Latest news with #MichelleLim
SBS Australia
5 days ago
- Health
- SBS Australia
"Call for Connection": Concerns about a loneliness crisis in Australia
Younger generations are often considered the most socially connected - especially when it comes to digital communication. But a new report reveals more and more young Australians are feeling lonely often and persistently. Associate Professor Michelle Lim is the Chief Executive and Scientific Chair of Ending Loneliness Together, the organisation behind the report. She says the research uncovers a youth loneliness crisis, with on in seven young people in Australia now experiencing persistent loneliness. Futhermore, overall, 43 percent of people aged 15 to 25 are experiencing loneliness. She's told SBS Kurdish while feeling lonely is a natural part of our innate human drive to connect with others, it's the high levels of persistent loneliness that are particularly troubling. "What worries me, though, is the one in seven who experienced more persistent loneliness and when I say persistent, I mean we asked them about levels of loneliness in one year and then came back to them the next year, yes, we're reporting loneliness, which actually says to me that once they become lonely they stay lonely." The release of the report, titled 'A Call for Connection,' coincides with Loneliness Awareness Week- which runs from the 4th to the 10th of August. The research, which draws on data from recent surveys of Household Income and Labor Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) and interviews with young people, shows young people who report persistent loneliness are more than seven times more likely to experience high or very high psychological distress, compared to those who aren't lonely. Ms Lim says the study finds certain environmental and social factors exacerbate a persons experience of loneliness. "We looked at who was experiencing and staying lonely, we found that certain things made things worse. Like if you had a poor physical health status, a poor mental health status, if you're unemployed, if you have financial strain, all those things are making people not just lonely, but staying lonely." Cathy Kezelman is President of the Blue Knot Foundation. It's an organisation that helps adult survivors of childhood trauma. She says it's important to recognise that some groups are especially vulnerable to persistent loneliness- including those who have experienced complex trauma, which can be connected to the experience of violence, abuse, neglect or exploitation. She says these experiences can intensify a person's withdrawal and isolation from community. "I think what happens when loneliness is profound is that it can obviously really impact our mental health. Obviously we can go into a spiral just with our own thoughts and ruminate and that can be very, very unhealthy. And obviously the more you withdraw, the less other input you're getting. And of course, mental health can impact physical health." The theme of this year's Loneliness Awareness Week is 'Moments Matter', highlighting the importance of building connections at home, work, school, online and in the community. Ms Lim says this theme underscores Ending Loneliness Together's calls for more accessible inclusive community spaces, and free or low-cost opportunities to help young people nurture relationships. "We're living in an environment that's actually keeping us lonely. So what we really need to do is not just always put the onus on the individual themselves, but really those broader community, economic, and social forces that are really at play. What we're doing is advocating for systemic change. So that we are living in an environment where it helps us develop healthy social relationships easily, and maintaining those relationships." The call for more investment in spaces that foster connection and belonging is one echoed in a Loneliness Inquiry report tabled in the New South Wales parliament earlier this week. After a year-long investigation into the prevalence, causes and impacts of loneliness in New South Wales, the Standing Committee on Social Issues has made 20 recommendations to tackle the growing loneliness epidemic. Lauren Stracey, Chief Executive of Youth Action New South Wales, says the report's recommendation for more dedicated youth hubs stands out as critical. "What we're hearing from young people is that they actually need to have their own safe spaces to be able to feel like they're connected and belonging in our community more broadly. And one of the recommendations was to invest in youth hubs. It can be your traditional sort of space, but it can also be made up from spaces that are just in your local environment. So it could be an unused community centre, a room somewhere. But the key thing is that it's about creating places for young people where they can spend time with their peers." She says investing in safe and inclusive youth spaces, designed with the input and guidance of young people, is especially important given the national ban on social media for users under the age of 16 set to come into effect in December. "The idea of having youth hubs and new spaces, it's really about making sure that if we're taking away one way of being connected, that we are replacing it with an alternative. We can't just take away and remove the digital spaces without building real world ones. And so I think that one of the things that we are seeing is that youth hubs are really an antidote to this and that they can be the bridge from loneliness to belonging for our young people." She says tackling the youth loneliness crisis needs to start with building opportunities for young people to find belonging. "The thing with belonging is this is such a fundamental human need and young people need that just as much as anyone else. And so having a place where young people are able to go and be with their peers and also have role models around them, youth workers are incredible role models. Those are the kinds of things that really kind of ground us and help us develop into thriving adults." And loneliness isn't just an issue limited to Australia. Both Britain and Japan have, in recent years, even dedicated a federal ministry to dealing with the problem. If you or someone you know needs support, call Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636 or call Lifeline on 13 11 14. Embrace Multicultural Mental Health supports people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.
