Our work aims to preserve and share the voices, traditions, and resilience of Singapore’s Indigenous coastal and riverine communities.
We support Indigenous coastal communities impacted by relocation. Through community-led initiatives and spaces for gathering, we strengthen self-representation, support islanders in reclaiming their roles as knowledge holders, and create livelihood opportunities through fair compensation.
We connect people with Singapore’s Indigenous communities through ethical, community-led education that promotes mutual learning, meaningful relationships, and a deeper understanding of Singapore's Indigenous histories and cultures.
Through curated experiences, educational programmes, and public engagements, we foster deeper understanding of Indigenous histories, cultures, and contemporary issues.
We champion ethical, community-led research to document oral histories, Indigenous knowledge systems, and community narratives, ensuring communities lead the stewardship of their own knowledge.
We work to preserve and continue the culture, practices and stories of Indigenous coastal communities for future generations.
By documenting and sharing community stories, oral histories, Indigenous knowledge systems, and cultural practices, we recognise the sea as a living space where island traditions continue to thrive.
We work towards greater recognition and equitable representation of Indigenous peoples, knowledge systems, and histories through meaningful participation in decision-making and inclusion of community voices in formal education
We work with civil society and governmental groups to advocate for the conservation of heritage spaces and livelihoods. One of our main objectives is to understand the community’s needs and offer them a platform to share their voices, while working towards the preservation of our cultural heritage.
Assembling a jong —a miniature sailboat originating from the Malay archipelago
Our Programmes & Experiences
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Discover Singapore’s coastal landscapes through the stories and knowledge of the our communities from the Southern islands. Our guided walks explore the connections between land and sea, uncovering histories of island life, traditional practices and the communities who have long called these shores home.
Food is one of the ways we remember, connect and pass knowledge on. Through recipes, cooking demonstrations and conversations with community members, our sessions share the flavours and stories of island life, from foraging and fishing to family traditions carried across generations.
Journey with us through some of Singapore’s Southern Islands, such as Pulau Sekijang Bendera (St John's Island) and Pulau Sekijang Bendera (Lazarus Island), and discover their layered histories through the perspectives of former islanders and their descendants. Our tours bring together personal memories, cultural knowledge and the changing landscapes of the islands to offer a deeper understanding of Singapore’s maritime heritage.
We celebrate the living heritage of our communities through creative activations. Experience our Intangible Cultural Heritage through art, performance, craft, storytelling and other forms of living heritage.
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How can one work with communities in ways that are ethical, reciprocal, and genuinely collaborative? Our session shares practical approaches to ethical engagement with Indigenous communities, grounded in the experiences and perspectives of Orang Pulau community members. For organisations, institutions and individuals seeking to engage with Indigenous and vulnerable communities responsibly.
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Our talks and workshops bring maritime histories, perspectives and lived experiences into schools, workplaces and public spaces. Through storytelling, conversations and hands-on activities, we explore themes of heritage, identity, the environment and our enduring relationships with land and sea.
Held at West Coast Park on 14 June 2025, this festival brought together ~5,000 former islanders, descendants, and the wider public to celebrate and conserve the narratives, livelihoods, and culture of the Orang Pulau through programmes such as talks, workshops and performances. It also kickstarted our data collection and community mapping project, to better understand the experiences of the Orang Pulau and impacts of relocation.
14 June 1960 is also the day that construction for the petroleum industry began on Pulau Bukom. By remembering a pivotal moment in Singapore history, we hope to create awareness about its implications on generations of ex-islanders and acknowledge not only the challenges they have faced, but also the resilience and adaptability they displayed.
A guided walk through West Coast Park (Pasir Panjang), the only place that still berths the sampans of active Orang Pulau members. Led by Firdaus Sani, an Orang Pulau/Laut descendant, the tour surfaces lesser-known community stories and traditions, ending with food from Southern Islander community members.
A 2-hour sharing session where Southern Islanders open their heritage garden, Tanah dan Air, to share coastal narratives, the significance of local plants, and the connections between land and sea, followed by a communal kenduri-style meal of homemade Southern Islander cuisine, served on tikar mengkuang.
We embrace the arts as a channel to express intangible parts of the Orang Laut community’s culture and heritage. Orang Laut SG has partnered with artists such as Asnida Daud, also a Pulau Sudong descendant, and Zarina Muhammad to tell the community’s stories through poetry, song, and movement.
Your support helps sustain initiatives such as Hari Orang Pulau, enables us to research and document the traditions and knowledge of coastal communities, and support former Southern islanders and their descendants.
