Local Entrepreneurship
As a part of a new programme, the students achieving the lowest grades in Sekolah Menengah Masin (SMMN) are taught how to create, fund and sustain a business. The section of the cohort that this involves is known as the Special Applied Programme (SAP) and is for students who achieved 20% or lower on their Year 8 final exams. This means these students are given vocational courses. In Year 9 this is called a ‘Life Skills’ course and then in Years 10 and 11 they migrate to a Pearson BTEC course.
Currently, the students are working in a car wash and detailing business. The students have sold VIP tickets at a 25% discount to obtain the necessary starting capital for their business. The school would like to explore additional ways of showing the students how to gain this starting capital; starting a company with shares and obtaining a loan.
The program has so far run for two years. In 2020 more students are going to be involved and it is hoped that other schools will become involved as well. The funds raised through the selling of second-hand clothing are used to give the students loans so they can start their next business. The programme aims to teach students how to earn a living and become self-sufficient when they leave school.
Current SAP Project
The students in the SAP programme are currently running a car wash and detailing business.
Fast Fashion
Becoming environmentally conscious isn't an easy task. With most sustainable brands being inaccessible or incredibly expensive, it can seem impossible to have an eco-friendly wardrobe. Second-hand clothing supplies a sustainable - and now accessible - option to find new clothing.
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The term 'fast fashion' was coined when the clothing company ZARA aimed to process clothing from design to retail in only 15 days. The idea of cheap, short-lasting clothing dominates the fashion industry today. "This linear fashion model of buying, wearing and quickly discarding clothes negatively impacts people and the planet’s resources." (World Resource Institute 2019).
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According to the National Geographic, 2,700 litres of water is required to process only 1 cotton t-shirt, which is 2 and 1/2 years supply of water for one person. The aim of Wear a Smile is to recycle clothing within Brunei's community so clothing has a chance to be loved by multiple people. Hopefully, access to second-hand clothing means that people will buy less new clothing items and not throw away old clothes ("1 garbage truck of clothes is burned or landfilled every second!") (Ellen MacArthur Foundation).
It is not likely that we can have a completely fast-fashion free wardrobe, but with Wear a Smile we can take a step in the right direction.
Please feel free to look at the resources below to learn more about fast fashion.
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Extra Clothing
If any of the donated clothing doesn't get sold after two cycles of the Wear a Smile stall, they will be given to those in need.
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Currently, unsold clothing will be given out at Sekolah Menengah Massin (SMMN) parent-teacher meetings. This way, anyone who is need of clothing can take it, free of charge.