The 2022 Asia and Oceania McCain Global Leaders (MGLs) traveled to Singapore for a Changemaker Tour that studied approaches to sustainable development. Through meetings with government, private sector, and NGOs, the McCain Global Leaders learned about Singapore’s remarkable 50-year development that has seen it become a global financial hub, the largest port in the world, and one of the global leaders in human development. They also learned about the history and culture of Singapore, which provides a lesson in how the unification of diverse backgrounds creates a multicultural society that encourages tolerance and a mentality of working together to better the country.
This was the final event of the 2022 McCain Global Leaders cohort that followed previous Changemaker Tour stops in Poland, South Africa, and Colombia. The entire cohort also gathered in Vietnam in December 2022 for the Legacy Experience.
A highlight of the Singapore Changemaker Tour was meeting with Minister of Home Affairs K. Shanmugam during one of his weekly “Meet the People” sessions in his home neighborhood of Cong Pang, one of Singapore’s most underdeveloped areas. During this meeting, the minister discussed his approaches to leadership, Singapore’s development, and his own interactions with Senator John McCain.
As is customary with our McCain Global Leaders programs abroad, the MGLs spent time giving back to their host country. They spent time at the Food Bank of Singapore to learn about efforts to feed the nearly 10% of the population that faces food insecurity and volunteered, sorting and distributing donated food that would have otherwise gone to waste.
Through meetings, tours, and hands-on experiences, the McCain Global Leaders absorbed takeaways they will bring back to their home countries and implement positive change in sustainable development.