The Social Kitchen refreshes itself as the Humanities Department, as part of its next stage strategy to drive more impact.
December 2024 — The Social Kitchen ends the year on a high note, and steps into 2025 sporting a new look, a new brand name, and a new partner — The Afternaut. Besides refreshing its spaces with a trendy and more street ready look, the new brand also teases a series of new merchandise and exciting plans to come.
A Ground Up Initiative That Grew Into More
In 2020, the unexpected COVID-19 virus ran rampant resulting in global lockdowns, mass hysteria, and retrenchment. Members of the vulnerable communities were particularly affected by the pandemic, many having lost their jobs and struggling to make ends meet. In light of the situation, 'KP' Ang Kian Peng founded The Social Kitchen — a social enterprise with a mission to support the vulnerable community by creating sustainable jobs, through sustainable food.
By collaborating with community organisations to operate their kitchens and cafes in optimal ways and creating employment opportunities for disadvantaged communities, KP and the Social Kitchen team have made waves in the social enterprise space.
Hosted in partnership with YMCA with the support of SHINE Children and Youth Services, their first initiative, Project Makan, successfully raised over $500,000 which was used for daily meals for over 100,000 children & their families. Since then, The Social Kitchen has been continually collaborating with various organisations to increase the impact of their work.
One of their proudest moments was when they built the first cocktail bar with a plant-based menu for Gardens by the Bay, which was run by special needs staff. This bar hosted and engaged more than 100 embassies and foreign dignitaries from around the world including then Vice President of the USA, Kamala Harris.
It demonstrated how inclusive Singapore is becoming, and forged the first social diplomacy connections. Singapore at that time was in the spotlight due to the “Crazy Rich Asians” movie, but this activation showed that we were empowering vulnerable groups too and that GBTB is “The People’s Garden” too. The team felt proud that a social enterprise was running in such an iconic space, and this effort was what inspired KP to continue the team’s work in “social diplomacy”.
In recognition of their efforts, The Social Kitchen was awarded with the prestigious Organizations of Good (Small and Medium Enterprise) Trophy at the 2023 President’s Volunteerism & Philanthropy Award.
Moving Forward as the Humanities Department
The Humanities Department’s values, purpose, and mission remains the same as before — the team aims to be the largest employer of disadvantaged individuals and their caregivers in Singapore.
The Humanities Department partners with exceptional F&B and retail brands, and together with a diverse manpower force, connects communities through shared culinary experiences that serve quality food and goods.. It will also enliven real estate spaces in Singapore while providing vulnerable groups with employment opportunities.Through the Humanities Department platform, we demonstrate that social responsibility and high-quality consumption can coexist.
Beyond simply providing employment opportunities, the Humanities Department operates on the ethos of “teaching a man to fish”; the team aims to empower disadvantaged individuals and their caregivers by equipping them with the necessary skills to thrive in work environments and create value not just for themselves, but for the organisations in which they support and are supported by.
As the Humanities Department, KP and his partners, Kokyong Chew and Kal Lim are focusing their energy on changing perspectives and showcasing how their social diplomacy work creates genuine value by achieving milestones across the triple bottom line — people, planet, and prosperity.
The name ‘Humanities Department’ was coined in hopes of one day being the external Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) department of every corporate office in Singapore, and to create spaces where all corporate staff and individuals alike would be proud to introduce to their guests.
Keen to Partner Up?
If you’re keen to explore partnership opportunities with the Humanities Department, simply drop us a note at hello@theafternaut.com.
