BLKSG

Building Local Knowledge . Do Social Good - 取之于民，用之于民

Building Local Knowledge

We aim to bring Local resident together to co-create innovative solutions which leverage Information and Communication Technology (ICT), to improve the quality of life in HDB estates in the areas of community bonding, information sharing and eco-friendly living.

Doing Social Good

Blk is a social enterprise that helps neighbors with disabilities to regain confidence and to have a successful career by equipping them with employable skills and providing them with work opportunities - in which they provide quality digital services such as video and photo editing to a local client base..

BUILD . LEARN . KERJA

To promote SME Go Digital Initiative and create a online retail and commercial development , enhance economic prosperity from a wide spectrum of trades and industries. , as well as the community services. These SME partners provide vast resources and opportunities which enabled BLK.SG to develop an influential business network for business and community development

Job opportunity can also be created for the needy, to add meaning to the project, part of the revenue generated are reinvested into the people and community, in addition, we can also commit part of the advertisement inventory to local non-profit organization.

Bridging Local Knowledge and Social Gap

We want to equip out-of-school youths and people with disabilities residing in heartland, with job competency as well as specific vocational skills of the future - such as Web Design, Photography, Videography, Social media marketing, Online Advertisement and marketing skill.

We aims to equip them with basic knowledge in graphic design and software. They will learn how to evaluate websites, create and maintain quality web pages, and learn web design standards in the industry. They will also learn techniques for digital image enhancement online marketing and social media advertising. I want to help them to be financially independent and Lifelong learning & Participation

Inclusive Heartland

"People with disabilities deserve the chance to build a life for themselves in the communities where they choose to live"
Barack Obama

https://www.8world.com/singapore/govtech-series-assistive-tech-1350956

政府科技局研发三项新辅助科技进入测试阶段

政府科技局研发的三项新辅助科技进入测试阶段。新加坡脑性麻痹联盟约25名患者预计将率先试用。今天的《科技系民》单元，记者将带你了解，视频分析技术如何让四肢瘫痪或无法言语的人与外界沟通，新研发又能如何帮助他们自理，开启更多职场可能性。

挤牙膏对许多脑性麻痹患者来说是个艰巨的任务。将来他们只需将牙刷，放在用3D打印出的容器上，按一按红色按钮，里头的螺栓就会向下移动，轻松挤出牙膏。这台牙膏分配器采用的电子电路和机电设计都能应需求客制化，适合上肢无力或无法有效控制双手的特需人士和年长者使用。

摄像头对准脸部，智能打字机就能根据用户的嘴形挑选字母。张嘴代表选定，抿嘴代表跳过。用户还能选择空格、删除、储存等一般打字需要用到的键钮。系统采用人脸识别和视频分析技术。如果嘴巴不是那么灵活，技术人员也能更改设置，让用户以眨眼的方式操控。

政府科技局高级系统工程师王丽珍说：“我们的设计使用模块化的软件、硬件，可以方便我们用不同的组合配置崭新的产品，能给不同的身体残疾人士使用。”

这款平板电脑操控器则能够让肢体障碍者，随心所欲地拍摄眼前风景。蓝黄红绿分别代表左右上下。调整好镜头角度后，就能按下橙色按钮开始录影，再按一次就是停止录影。

如有需要颜色按钮也可改用控制杆操作。操控器目前已被新加坡脑性麻痹联盟列为具有潜力的辅助工具，将来或融入摄影教学中。

新加坡脑性麻痹联盟日间活动中心经理谢惠珍说：“使用这些新科技发明需要某程度上的认知能力，所以不一定适合每一位受益人。现在还在初步使用阶段，还需要不断与科技人员商讨改进，以达到广泛使用。”

过去两年来政府科技局应要求设计了五款适合特需人士使用的辅助科技。其中这台智能画板目前已经进入到了限量生产的阶段，预计初步可供10到15名受益者使用。

https://pride.kindness.sg/showcase-their-skills-not-their-disabilities-disabled-can-volunteer-empowers-people-with-disabilities-with-chances-to-volunteer/

BLK.sg's Disabled Can Volunteer empowers people with disabilities by providing them with volunteer opportunities and valuable skills to enhance independence.

“SHOWCASE SKILLS, NOT DISABILITIES”: DISABLED CAN VOLUNTEER EMPOWERS PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES WITH CHANCES TO VOLUNTEER

Disabled Can Volunteer is an initiative under BLK.sg, a social enterprise committed to making Singapore’s heartlands accessible and inclusive, as well as promoting equal opportunities for people with disabilities.
In 2019, Kit Bian was teaching photography at Metta School, a school for people with autism, when he decided that his students needed more real-life exposure – and got his students to volunteer as photographers at the school’s National Day Observance Ceremony.
He tells The Pride: “It’s a good outdoor classroom. They get to go out and integrate with everyone else.”
Having been a volunteer for many years, he often hears from many people with disabilities that they wish to be included in employment and volunteering opportunities.

GOVTECH Stack Developer Conference in November 2022

Most importantly, their presence at events helps to shape how the public sees those with disabilities – not as liabilities, but as those who can actively contribute.

GOVTECH STACK DEVELOPER CONFERENCE IN NOVEMBER 2022

They also champion the idea of digital inclusion— more inclusive technology with people with disabilities.

ePAD – An Enabling Photography & Videography Digital System

The team’s continuous efforts coupled with strong support from GovTech and CPAS’ staff resulted in the successful delivery of the first ePAD prototype trial in August 2020. CPAS subsequently indicated interest for more ePAD devices to be brought in for clients’ usage, indicating the trial’s success. With feedback on its design from the first trial, the team delivered a new and improved version to CPAS a second trial in July 2021.

