Facilitator: Veronica Yow, Pei Ya, Anna Leong and Michael Ong
Case giver: Ground Up Initiative (Bingyu)

Exploring the future of Ground-Up Initiative through Social Presencing Theatre

As the good people of Ground-Up Initiative (GUI), a grassroots urban intervention living and breathing the kampung spirit through active community participation, bid their home goodbye, the community is rebuilding GUI again in its new location, starting from the soil. Dealing with this impermanence, GUI’s core team wish is for GUI’s work to transcend everywhere in Singapore, growing this movement, one built on care, connection, and collective action, beyond the new land - What is the future of GUI? What is next after GUI completes building their new home?

Join us as we explore the future of GUI using Social Presencing Theatre (SPT), an embodied social arts-based change method for making visible current reality and exploring emerging future possibilities. Through this collaborative creative process, participants will embody roles within a system, using movement, positioning, stillness and spoken expression to uncover insights about the present state of GUI and its emerging possibilities of cultivating spaces to nurture connectedness, creativity and risk-taking across Singapore.

​No prior experience is needed—just an open mind, open heart and open will to engage in this creative, body-based inquiry. Come move, reflect, and co-create a vision for a 21st century kampung culture everywhere in Singapore.

The specific tool that we'll be using: 4D / Live Stakeholder Mapping

Ground-Up Initiative (GUI) is a non-profit organisation in Singapore that promotes sustainable living and community spirit through immersive, nature-based programs. Established in 2008, GUI is a grassroots urban intervention in response to the social and environmental challenges brought about by rapid urbanisation and the climate crisis.

At GUI, every activity—from farming to food waste composting, glass and plastic upcycling, to nurturing local flora and fauna—is designed to involve the community directly in the process. Kampung Kampus, GUI’s flagship space, was built hand-in-hand with volunteers over many years, turning it into a living example of what’s possible when people are invited to care for the land together. This co-creation fosters deep ownership and pride. Research shows that when people are actively engaged in shaping and maintaining a space, they are far more likely to respect and protect it. The same holds true for our environment.

In a world increasingly reliant on automation and outsourced maintenance, GUI stands for the power of human engagement in place-keeping. Through simple acts like gardening, building, and upcycling—done together—long-term care and responsibility are nurtured. The most resilient and beloved cities of the future will balance smart systems with community involvement. GUI believes in this vision and has brought this approach to many grassroots spaces beyond Kampung Kampus. As we move into our next chapter, we hope to continue growing this movement—one built on care, connection, and collective action.

​This event is co-organized and facilitated by a group of friends - Pei Ya, Veronica, YY, Michael, Anna and Joanne - passionate about sharing SPT - a body-based “social technology” with individuals, teams, and organizations, so as to help them make current realities visible, explore future possibilities, and address complex societal challenges, revealing the wisdom in every social system and supporting movement towards healthier futures.