarian Associate Professor Natalie Pang, from the Department of Communications and New Media at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, is used to fielding. To her, however, shelving books and collecting resources are merely functions of a library - not its fundamental purpose.

"Functions are not the same as purpose. The purpose of a library, like many other cultural institutions, is to connect communities and ensure equitable access to knowledge. By using research and library resources to catalyse community action, we play a part in heritage and cultural preservation," she said at the Temasek Foundation-NUS Heritage Champions Showcase on 5 September 2026.

Held by NUS Libraries at the Temasek Shophouse, the event was the culmination of the year-long Temasek Foundation-National University of Singapore Heritage Champions Programme (TF-NUS Heritage Champions Programme), which drew over 100 students from various institutes of higher learning in Singapore.

The programme enabled youths to document and preserve Singapore's diverse heritage through training workshops, a heritage ideathon to develop solutions to conservation challenges, and a project incubation phase where groups implemented their proposals with guidance from mentors. Ten of these student-led community heritage projects offering fresh perspectives on Singapore's heritage and history were spotlighted at the showcase event.

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The featured projects showcased Singapore's diverse, lesser-known heritage, from hidden communities such as Southern Islanders and the Bras Basah Hainanese enclave, to food culture, biodiversity heritage and maritime histories. Through innovative approaches such as stamp rallies, walking trails, mobile games and hands-on workshops, the projects collectively engaged over a thousand members of the public.

For participant Totaan Aljean Choong, who recently graduated from Ngee Ann Polytechnic with a Diploma in Mass Communication, his project aimed to preserve the voices and memories of a disappearing trade. His group, "Scoops of Memory", focused on the stories of ice cream uncles - the iconic pushcart hawkers who have been a fixture of Singapore's streets for decades.

"Interviewing ice-cream hawkers and working with my teammates taught me valuable lessons in research, collaboration and perseverance," he recalled. "I learned to triangulate sources when documenting this vanishing trade, by combining interviews with vendors and suppliers, governmental records and quantitative data to paint a more holistic picture."

Several groups are maintaining the momentum beyond the showcase. Rachel Lie, a Year 4 Global Studies student from the group "Shore to Shore", which documented Singapore's Southern Islands' communities, shared, "The response to our tours and workshops encouraged us to continue building on the project. We are in the process of applying for a grant to continue our work with the community so that more people can experience the islands for themselves."

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One year in, the heart of the programme - to document and preserve Singapore's history - remains unchanged, though discussions between NUS Libraries and potential partners on its future direction are underway.

As Assoc Prof Pang emphasised, "Singapore's heritage is not only found in monuments and historic buildings. It also lives in everyday experiences, memories, food, places and the stories of communities. When young people take ownership of these stories and find new ways to share them, they ensure that our heritage remains relevant and meaningful to future generations."