Ms Margaret Thomas

3rd Vice President

Organisation: Association of Women for Action and Research (AWARE)

Margaret has a Masters (Sociology) from the London School of Economics and some 30 years of print and online media experience. She held senior editing positions at The Business Times, The Singapore Monitor, and TODAY, and was founding team of Singapore Press Holding’s Internet arm, Asiaone. She was involved in media coverage of women’s issues and social/political matters as a journalist. She now works primarily on book projects.

A member of AWARE’s Board since 2009, Margaret was part of the team overseeing the professionalization of AWARE. In April 2018, Margaret was elected President of AWARE and will continue to oversee the effort to expand AWARE’s services and strengthen its position as a leading civil society organisation in Singapore.

Contributions to SCWO

Margaret was a member of SCWO Board for the 2012-204 and 2014-2016 terms. Her contributions during the four years included:

• Review and revision of SCWO’s Objectives – The Objectives as stated in the SCWO Constitution were outdated and not crafted well, and SCWO’s role vis-à-vis its member organisation was not clear. The revised Objectives make clear SCWO’s role as a federation of women’s organisations.

• President’s Forum – These are efforts to implement the revised Objectives. At the President’s Forum held twice yearly, leaders of member organisations meet to exchange views and discuss issues related to their organisations and to women in Singapore.

• Expansion of the Wall of Fame into the Singapore Women’s Hall of Fame – The Singapore Women’s Hall of Fame, launched in March 2014, was very well received and attracted considerable media coverage. It has created much scope for events and activities that will not only celebrate the achievements of Singapore’s outstanding women but also help to raise SCWO’s profile.

As Chair of the SWHF Working Committee 2016-2018, Margaret continued to oversee the development of SWHF. She conceptualised the three-year series of exhibitions. The Lives of Women that SWHF is holding at the National Museum of Singapore, guided the implementation of the first exhibition in 2018, and will lead the development of the next two exhibitions.