Editor’s Note – SUSSCRIBE | An SUSS Alumni Newsletter

Dear Fellow Alumni,

We have officially entered into the final month of 2024, December, and these are the last few days of this year before we embark on the new journey of 2025. When we look back, it seems the time went by very fast. Throughout the year, we might have made several mistakes, achieved several milestones, walked on some untrodden paths and made a lot of memories. It’s time to say goodbye to 2024 and welcome 2025 with open arms.

Looking back at 2024, the SUSS Alumni Relations Team has and continues to play a pivotal role where it forms an alumni network for graduates to continue their connection with their alma mater. . This alumni network is formed exclusively for graduates from SUSS, UniSIM, UniSIM-OUUK, UniSIM- BNU and UniSIM-NJU, now collectively coming together as SUSS alumni. You are strongly encouraged to stay connected, keeping up-to-date on university and alumni developments, participating in interactive campaigns, exclusive events and community collaborations.

Immerse yourself in exciting and different activities and experience the different ways of engagement brought to you by the Alumni Relations Team and our incredibly dedicated alumni volunteers. After all, these activities are organized by our very own SUSS Alumni for our Alumni members, with the objective of getting all of our Alumni members together. Very importantly, in hindsight, these social activities, apart from the networking opportunity, allow our alumni members to experience the perfect mix of friendship, camaraderie and the fabulous moment to foster new and lasting friendships. Examples of these activities which have been brought to you by our Alumni Relations Team include a fun-filled day trip to Johor Bahru where our alumni participants had the terrific opportunity to visit the super fruits farm and get away from the busy urban lifestyle while soaking in the tranquility and greenery from the massive farm area; a tufting workshop where all our attendees had the chance to explore the art of tufting and most importantly had the exceptional opportunity to showcase their artistic creativity through their unique creation of beautiful, handcrafted pieces and also a “Cardio Drumming Exercise” which is part of the “Age Well Alumni Network Programme”, Our Alumni participants acquired valuable insights on active ageing and its growing importance among Singapore’s ageing population, which is estimated to peak in 2028. The AWAN members also had the opportunity to perform and interact with seniors at the St Luke’s Eldercare Centre in Ang Mo Kio and enjoyed a cultural exchange to Tainan, Taiwan. The trip energised the group to further their objective to spread this exercise to more seniors in 2025. You too can join AWAN and they are mounting a recruitment drive early next year.

Whether an SUSS graduate, you are all already a special group who have all gone through and experienced the struggles and challenges of studying for your degree whilst balancing your miscellaneous commitments in terms of your career and family as an adult or as a mature student, with tenacity. Whether in good times or bad, there is nothing more reassuring than having a supportive and encouraging network of family, friends and associates. To further support you, we have launched SUSSConnect which is a new SUSS Community Platform for you to stay connected, share your valuable life experiences, and continue your journey of growth and learning with like-minded people at SUSS.

As we say goodbye to 2024 and welcome 2025, the SUSS Alumni Relations Team will be organizing more events and activities. We welcome you to further your connection with us by coming on-board as volunteers. It will be both enriching and fun! Visit the alumni portal regularly for information and updates.

2024 has been a fruitful and active year for both the Alumni Relations team and our volunteers. But the best is yet to be! We look forward to engaging with you to a much greater extent in 2025 and beyond. Here’s wishing our alumni members a prosperous and progressive year ahead!

Yours sincerely,
Dr. Christopher Toh
SUSScribe Editor

Dear Fellow Alumni,

Welcome to 2025—a new year and a new chapter in the history of SUSScribe. Published quarterly, this alumni newsletter provides updates to our alumni network comprising graduates from SUSS, UniSIM and also our partner universities including, OUUK, BNU and NJU. Now, collectively we form the 50,000 strong SUSS alumni community.

2025 also marks the Year of the Snake, according to the Chinese zodiac. The Chinese character for snake is thought to represent a serpent emerging from the ground after hibernation, and connotes the unveiling of something hidden or the start of a movement or something new. Snakes are considered auspicious because they constantly shed their skin and grow, symbolizing renewal and transformation and the Chinese believe that the Year of the Snake is expected to bring about transformation and new beginnings.

So, what kind of new beginnings might we see in the Year of the Snake? Will we witness something new and unexpected, like a serpent emerging out of nowhere? One thing is certain is that at SUSS, we have a singular vision to be a university that inspires learning for life and impacts lives, regardless of age, background or life path. Our university is a vibrant tapestry of ages and experiences and very importantly, it is our diverse community at SUSS which comes together for one common goal: to empower themselves with an education that impacts lives and society. It is this strong camaraderie resonating in each and every one of our SUSS Alumni, which makes SUSS very unique.

And what better way to kickstart the year together as a community with encouragement and common aspirations than via the SUSS SBIZ Festival Day. On 22nd January 2025, the SBIZ Festival Day brought together SBIZ students from various programmes to network with each other, providing an opportunity to connect, reflect, and prepare for an amazing year ahead. Most importantly, it was an opportunity to bring people from diverse backgrounds, faculty, and disciplines together. Different perspectives and aspirations were shared among participants to enhance collaborations and strengthen connections.

And on this note of coming together as a community, our SUSS community came together on 05 February 2025 for a vibrant Lunar New Year celebration. It was a day of unity, where everyone, regardless of language or culture joined in to wish each other a happy and prosperous new year. The atmosphere was electrifying with the Lion dance and an exciting and lively Lo Hei (Prosperity Toss) ceremony, culminating in an afternoon filled with games and banter among all participants.

SUSS also kicked off the SG60 Celebrations with the launch of the Cheong Hee Kiat (CHK) Lecture on 21 January 2025 to empower future community leaders. Aligned with the theme, ‘Building Our Singapore Together,’ SUSS looks forward to organising a series of purposeful initiatives to promote inclusivity, collaboration, and community-building, while equipping socially conscious and future-ready leaders to shape Singapore’s future.

On this related note of being socially conscious, SUSS also believes that social good encompasses the creation of a community and a sustainable environment for our future generations. SUSS is committed to advancing sustainable development and contributing to the global fight against climate change. Beyond our efforts towards sustainability in education, operations and administration, as a young and growing university, we have a duty to set an example to the thousands of men and women we teach, on how we, as a community, can work together to drive the changes needed in the global fight against climate change. And the Singapore Green Plan 2030 is a whole-of-nation movement to advance Singapore’s national agenda on sustainable development strengthening Singapore’s commitments under the UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and Paris Agreement, and positioning us to achieve our long-term net zero emissions aspiration by 2050. To align ourselves for this effort on continued sustainability, from stackable programme offerings to tailored consultancy services and strategic alliances, SUSS is continuously building sustainability capabilities for the future.

On this note, our Alumni Relations (AR) team is constantly engaged in organizing activities with a sustainability focus, to raise awareness, garner support and most importantly encourage participation from all of our alumni members. All these activities offer an excellent opportunity for all of us to re-connect with our Alma Mater.

Last but not least, as the calendar has flipped to 2025, I would like to ring in the year by extending my best wishes to you and your family for a happy and healthy new year, and I am looking forward to seeing you all at many of the upcoming Alumni events in 2025.

Yours sincerely, Dr. Christopher Toh SUSScribe Editor

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