Secular Assembly May’25: Give Well, Live Well – Exploring Effective Altruism for a Happier World (and You!)

24 May 2025 by

Date
24/05/2025

Time
10:00 am - 12:30 pm

Location
Harmony in Diversity Gallery (HDG) seminar room
Ministry of National Development (MND) Building Annexe B, 7 Maxwell Road, #04-05/06
Singapore


Join us at the Secular Assembly on Saturday morning!

The Assembly by Humanist Society Singapore is a monthly gathering of humanists, freethinkers, atheists, agnostics and other like-minded people.
This month’s Assembly is held in collaboration with Harmony in Diversity Gallery (HDG). Before the Assembly, there will be a optional 45mins tour of HDG.
Registration is required, please do so at: https://www.eventbrite.sg/e/secular-assembly-may25-tickets-1306951078859

Schedule of Assembly on 24 May 2025 (Sat)

  • 10:00am – 10:45am: optional HDG gallery tour. Please arrive 10mins early to find your way to the gallery, instructions below.
  • 10:30am: *new* we invite participants not attending the HDG gallery tour to bring their books to our open library / book exchange.
  • 11:00am – 12:30pm: Assembly session. Please arrive 10-15mins early to mingle
  • 12:30pm: End of Assembly, optional mingle and lunch in small groups at Amoy Food Centre right below

Topic of the month: Give Well, Live Well – Exploring Effective Altruism for a Happier World (and You!)

Following our April discussion on Secular Ethics, join us in May as we delve into Effective Altruism (EA) – a thought-provoking approach to maximizing our positive impact on the world. Discover how reason and evidence can guide us to the most effective ways of alleviating suffering and promoting well-being, aligning deeply with our humanist values.

We’ll touch upon:

  • The Core Idea: Understanding the fundamental principles of EA – using reason and evidence to identify the most pressing problems and impactful solutions.
  • The Rewards of Giving, Backed by Research: Explore the well-documented benefits of generosity, including increased happiness, reduced stress, improved self-esteem, and even potential physical health benefits and a longer lifespan, as shown in various studies. We’ll also discuss how effective giving can amplify these personal rewards by ensuring our contributions create meaningful change.
  • Humanist Approaches to Action: Considering practical ways humanists can engage with EA principles through thoughtful giving and impactful actions.
  • Sparking Discussion: We’ll open the floor for a lively conversation on the promises and potential challenges of Effective Altruism.

Assembly brief

In the 1 hour, there will be: short sing alongs, a short talk, sharing of personal stories, moments for reflection and gratitude, and more.

Light refreshments (packet drinks) will be provided. Assembly will start on time, please arrive 10-15mins early.

Speaker and topic will be shared a week before each assembly, sign up and block your calendar early!

Assembly participants singing and dancing to Singalongs, Sep 2024

Assembly background

The Sunday Assembly movement was started in London, UK by comedians Sanderson Jones and Pippa Evans in 2013. They had both been churchgoers in their youth, stopped going and then realised they missed something; not the religious part, but rather the community, the stimulation, the singing, the being with others, the tea and cake afterwards. So they set up Sunday Assembly to see if a ‘church-like thing without religion’ could be done. And it could!

A typical Assembly program consists of (in no particular order) and lasts about 1 hour:

  • Songs – pop songs, or even songs of religious origin if they are lovely to listen and sing to
  • Speakers– on science, history, or current affairs to get you thinking and discussions going
  • Reading – This could be a poem or other short piece, related to the talk or not
  • Doing Your Best – Someone shares a personal story about something going on in their life. It could be something they have been grappling with, striving at, succeeded with, failed but learned from, or are involved with that’s worth sharing. It’s about reminding each other that we’re all trying the best we can.
  • Moment of Reflection – Invite the group to do a short reflection e.g. 2 minutes.
  • Life Happens – Invite the group to share highs and lows in their life.
  • Gratitude – Invite the group to express gratitude to their loved ones and others in life
  • Announcements

Collaboration with Harmony in Diversity Gallery (HDG)

The Harmony in Diversity Gallery (HDG) was developed by the Ministry of Home Affairs in collaboration with community partners and organisations like the Inter-Religious Organisation (IRO). The Gallery aims to promote an appreciation of Singapore’s rich religious diversity. It hopes this will foster a spirit of give and take, mutual respect and understanding, necessary to nurture and strengthen the religious peace and harmony we enjoy today [in Singapore].

Photo of Assembly participants taking part in the HDG gallery tour, Sep 2024


Seminar Room Layout

HDG Seminar Room


Pie Chart of various Faiths

HDG gallery

Directions to HDG

HDG is located at MND Building Annex B, Maxwell Road. It is on the 4th level above Amoy Street Food Centre. You can:-

(i) take MRT to Tanjong Pagar MRT Station (Exit G )and 5 minute walk towards Amoy Street Food Centre, access HDG at the 4th floor via lift A or B on the ground floor of Amoy Street Food Centre

(ii) take MRT to Maxwell MRT Station (Exit 2) and 10 minute walk along Maxwell Road towards Singapore City Gallery towards Amoy Street Food Centre and access HDG via lift A or B on the ground floor of Amoy Street Food Centre

(iii) take MRT to Telok Ayer MRT Station, (Exit A) and 10 minute walk towards Amoy Street Food Centre, access HDG at the 4th floor via lift C at the other end on the ground floor of the Amoy Street Food Centre where the AXS/ATM machines are located

(iv) self-drive and public parking is available at URA Centre East Wing via Kadayanallur Street or MND Complex Annex A car park. MND’s car park can be accessed from Maxwell Road and is located on the same level as HDG

(v) alight at Amoy Food Centre (proceed to lift A and B or lift C ) or at MND Carpark if they are arriving by taxi/Grab

Registration

Participants must register below to attend the event. https://www.eventbrite.sg/e/secular-assembly-may25-tickets-1306951078859