By Desmond Kuek
Executive Director & CEO, Temasek Trust
January 31, 2024
I recently celebrated my first anniversary as the CEO of Temasek Trust.
In the past year, my colleagues would have heard me say “the best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago; the next best time is…now.” I find this ancient saying profound and appropriate: reminding us to seize the moment, take responsibility for what is before us, and act decisively to leave a positive legacy for the future.
This is at the heart of our long-term vision at Temasek Trust. We build on the foundations laid by our predecessors and set out to plant new trees so that next generations will have shade and fruit – ready, resilient, and responsive for the challenges that lie ahead.
The Time to Act is Now
No one can be absolutely sure what the future holds, but some trends are clear. Unless we act quickly and decisively to alter current trajectories and address the systemic causes of global climate change, as an island state in an archipelagic region, we will be vulnerable to sea-level rise and coastal degradation. If human activity is left unchecked, the loss of biodiversity and natural habitats will have knock-on effects on human lives and livelihoods across borders. Global pandemics and public health threats will exacerbate socio-economic disparities, and no one is truly safe unless everyone is safe in an inter-connected world. Geo-political rivalries, ethno-nationalistic divides and technology disruption will add further strain to civilisation and humanity. But more positively, human ingenuity with digital and sustainable innovations gives us optimism that timely, dramatic interventions can be found in the next decade.
Building Better for Every Generation
As a responsible steward of philanthropic assets, trusted advocate of sustainability, and proactive catalyst of positive impact, Temasek Trust aims to collaborate with partners across the public, private, and philanthropic sectors to collectively do better for the greater good.
To sharpen our focus, we constructed a meta-framework with 12 priority areas around Planet, People, Peace, Progress that we believe can move the needle toward scalable impact.
We do not expect to realistically be able to solve all or any of these intractable problems by ourselves. Underpinning these efforts, therefore, is a fifth P – Partnership, where we seek to convene, connect, and collaborate with like-minded partners across all sectors and globally to make a positive difference.
In this light, the Philanthropy Asia Alliance was formally launched last year with the combined strength and commitment of more than 80 members and partners from all over the world, collectively pledging over S$1 billion to help fund calls to action in climate & nature, global & public health, and holistic & inclusive education.
Internally, we continue to build up and bring in new competencies and capabilities around three ecosystem clusters: philanthropy and impact, asset and investment management, and socio-economic enterprise and development.
Each of our ecosystem partners has made noteworthy strides forward. With the encouraging interest in its first impact fund, Temasek Trust Asset Management had a successful first close of its abcIMPACT Fund II, with Assets Under Management exceeding US$550 million. Temasek Foundation continues to strive for greater impact in their programme design and delivery. Mandai Nature is broadening their regional work in conservation and biodiversity. Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory is furthering its exploration of sustainable climate and food systems. Stewardship Asia Centre is widening its reach to corporates and business owners to strengthen steward leadership.
Temasek Shophouse is expanding its social impact offerings with a row of four shophouses now under development. The Centre for Impact Investing and Practices (CIIP) is developing an Amplifier programme for start-ups and pioneering a catalytic capital marketplace called Co-Axis that will connect projects with funders who share the commitment to driving impact. We onboarded Tri-Sector Associates to advance Pay-for-Success and an outcomes-based model for solving system challenges. The Asia Centre for Changemakers, a learning lab for social entrepreneurs, is being established under the auspices of Wealth Management Institute to build new capacity in philanthropy. T-PREP joined our ecosystem with the mission of ensuring pandemic readiness and emergency preparedness against future eventualities. MoneyOwl will soon be part of our ecosystem to facilitate financial literacy and inclusion for the community.
Delivering On Our Purpose
It has been an energising and purposeful year, with a wide array of impactful ideas and opportunities. Much has been set in motion, and much more will need to be done to gain traction and momentum.
Going forward, in tandem with the many capabilities being built, I would like to highlight five areas of emphasis that undergird the ongoing development of our ecosystem:
1. Purpose makes sense of all our efforts
One collective effort stands out as key this year: our consensus building around Shared Purpose. “Building better for every generation” explains why something is done or for which something exists; and gives us reason and resolve to continue pursuing its outcome. Our Purpose answers to the question “what for?” to give clarity and intentionality, guiding our actions and decisions.
Our talented team members today are less moved by facts and figures. What is needed is an emotional stake, and to be inspired by a purpose we believe in and feel part of. We know this when people find ways to work together and want to do more rather than argue over who should do less, when we wake up brimming with ideas that we cannot wait to share with the team, and when we find ourselves climbing stairs two steps at a time to get on to the next activity, and when we end each day quietly satisfied that what we are doing is worth the while.
2. Strategy gives method to the seeming madness
Success requires strategy and clear thinking. We need to make sense of prevailing and impending circumstances, define the problem at hand, map out the connections and cross-effects, and develop an action plan. Our meta-frame, employee learning and competency roadmap, and long-term investment approach are examples of strategy development that we are operationalising. We are also investing in a Systems, Knowledge, Innovation (SKI) hub to gain a better understanding on system thinking, data analytics, and theories of change that will direct our ongoing mandates and future solutioning.
Translating strategy to action will galvanise our people to act synchronously and synergistically – so that we can get to our end-goals, on a broader front, faster.
3. Culture sets the foundation for real and lasting change
Culture, simply put, is the way we do things around here. We see it in our shared values, leadership focus, policies, symbols, and what we choose to celebrate and reward. No change in organisational structure or process can be sustained if there is no accompanying change in our people culture and mindset.
To forge this takes time and perseverance. We will need to leverage our values, a consistent set of rules and incentives, and a pattern of meaningful shared activities that is inclusive. We will progressively roll out programmes that empower, enable and engage our people in the heartware and software needed to sustain real and lasting change. Each of us must embody and own our ecosystem culture – one that is agile, collaborative, caring, forward-looking, and continually learning.
4. Collaboration begins with connecting hearts and minds
We know that collaborative action is the way forward to achieve our impact goals. This is achievable only when parties are able and willing to collaborate, by first connecting mutual goals with people and ground actions. It is futile to try to steer a ship somewhere if the crew has not agreed that they need or want to go there, that they should even set sail, or that they should be the hands on the deck. We need to lift ourselves beyond the here and now, so that commitment to the effort can be better appreciated in the context of the future we envision.
Open, effective communication is crucial to build trust and confidence - not just about the ideas, but more importantly in conveying our passion and sincerity, and listening respectfully to feedback from all stakeholders involved in the process.
5. Execution takes courage to lead and learn as we go
We must accept uncertainty, imperfection, and incomplete information in a volatile, ambiguous, and complex world. To not act or to defer a decision until we have gained full clarity would often mean that we are too slow or too late. Going forward, we will be obliged to learn as we go, especially when we are leading the way or blazing a trail where few have gone before.
In this vein, our Keystone hubs that strive to bring collective leadership for impact across boundaries will also pilot and experiment new pathways in philanthropy with a spirit of daring, innovating, safely failing if we must, and staying agile and adaptable as part of the learning process.
Stepping Forward
To quote from another ancient saying, “the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”. At Temasek Trust, we are setting out with purpose, armed with a strategy-to-action framework, empowering culture, collaborative mindset, and courage to break new ground together - in our collective effort to plant new trees, and build better for every generation.
We invite everyone with the same aim and bias for action to step forward with us on this collaborative journey of impact and giving.
