Raye Padit, Raena Lim, Karen Riley-Grant, Kai Paul, Paula Miquelis
Cover Raye Padit, Raena Lim, Karen Riley-Grant, Kai Paul, Paula Miquelis

The fifth edition of The Conscious Festival, an impact-focused weekend of talks and experiences from eco platform Green Is The New Black, saw two honourees take to the stage over the weekend for separate Gen.T-powered talks.

Singapore sustainability champion Tan Szue Hann told attendees how his company Miniwiz harnesses the power of the circular economy, turning post-consumer waste into high-performance materials. An example he gave was using the playing cards in the Marina Bay Sands casino—which are disposed of at an alarmingly high rate—to make coffee tables. "This is an example of the circular economy: how a resource can be put back into the loop. We're not trying to kill capitalism, but create a more sustainable future instead," he said. 

See also: Talking Points: Meaningful Adventures

Fellow Gen.T honouree Raena Lim, co-founder of subscription-based fashion rental platform Style Theory, spoke as part of a panel on the fast fashion industry. Lim acknowledged that the industry has made fashion accessible to those who couldn't afford it before, but that it comes at too great an environmental cost, saying "It is up to the industry as a whole to innovate and find ways to reduce environmental costs, so that fast fashion remains a good way for people to access fashion."

Aside from the talks, attendees browsed the conscious marketplace and experienced meditation, art and movement workshops throughout the weekend.

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'gallery right' 'gallery right'
Photo 1 of 13 Raye Padit, Raena Lim, Karen Riley-Grant, Kai Paul, Paula Miquelis
Photo 2 of 13 Tan Szue Hann
Photo 3 of 13 Stephanie Dickson, Paula Miquelis
Photo 4 of 13 Barney Swan
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Photo 6 of 13 Meditation workshop with Subba Vaidyanathan
Photo 7 of 13 Reception desk with Gen.T magazines at South Beach Tower
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Photo 10 of 13 Inch Chua
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