West Australian
02-08-2025
- Health
- West Australian
Younger Australia is facing a loneliness 'epidemic'
A silent crisis is taking root among young Australians, with nearly half those aged 15 to 25 reporting they regularly feel lonely. One in seven experience persistent loneliness that lasts more than two years. The findings, from a new national report by Ending Loneliness Together, have prompted warnings loneliness is becoming endemic, exacerbated by digital isolation, rising living costs and a lack of community spaces to connect face-to-face. "There's a lot of misconceptions that just because young people are so much embedded within the structures of society that they shouldn't feel lonely," says Michelle Lim, scientific chair of Ending Loneliness Together and co-lead author of the A Call for Connection report. "This is a huge misconception because the way we define loneliness is very much a subjective feeling of the stress that comes up to you when you feel your relationships do not meet your current social needs." Naoka Cheah was just settling into student life at the University of Melbourne aged 19 when COVID-19 hit, forcing her to return to Malaysia and complete much of her degree remotely. "I went back thinking it's probably just going to be a few months at most ... not a huge impact. But I was stuck back in Malaysia for more than a year," she says. "It was a very unreal experience, being apart from your other students, being apart from friends … and also trying to ace those exams and not fail. I think that's something we were all struggling with." Now 25 and working as a data analyst in Melbourne, Ms Cheah reflects on how her forced isolation also came with unexpected benefits. "Initially it is a very scary experience but it pushes you to kind of face yourself," she says. "There's a stigma of loneliness but it's actually very important to then also have that time by yourself … to figure out what you actually love, what you actually hate." Like many young professionals in a post-COVID world, Ms Cheah now works mostly from home and makes a conscious effort to stay socially connected. "I'm very lucky to have a team that's very much inclusive and sociable but I will assume not everyone is lucky enough to have that environment," she says. "It can be very difficult to reach out. That first obstacle could be the hardest thing for people to overcome." Associate Professor Lim agrees that being alone is not the same as being lonely. "By definition, young people are not often socially isolated ... they're not actually physically alone ... but they are feeling very lonely," she says. Digital technology, while offering new ways to connect, is also part of the problem. "We haven't really introduced good digital literacy, not just for our children but even for us as parents. As parents we model behaviours and with the increases of digital communication, we're not doing a great job ourselves. "We know we have to be able to get young people to have healthy social relationships in that digital world." She adds that for some young Australians - particularly those from the LGBTQI community or in regional areas- digital spaces can be essential. "They say 'I need that digital community because I don't have people around me that are like me'. So there is a place for it but we haven't quite taught young people how to navigate this very tricky social media world and digital world and how to use it for their benefit." Darcy Gilmour, a 25-year-old graduate from Canberra, understands this complexity all too well. Hospitalised at age 10 for two years due to rare blood disorders, he says the loneliness he experienced during and after was profound. "That obviously created a big feeling of isolation," he says. "It was pretty tough. "When I went to high school, I was just trying to reintegrate ... it was a big adjustment and I also experienced a lot of loneliness there. It was like being thrown in the deep end." Despite being constantly surrounded by nurses, classmates and family, he still felt isolated. "I'd never spend any time actually alone but still had that incredible feeling of loneliness," he explains. Mr Gilmour says those experiences have given him a deeper understanding of what true connection means. "If I notice someone else is struggling to make friends, that's also when I can tend to reach out a bit more because I'm able to recognise that pretty easily," he says. His advice is to be proactive - even when it's hard. "I've had a lot of times where you're leading up to going to hang out with your friends and you're, like: 'oh, I don't know if I'll enjoy this. I'd rather just stay at home and just relax a bit alone and not stress'," he says. "But then you go out and you actually have a really good time." Loneliness isn't just an emotional issue, according to Prof Lim. It has measurable impacts on mental and physical health, especially for those under financial strain or from lower socio-economic backgrounds. "We are paying costs in other ways," she says. "We are very good at interventions. We're very good at dealing with problems. We're very good at throwing money at mental health and suicide. "But we're not very good at preventing these things." What's needed, Prof Lim says, is systemic change: from digital education in schools to more inclusive public spaces, and support that doesn't fall entirely on individuals or parents. "This should be a policy that we introduce on that systems level, where we're teaching that very actively in school, and what healthy social interaction can look like," she says. "We need something more than just relying on parents." While large-scale solutions are being debated, Prof Lim believes even small moments of connection can make a difference. "A quick hello, a chance encounter, an act of kindness, a compliment, a shared experience or interest, a new hobby or even a funny story - these small but meaningful interactions matter," she says. "They spark conversation and help us feel seen and valued."
