NTU and Lien Foundation launch the Lien Challenge to improve the world around us.

We are used to turning on the tap for safe drinking water, which satisfies a fundamental human need. Yet, in Asia alone, more than 630 million people lack access to clean drinking water, while more than 1.8 billion people have inadequate sanitation facilities.

To tackle this problem, NTU and the Lien Foundation have jointly established the Lien Challenge, a meaningful project which leverages the university's technological know-how and extensive links in China, and Lien Foundation's experience in water and sanitation issues, to encourage innovative and sustainable water solutions that will help communities in need.

The initiative will start in June with a pilot project involving 129 senior officials from China who have enrolled for NTU's Master of Science in Managerial Economics (MME) and Master of Public Administration (MPA) programmes. These postgraduate students – many of whom are among the cream of China's public sector – will identify and structure real-world projects that can make a significant difference in China. Working in groups of three to five, they will develop proposals that address real water and sanitation issues that have implications on education, healthcare, food security, environmental protection and poverty alleviation.

The Lien Foundation has pledged funding of $1 million to pilot the project and term funding of $1 million per year for another two years if the pilot is successful. The competition will spur the students, who are stakeholders of China's future, to develop innovations that lead to environmental improvement and protection in their home country.

Prof Lawrence Wong, Dean of NTU's College of Humanities, Arts, & Social Sciences (HASS), says: "The Lien Challenge gives the MME and MPA students an opportunity to translate innovative ideas and resources into real-life solutions and apply what they have learnt beyond NTU and Singapore. It also gives them a chance to give back to the communities by helping to improve their quality of life."

Judging criteria
Five finalists – shortlisted by a selection committee comprising the Dean of HASS, Associate Dean of HASS in charge of China programmes, representatives from Lien Foundation and industry specialists in water and sanitation – will receive seed funding of up to $10,000 to help them conduct field work in China. In turn, the five teams will need to seek endorsement and support from their local governments to implement their proposals, as well as additional resources from the industry.

All proposals will be judged on criteria such as innovativeness, technical merit, originality of concept, cost evaluation, presentation clarity and planning. The winning team, identified at the end of the year, will receive funding to the tune of $700,000 to implement their project, which will be facilitated by Lien Aid, an international development NGO under the Lien Foundation-NTU Environmental Endeavour, a humanitarian organisation established by NTU and Lien Foundation to harness NTU technology to improve living conditions in developing communities through technology-based developmental work.

"The Lien Challenge is significant in many ways," says Mr Lee Poh Wah, Programme Director of Lien Foundation. "Through this inaugural competition, we are harnessing the political clout and will of the 'Mayor's Class' to help deal with China's environmental issues. In time to come, solutions and positive changes effected in China could be attributed to this initiative driven by a Singapore philanthropic foundation and a university."

© Corporate Communications Office