The Economic Development Board of Singapore organized the first “UnConference on Aging” on August 1, 2017. The “UnConference” was unlike typical conferences in that the details of the agenda were determined by the participants and not the organizers.
Participants included large Singapore and multinational corporates, startups, small and medium sized businesses, business accelerators, and convenors, along with hospitals, foundations, investors, and government agencies. The UnConference sparked conversations and innovation collaboration across different industries and sectors. The ad hoc structure allowed diverse perspectives on key issues in the aging sector, from nutritional needs of seniors to exploring new business solutions for aging. The Economic Development Board will refine these ideas into concrete proposals that can be nurtured through a facilitated design process to develop new businesses in aging.
ACCESS Health was the only organization invited to present at the UnConference. Chang Liu, Managing Director for Singapore, Mainland China, and Hong Kong led a session on trends on aging in the region. He highlighted opportunities for businesses and government to collaborate and innovate to solve elder care needs in Singapore, and to emerge as leaders in this space.
ACCESS Health role as a valuable partner to the Economic Development Board was evident leading up to and during the UnConference. We brought in business partners like KE Capital and Lagardère Sports, which are in the early stages of thinking through how their businesses can tap into and respond to needs in the aging market.
ACCESS Health hopes to be at the forefront of working with the Economic Development Bank in the journey to support the building of new business models, solutions, services and products for the elderly in Singapore and Asia.