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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!
Rethinking design beyond the algorithm— issue #69
With AI and data analytics offering personalised experiences, it seems technology is now a few steps ahead of us. Machines are anticipating our needs and making people feel seen. Yet it cannot replace what makes us human. Can we design with this in mind?
Simulating what it feels to be a Kpop fan
Our latest story The Physical Phenomenon explores why physical albums remain so popular in the K-pop industry despite the rise of digital streaming. This behind-the-scenes looks at the motivations behind the writing, illustration style, and data visualisations created for the piece.
Stories of reclamation — issue #33
I think about this question a lot. Growing up in hyper-urban Singapore, we don’t so much think about land as we do country. Land is perceived by many states as a resource first, even though it encompasses and offers much more than that—a primordial and more holistic sense
Meet the Community! Keng, Data Editor at Pulitzer Center and Data Journalism trainer/consultant
Kuek Ser Kuang Keng studied chemical engineering as an undergraduate and worked as a journalist for Malaysiakini for 8 years before going…
Humans of Kontinentalist: Adhithi.M
Adhithi interned with us over six months, contributing diligently and invaluably to many projects, including: stories about Deepavali and…
Meet the Community! Ben Xiao, Data Scientist and Analyst
Ben Xiao is an aspiring data scientist and analyst, specialised in providing data-driven insights, having graduated with a Master’s degree…
Human drivers of a changing planet — issue #32
Lately, we’ve been hearing the word “unprecedented” a lot. Unprecedented rate of temperature rise, unprecedented frequencies of natural disasters, unprecedented numbers of injuries and deaths. Our climate is changing, and each day we are reminded it’s not for the better. But hey—when “unprecedented” is used to describe
Meet the Community! Krist Wongsuphasawat, data visualization engineer
Krist Wongsuphasawat is currently an Engineering Manager of the Data Experience team at Airbnb. He often publishes data visualisation work…
An ode to the producers — issue #31
The question of who produces the things we eat, use, and basically take for granted each day has seeped deeper into our consciousness over the past few years. It seems that humanity’s slowly (and hopefully, surely) woken up to the horrors of our overconsumption—and, with that, begun to
Meet the Community! Kimly Scott, Tableau Data Visualisation Specialist
Kimly Scott is an Australian Tableau data visualization expert and analytics manager. Although her data viz journey started just three…
Meet the Community! Lim Chee Aun, front-end engineer and map viz-builder
Lim Chee Aun is a front-end engineer who loves to continuously learn things and build useful applications. He’s particularly famous for…
Meet the Community! Diana Yukari, information designer
Diana Yukari is a Brazilian-Japanese information designer. She graduated with a BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and…
New year, old clothes — issue #30
Recently, a friend’s acquaintance was searching for specialty coffee beans from countries near Singapore to reduce his carbon footprint. My friend quipped that those seemed rare. Apparently, things blew up real quick after that. Surely you’ve been in one of these conversations. A chat about sustainability nosedives, and
Meet the Community! Alexandra Khoo – data analytics strategist
Alexandra Khoo is at her best when she blends strategy, data analysis, creative design, and coding. Starting her career in international…