WHAT IS IAD?
As its name suggests, IAD is the international arm of PBG. It aims to promote cross-border collaborations between PBG and overseas law schools, so as to facilitate the exchange of pro bono ideas.
Our work mainly falls into two categories:
- Planning and participating in international conferences and overseas trips (such as the KKU and India trips); and
- Sharing what PBG does with overseas law students and learning from them, as part of PBG’s outreach efforts.
KKU Trip: Thai-Ed With Love
This project is a collaboration between PBG and Thailand’s Khon Kaen University (KKU) Faculty of Law. The aim of the project is to improve the pro bono infrastructure of NUS, KKU and Thammasat University (TU), another Thai university which was invited to participate in the project.
In January this year(2015), the team embarked on their first trip to Khon Kaen. Six main activities were conducted:
- Legal System Sharing – Students from the three universities shared with one another about Singapore’s and Thailand’s legal systems;
- Pro Bono Marketplace – Students from the three universities brainstormed on potential pro bono projects that the Thai students could initiate;
- Social Issues Conference – Various speakers such as those from Foundation for Women and Watson Farley & Williams were invited to speak to students on pertinent social issues in Thailand and what law students can do to help alleviate these problems;
- Employment Law Seminar – Students from the three universities conducted an employment law seminar, complete with a skit and a Singapore Employment Law booklet prepared by them;
- Visit to the slums; and
- Legal Education Workshops at the Khon Kaen Youth Institute – Students from NUS and KKU taught the youths at the Institute about “Basic Rights” and “Domestic Violence” through workshops similar to PBG’s Legal Education & Awareness Programme.
For more information, check out the reflection by one of our members on Justified.
For the second trip (which is slated to take place early next year (2016)), the team plans to follow-up with KKU and TU on the pro bono developments they have undertaken since the first trip. The team also hopes to further expose KKU and TU students to more social issues in Thailand that can be mitigated through pro bono work, and to directly assist them in setting up new pro bono projects.
Recruitment of new members will take place in the first few weeks of AY2015-16.
India Trip
Started by our previous overseas projects director, the trip is a collaboration between NUS Law and NGOs in India. The project targets kids from underprivileged background. The project hopes to use interactive and creative methods to teach these children about the laws that affect them. Some ideas include the use of media such as movies to help these kids understand the role and impact of law in their own society. The project is still in its planning stages but watch out for announcements and updates on the project to see how you can be involved in this.
Time Period & Commitment
Varies depending on the individual projects. For overseas trips, the planning and the preparation can span multiple months. Whereas for hosting international students the time frame is a lot shorter and would probably be a few days. More details will be provided (through the Start Now Law portal and/or email) when recruiting for a specific project.