The ePAD prototype has also received interest from Blk.sg*, a social enterprise that volunteers teaching professional photography at CPAS. ePAD will be deployed at Blk.sg’s events such as “Disabled can Volunteer – as an inclusive photographer”, which is a ground-up movement organised with the Singapore Kindness Movement (SKM). The inaugural event at ChangiSimei, expected to take place in early December 2021, commemorates initiatives that pay tribute to front line warriors by helping them to take family portraits.

CPAS, among other beneficiaries of ePAD, will be involved in the event as part of Blk.sg’s efforts to imbue students with the necessary skills, knowledge, and attitude. Despite having cerebral palsy, students can gain social skills and showcase their creative talents via ePAD’s enabling system.

*Blk.sg is undergoing a revamp and will be back online by 01 December 2021.

https://www.developer.tech.gov.sg/products/categories/sensor-platforms-and-internet-of-things/epad/overview.html

LOVE OUR HOOD

Singapore Kindness Movement Project Volume: Play a part in building a more inclusive society
As a special needs student, Eileen from Metta School shares how excessive noise can impede her learning ability, especially at night.
Let's be kind to our neighbours, you can have maximum fun at minimum volume.
ONESERVICE
You can have maximum fun, at minimum volume. Let’s be gracious to residents like Eileen, and reduce our volume.
Eileen is also part of a team from Metta School who took part in the Love Our 'Hood Youth Challenge organised by MSO in July 2019. The team is looking at ways to remind the community to be more considerate with regard to the noise generated by their activities.
Let’s all work towards a more gracious living environment.

These-Abled Can Volunteer

Building an inclusive Heartlands means creating a society where every Resident has the opportunity to Contribute - Involve & Participate. It involves designing and building social spaces, Universal products, and E-accessible services & information that are useful and helpful to everyone. Achieving this Enabling Master Plan 2030 requires a collective effort, including Grassroots, policymakers, businesses, organizations, and neighbors.

BLKSG advocates for an accessible and inclusive heartland. Our team want to create more ways for neighbours with disabilities to connect and integrate into the communities at large, and empower them to play a bigger role in designing and activating their shared spaces.

ONEMAP - GeoWORKS Festival

Mapping your town with OneMap
Wee Kit Bian, CEO – Company Enabling Officer (Digital Inclusion Trainer), BLK.SG Pte Ltd
Wheelchair users and senior residents face challenges with diverse types of mobility issues every day. Navigating is one of the leading reasons that residents hesitate to move around, thus making their mobility problems worse and affect their emotional, social, and physical well-being. BLK.SG Pte Ltd's project teaches them how to use Interactive OneMap.sg to find barrier-free routing or covered linkway which make travelling easier: This would allow them to plan the fastest and cheapest route to their destination within Singapore be it walking, taking public transport (buses or MRT), cycling or by car. #SGGEOFEST2021

Work process

CPAS - Appreciation Gift For partners

December 2021 , during the CPAS - Cerebral Palsy Association School's partners appreciation day, I was presented with this beautiful art piece painted by one of many talented home-grown artists with special needs.They convinced me that disability does not mean no ability. They showed me that a disabled person could one day be a world-class artist. CPAS has been bringing arts to its school curriculum and using the arts as a form of therapy. Arts have brought joy, dignity, and empowerment to many persons with special needs.
I am advocating for greater inclusion in the arts through access and collaborations to provide arts programs for and by people across all needs.

partners appreciation day 2021

CPAS

PARTNERS APPRECIATION DAY 2021

CPAS

partners appreciation day 2021

CPAS

partners appreciation day 2021

BLK.Sg Ptd Ltd

Our Achievements

05. Awesome features

Alibaba’s E-commerce Bootcamp

I was invited to attend Alibaba’s inaugural E-commerce Bootcamp from Sep-Dec 2021.
Thank you Singapore Centre for Social Enterprise, raiSE, Singapore Institute of Retail Studies, and Alibaba Group.
I have gained good insights into e-commerce locally & globally.
I will be applying these learnings very soon in my Social Enterprise. Really hope to gain more ground in digital commerce to do good for the community!

Enabling Mark "SILVER" August 2021

What is the Enabling Mark?

The Enabling Mark is a national-level accreditation framework by SG Enable that benchmarks and recognises organisations for their best practices and outcomes in disability-inclusive employment.

What the Enabling Mark says about recipients

Organisations with the Enabling Mark are committed to building disability inclusiveness. Presence of the mark signals that the organisation is:

Enabling Mark - SILVER Awards

BlkSG received Enabling Mark "SILVER" award today during the award ceremony graced by President Halimah Yacob.

The Enabling Mark Awards is organized by SG Enable to recognize the efforts of organizations and individuals for their best practices, outcomes, and commitment in disability-inclusive employment.

What the Enabling Mark says about recipients - Organisations with the Enabling Mark are committed to building disability inclusiveness. Presence of the mark signals that the organization is:

Empowering The organisation is open to hiring people with different abilities. It treats people with respect, and builds strong teams that leverage on different strengths. It values each individual and enables them to fulfil their potential.

Innovative The organisation adapts jobs and services to provide reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities. This allows for the development of greater flexibility, new insights and an innovative mindset.

Collaborative The organisation is open to different perspectives, and seeks to make people feel integrated, included and valued. Its focus is on achieving more through teamwork, not individual effort alone. It embraces mutually beneficial relationships with employees, stakeholders and partners.