“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are” - this famous quote by Theodore Roosevelt holds a lot of meaning for Blessings in a Bag (BIAB), a non-profit organization that gives youths from less privileged backgrounds the opportunity to learn new skills and build a better life. BIAB was founded in 2007 by the then 20-year-old Emily Teng, a radio deejay who, after hearing youths sharing their problems on air, decided to create a stronger avenue for their voices to be heard.

Fast forward to today, BIAB is an award-winning and globally recognized organization. Emily herself was named world’s most inspiring leader and change-maker by Facebook. She also represented Singapore in the United States’ Women in Leadership in ASEAN as part of the Young South-East Asia Leadership Initiative by the State Department of the USA.

Joining us from San Francisco for this breakfast webinar, Emily will be sharing her personal journey and her work with BIAB. She will also touch on how we can contribute to BIAB’s vision to empower the young generations to build their dreams and a future where they can shine their brightest, regardless of their background or circumstances.

About the Speaker

Emily Teng, Founder, Blessings in A Bag

Former radio presenter/media personality, Emily Teng, is the founder of award-winning and globally recognised community organisation, Blessings in a Bag. It journeys with under-served children and youth - whether that's through meeting physical needs or through supporting youth to become resilient, compassionate and loving agents of change who uplift their own communities.

In 2018, Facebook named Emily as one of the world's most inspiring leaders alongside 110 other mission-driven change-makers. She also received Singapore’s president's award that same year for her decades long journey of championing the community spirit in Singapore. Most recently, she was selected to represent Singapore as part of the United State's Women in Leadership in ASEAN as part of the Young South-East Asia Leadership Initiative by the State Department of the United States of America.

In 2019, Emily relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area where she remote leads her Singapore team as well as embarking on her biggest passion: cheer-leading other community leaders to start where they are, own their superpowers and change the world.

About Blessings in A Bag

Blessings in a Bag started as a volunteer-powered community determined to provide every child and their family - in emergency or challenging situations - with the essentials needed to thrive and to feel safe, valued and happy. It partners with social-service organizations to bridge the gap between communities that have with communities that need, who receive these items at no cost or through incentivised programs which enable them to take ownership of their situations.

For 10 years, it has been the go-to for collection and distribution of donations-in-kind that would have otherwise ended up landfill or sat collecting dust. They collected items by the box-load and communities across South East Asia benefited from their work and used items as social incentives for their own local community programs.