I was 1 of 5 students in the social entrepreneurship club who was selected to participate in this international competition – Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship (SAGE) Global. Having achieved first place in the national round, our team represented Singapore in the global competition held in Sao Paulo, Brazil that year.

We created simple models where we sold customised T-shirts and coloured pens to schoolmates at a profit, which was then used to purchase stationery for children in one of our teammates' hometown in India, where poverty was widespread. Our businesses were positioned to contribute to the Millennium Development Goals (now the Sustainable Development Goals).

It was a tremendous experience that plunged me into the world of social impact and business.