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Welcome to Kawan—our vibrant community of data heads and storytellers. We’re all about improving data literacy and sharing nuanced stories about Asia. Come hang!
the power of play— issue #64
My childhood was distinctly marked by improvisation. In the days before screens and social media, we played masak-masak and make-believe, using the everyday things around us to bring our imaginary worlds to life. The corridors of our HDB block became a makeshift supermarket aisle, a blanket transformed into a fort,
Bite-sized indulgences
There's something magical about childhood snacks. They're time machines wrapped in crinkly packages, portals to simpler days when 20 cents could buy happiness and sticky fingers were badges of honour, rather than inconveniences to be sanitised away. When I think about my own skittish excitement licking
Reduce API loading time: Never forget to Cache!
Kontinentalist serves quite numbers of traffic everyday, and thus user experience is really important for us. One of the UX factors apart… How did Kontinentalist reduce API loading time by using Cache
How to tell data-driven stories
We conducted a workshop for our writers recently, and below are some of the highlights.
Visualising a team bonding retreat
Inspired by the Dear Data project where two designers sent each other visualisations describing their week, our team decided to try…
Of piracy, deaths, and medicinal wildlife parts in Asia — issue #3
Ahoy! It’s been a really fruitful month for us, and we’re so proud to have collaborated with two different partners to shed light on crucial issues concerning Asia. Naomi collaborated with TRAFFIC - the wildlife trade monitoring network - to look at how traditional medicine practices and beliefs
Playing House: the Rent-a-Family business in Japan
Our writer, Kathy, shares her thoughts on the thriving phenomenon in Japan
How are maps used in video and tabletop games?
In our new series, we sat down with Joceline, our UI/UX designer, and Griselda, our multimedia designer, to nerd out about maps and games!
How is climate change affecting major Asian cities? — issue #2
Hello there, The issue of climate change continues to provoke heated debates, but how well do we understand the impact it can have on our lives here in Asia? This month, our intern Rayson, looked at research on rising sea levels and mapped a story that shows us a future
Humans of Kontinentalist: Naomi
In this edition of Humans of Kontinentalist, we catch up with Naomi, our resident writer and Myth Buster!
How rock paper scissors is played around Asia
We all know the rules of rock paper scissors (RPS). Paper wins rock, rock wins scissors, and scissors wins paper. There’s even an…
Humans of Kontinentalist: Vinita
Today we caught up with Vinita, our resident editor and writer, and the only actual mother on the team (soft toys, fur babies, and other…
Notes from the Equator — issue #1
Hello there, Welcome to our inaugural issue of ‘notes from the equator’! Kontinentalist has been online for a year now, and we’re delighted to have published more than 30 stories that surprised our audience with little-known facts about Asia. We’ve gotten this far, and thought it’s high
Humans of Kontinentalist: Peiying
In this edition of Humans of Kontinentalist, we sat down with Peiying, the company head and wearer of many hats here at Kontinentalist…