Campus Chapters

Habitat Singapore Campus Chapters: Youth Volunteer Leaders

Pairing idealism in our youths with tangible service to create real change

Campus Chapters are student-initiated organisations in tertiary institutions that function almost like mini-Habitats to help us widen our reach to those in need of a helping hand on the ground. Campus Chapters partner with Habitat Singapore to run Project HomeWorks sessions, as well as organise their own Global Village build trips.

Leaders of the Campus Chapters train under Habitat Singapore staff to learn the ropes of planning for their volunteering sessions from start to end including recruiting of volunteers from their school, conducting home assessments of potential home partners, fundraising and volunteer welfare management.

Campus Chapters are the perfect training ground for youths to pick up leadership skills and find out what goes into running a non-profit organisation. Students in schools with Habitat Campus Chapters also get the opportunity to get involved in Habitat's work when they support their Campus Chapters during recruitment efforts.

We currently have 7 operating Campus Chapters in the following schools:

Duman High School (Dunman High-Habitat)
Hwa Chong Institution (HCI-Habitat)
Raffles Institution Junior College (RI-Habitat)
Singapore Management University (SMU-Habitat)
Singapore American School (SAS-Habitat)
Stamford American International School (SAIS-Habitat)
Yale-NUS College (YNC-Habitat)

Thinking about starting a Campus Chapter in your school? Get in touch with us to see how we can work with you and your school to get the ball rolling. Email us at info@habitat.org.sg.

FIVE WAYS TO GET INVOLVED

Serve: For youths 15 years & older, Campus Chapters give youths in their school the opportunity to join an overseas youth build team or rehabilitate homes for vulnerable elderly and families in Singapore.

Advocate: Campus Chapters become natural advocates about the need for decent housing in Singapore through their recruitment and publicity of volunteering sessions and other projects.

Fundraise: Raising funds through concerts, bake sales and other school activities exposes Campus Chapters - especially its leaders - to the planning and budgeting aspect of running volunteering programmes.

Educate: Habitat Singapore supports the development of our Campus Chapters through trainings and workshop to equip them with knowledge and skills that they pass on to the wider school population through their own events.

Lead: As changemakers, Campus Chapters spearhead efforts to rally youths to regularly serve those in need of a helping hand, whether it's in our local community or in an underprivileged village abroad.

Campus Chapter Happenings

"The home visits were very insightful, because you can learn a lot about the background of the person, the circumstances they're facing & why they need the help. Because I know a lot about the background, I help them with a purpose. I just feel more passionate about helping them & making a difference to their living environment, so that it can make their lives just a bit better."

Dunman High Chapter Leader

Ang Kang Ling

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If the future lies in our youths, we feel very encouraged after the first-ever simultaneous youth leadership training took place in Japan and Singapore. With support from Goldman Sachs #CommunityTeamWorks, our youth will continue to contribute to Habitat’s vision of a world where everyone has a decent place to live.

Inter-school Campus Chapter sharing

Leadership Training with Goldman Sachs

Volunteers from Hwa Chong Institution spent half a day repainting and de-cluttering a one-room flat for Uncle Siew living in Banda Street at Chinatown. The group of students powered the 4th Project HomeWorks session for this particular house, as part of Uncle Siew's continuing journey towards a cleaner, safer home.

Volunteer session led by Hwa Chong Institution

Campus Chapter Project HomeWorks

"I hope that for me as a volunteer leader, if (people) see us normal students stepping up to organise such things, they will also realise that they themselves are more than capable ... to step up & take charge of such (volunteering) events of their own. And in doing so, they will create a wider ripple effect of volunteerism and helping other people."

Ex-leader of Raffles Institution Campus Chapter

Low Jia Yi

Volunteers from SMU pose in front of the house they helped to build alongside Habitat homeowners in Cambodia. From hand-mixing cement, laying brings and nailing bamboo strips to build floors, the team spent 5 days in Phnom Penh paving the way for a local Cambodian family to build a stronger future for themselves, starting with a decent home.

Overseas team led by Singapore Management University

Campus Chapter Global Village Build