Without a doubt, 2020 has been a year like no other. From the fight against a global pandemic to the increasing urgency against climate change, it has been a year of changes and challenges for us and our communities.

While 2020 has been tough in its ways, we are also encouraged by the help rendered to one another during this challenging year. We applaud the essential workers who have stood at the frontlines, families who have stayed strong, and individuals who have chosen to lend a helping hand through the crisis. Against all odds, we stay united as one.

With that in mind, Geneco wanted to play our part and give back in ways that we can – for the environment, for the community. As the year comes to an end and we look to fresh beginnings, let’s look back at some of our key moments though this year.

Celebrating Geneco’s second anniversary

To mark Geneco’s second anniversary, Geneco launched #ItTakes2 to celebrate this milestone with our partners and customers in coming thus far with us. It has always been in Geneco’s DNA to collaborate with like-minded partners to promote for a more sustainable lifestyle while giving back to the community, and for this campaign, we wanted to do the same. After all, it takes two to make a larger impact and to power a bigger change.

We collaborated with one of our ChangeMakers partners – The Food Bank Singapore, to spread good amid this difficult time. The beginning of COVID-19 led to the organisation seeing a 70% drop in their donations, affecting beneficiaries and low-income families from receiving the food they need. Geneco is heartened that, together with the support of our customers and Instagram & Facebook followers through comments and words of encouragement, we were able to work with The Food Bank Singapore in donating 1,000 meals  to help these families in need during this period.

Stay home with Geneco

The implementation of the ‘circuit breaker’ measures in April caught the entire nation by surprise. Non-essential travels were not permitted, shops had to close, people could no longer gather, and working-from-home became the default approach for businesses when possible. Coupled with the daily news of the pandemic, it had been hard to cope for many. To help uplift the spirits and tide through the sudden need to stay in, #StayHomewithGeneco was born with a curated set of content across our social media platforms to ease the time spent at home. Featuring community initiatives that citizens can help and contribute even while staying at home to sharing complimentary lifestyle resources, #StayHomewithGeneco focused on doing good for both the community and our well-being.

With the opportunity of staying in with our families, Geneco took it to heart to power family time through our series of green crafts with a #PowerFamTime giveaway to encourage families to savour the time we got to spend together with our loved ones. We received an overwhelming response of more than 100 submissions from families and how they treasure family moments together through green craft activities during this time.

Power the change with Geneco

As the daily news continue to surround the development of the global pandemic, many have been disheartened by the pessimistic news and happenings all around the world. Instead, Geneco wanted to motivate and inspire Singaporeans to seek ways to power different qualities such as togetherness and giving despite the difficult times through our #PowerTheChange campaign.

A social campaign anchored on discovering inspiring qualities demonstrated by everyday Singaporeans – featuring a series of profiles who conveyed stories of strength and compassion – to focus on the good and unite everyone to power through.

Beyond the profile features, Geneco once again collaborated with its partners from the #ChangeMakersSG programme in supporting their various initiatives of giving back to the community. From distributing of masks with Refash and The Food Bank Singapore, to powering ComCrop’s food production efforts to meet the rising demand of local produce from COVID-19, Geneco is committed to power the change with our partners for our future generations.

As mask wearing becomes an essential part of our daily lives, the demand for them also increased exponentially among the public such that shortages of masks were witnessed, leading to many who may not have sufficient masks at home. Together with Refash and The Food Bank Singapore, 15,000 masks were distributed to vulnerable communities during this time to ensure they are well equipped and well protected whenever they need a mask.

In addition, with the COVID-19 situation, many countries have been placed in lockdown, inevitably causing a disruption in our country’s food supply chains. As a result, ComCrop is currently standing at the forefront of our country’s food production efforts to maintain our nation’s food security, while at the same time fulfilling the government’s ’30 by 30′ goal. To do our part in strengthening sustainable food production in Singapore, we at Geneco have also committed to subsidise ComCrop’s electricity bills for a year in support of their sustainability efforts.

Read here in more detail on Geneco’s #PowerTheChange campaign.

An open letter to our future generations

Even as we progressed through the year with the pandemic still in tow, the urgency to fight against climate change cannot be ignored as well. Therefore, we wanted to do our part in encouraging Singaporeans to lead a greener lifestyle on this special National Day.

In celebration of the nation’s 55^th birthday on 9 August, Geneco marked the occasion with a campaign anchored on commemorating the decisions our forefathers had made for the nation in the past and how we should emulate the same spirit towards our nation for our future generations.

The #ToOurFutureGenerations campaign aimed to shed light on aspiring Singaporeans who constantly strive to make an impact within their respective fields, inspiring future generations to do the same for our nation.

Among our featured profiles we have Dawn Sng, Educational Experiences Designer with Cultivate Central – one of our ChangeMaker partners. Her role sees to bring families to connect with nature and to realise the importance of preserving these natural elements for the children of the future to enjoy.

To further spread our green message and our commitment towards green living for future generations, Geneco also collaborated with Cultivate Central in the distribution of 550 DIY micro-green kits to provide a hands-on experience for our customers in growing their own greens, sharing with them the cycle of life and the small acts we can do to preserve the Earth for the future.

Be jolly together this festive season

To wrap up the year on a happy note, Geneco’s #JollyTogether campaign focused on finding joy while doing good for families, community, and the environment this festive season. Celebrating our resilience and tenacity in overcoming a difficult year, Geneco launched weekly giveaways on Instagram for our followers to share eco-friendly habits and ways we have adopted as a family to give back to our environment. These acts may be small, but we recognise the collective impact it can have in fighting climate change should we stay consistent and spread the importance of doing good for our planet.

Together, we have received over 500 green tips from our giveaways, encouraging families to remember to be eco-friendly whenever they can even during the holidays!

As arduous 2020 may have been, it was truly an unforgettable year for Geneco. We would like to thank the community and families as well as our ChangeMakers for constantly supporting Geneco this year and the various opportunities to journey through and stand together amidst uncertainty. From our campaigns, partnerships with organisations and participation from the masses, we have seen that as a united community, we can go to greater heights and realise our green vision as one body.

From our Geneco family to yours, here’s to a greener and better 2021!