With less than one-third of target reached, public donation drive is on
Tan Dawn Wei, Straits Times 25 Apr 10;
A race is now on, against a June deadline to put $35 million into the kitty so that Singapore's own full-fledged natural history museum can be realised.
And two of the prime movers behind this idea have pledged $20,000 each to kickstart a public donation drive.
Meanwhile, the big sums, from corporate donors and foundations, have been taking their time coming in, despite a boost from an undisclosed donor who wrote a cheque for $10 million in January.
The $35 million target has to be met before the National University of Singapore (NUS) provides land for the new museum.
The somewhat modest Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research (RMBR), which will evolve into the new natural history museum, is now housed in the NUS biological sciences department.
In the last six months, a five-man team has managed to secure $10.7 million. Besides the $10 million donation, only an additional $700,000 was raised through private donors and corporations.
The public donation drive kicked in three weeks ago, and the new museum's champions, Professors Leo Tan and Peter Ng, have each pledged $20,000.
Said Prof Ng, 50, head of the RMBR and the Tropical Marine Science Institute: 'You walk the talk. If you have the audacity to ask for donations for something you believe in, you have to put in your pound of flesh too.'
Both men have been knocking on the doors of foundations and companies. The plan was to finish this core fundraising drive before going on a public campaign.
'There is a timeline because the land in NUS is disappearing at a horrendous rate,' said Prof Ng, half in jest. NUS has set aside land within its new University Town for the museum, provided the RMBR hits its funding target by June.
The team has started sending appeal letters to business leaders, friends and colleagues. It has also started an online donation portal for individual donors at http://rmbr.nus.edu.sg/buildingfund/index.html.
Prof Tan, 65, director of special projects at the NUS science faculty, said public donations are just as important as the big sums that he hopes will come in from the foundations and corporations.
'It's a national natural history museum. It's the people's property. Singaporeans have a stake in it, so we ask you to contribute to the upkeep and development of it.'
The efforts to build a museum to showcase some 500,000 specimens of mammals, birds, amphibians and other invertebrates began to gather steam after media reports last year highlighted the little- known collection.
Less than 1 per cent of the entire collection, one of the oldest and largest of South-east Asian animals in the region, is on display at NUS because of a lack of space.
The new museum will have at least 7,000 sq m of space, with a minimum of 2,000 sq m - or 10 times the current museum's size - devoted to exhibition space.
The team is hopeful it will meet its target. Food and beverage chain The Wine Company has stepped in to sponsor 50 sets of dinner for two worth $260 in appreciation of donors who give at least $500.
'It's for Singapore, for our future generation,' said Ms Belinda Lim, 50, one of the owners.
Tourist attraction Underwater World, too, started a donation drive through an interactive fortune wheel in February which raised almost $1,000. It topped this up with another $10,000.
'With our exhibits, we're able to educate people to appreciate the marine and aquatic life we have today. RMBR showcases what we've lost in the past,' said Mr Peter Chew, 39, its deputy general manager, adding that it is exploring other ways to help raise funds.
Besides pledging the land, NUS has set aside an endowment scheme, while the Government has come in with a matching grant which will be used to support the development of the museum.
RMBR's efforts have moved retiree and active museum volunteer Kok Oi Yee, 68, so much that she donated $20,000 to the cause.
'This is not charity. If it's the last thing I can do, I would like to do something for it,' said the former principal lab officer of the NUS biological sciences department.