Perth Now
02-08-2025
- Health
- Perth Now
Younger Australia is facing a loneliness 'epidemic'
A silent crisis is taking root among young Australians, with nearly half those aged 15 to 25 reporting they regularly feel lonely. One in seven experience persistent loneliness that lasts more than two years. The findings, from a new national report by Ending Loneliness Together, have prompted warnings loneliness is becoming endemic, exacerbated by digital isolation, rising living costs and a lack of community spaces to connect face-to-face. "There's a lot of misconceptions that just because young people are so much embedded within the structures of society that they shouldn't feel lonely," says Michelle Lim, scientific chair of Ending Loneliness Together and co-lead author of the A Call for Connection report. "This is a huge misconception because the way we define loneliness is very much a subjective feeling of the stress that comes up to you when you feel your relationships do not meet your current social needs." Naoka Cheah was just settling into student life at the University of Melbourne aged 19 when COVID-19 hit, forcing her to return to Malaysia and complete much of her degree remotely. "I went back thinking it's probably just going to be a few months at most ... not a huge impact. But I was stuck back in Malaysia for more than a year," she says. "It was a very unreal experience, being apart from your other students, being apart from friends … and also trying to ace those exams and not fail. I think that's something we were all struggling with." Now 25 and working as a data analyst in Melbourne, Ms Cheah reflects on how her forced isolation also came with unexpected benefits. "Initially it is a very scary experience but it pushes you to kind of face yourself," she says. "There's a stigma of loneliness but it's actually very important to then also have that time by yourself … to figure out what you actually love, what you actually hate." Like many young professionals in a post-COVID world, Ms Cheah now works mostly from home and makes a conscious effort to stay socially connected. "I'm very lucky to have a team that's very much inclusive and sociable but I will assume not everyone is lucky enough to have that environment," she says. "It can be very difficult to reach out. That first obstacle could be the hardest thing for people to overcome." Associate Professor Lim agrees that being alone is not the same as being lonely. "By definition, young people are not often socially isolated ... they're not actually physically alone ... but they are feeling very lonely," she says. Digital technology, while offering new ways to connect, is also part of the problem. "We haven't really introduced good digital literacy, not just for our children but even for us as parents. As parents we model behaviours and with the increases of digital communication, we're not doing a great job ourselves. "We know we have to be able to get young people to have healthy social relationships in that digital world." She adds that for some young Australians - particularly those from the LGBTQI community or in regional areas- digital spaces can be essential. "They say 'I need that digital community because I don't have people around me that are like me'. So there is a place for it but we haven't quite taught young people how to navigate this very tricky social media world and digital world and how to use it for their benefit." Darcy Gilmour, a 25-year-old graduate from Canberra, understands this complexity all too well. Hospitalised at age 10 for two years due to rare blood disorders, he says the loneliness he experienced during and after was profound. "That obviously created a big feeling of isolation," he says. "It was pretty tough. "When I went to high school, I was just trying to reintegrate ... it was a big adjustment and I also experienced a lot of loneliness there. It was like being thrown in the deep end." Despite being constantly surrounded by nurses, classmates and family, he still felt isolated. "I'd never spend any time actually alone but still had that incredible feeling of loneliness," he explains. Mr Gilmour says those experiences have given him a deeper understanding of what true connection means. "If I notice someone else is struggling to make friends, that's also when I can tend to reach out a bit more because I'm able to recognise that pretty easily," he says. His advice is to be proactive - even when it's hard. "I've had a lot of times where you're leading up to going to hang out with your friends and you're, like: 'oh, I don't know if I'll enjoy this. I'd rather just stay at home and just relax a bit alone and not stress'," he says. "But then you go out and you actually have a really good time." Loneliness isn't just an emotional issue, according to Prof Lim. It has measurable impacts on mental and physical health, especially for those under financial strain or from lower socio-economic backgrounds. "We are paying costs in other ways," she says. "We are very good at interventions. We're very good at dealing with problems. We're very good at throwing money at mental health and suicide. "But we're not very good at preventing these things." What's needed, Prof Lim says, is systemic change: from digital education in schools to more inclusive public spaces, and support that doesn't fall entirely on individuals or parents. "This should be a policy that we introduce on that systems level, where we're teaching that very actively in school, and what healthy social interaction can look like," she says. "We need something more than just relying on parents." While large-scale solutions are being debated, Prof Lim believes even small moments of connection can make a difference. "A quick hello, a chance encounter, an act of kindness, a compliment, a shared experience or interest, a new hobby or even a funny story - these small but meaningful interactions matter," she says. "They spark conversation and help us feel seen and valued."
Business Times
02-07-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Three insurance policies worth over S$500,000 to be part of bankrupt estate of OK Lim's son, rules court
[SINGAPORE] A granddaughter of fallen oil tycoon Lim Oon Kuin has failed to persuade the court that three insurance policies that named her as the insured and worth half a million should not be part of her father's bankrupt estate. High Court Judicial Commissioner Mohamed Faizal on Tuesday (Jul 1) dismissed the application of Michelle Lim to declare that the three insurance policies in question are held on trust for her sole benefit by her father Lim Chee Meng, who became bankrupt in December 2024. Lim Chee Meng's bankruptcy stems from his agreement together with those of his father – better known as OK Lim – and sister in September 2024 to pay US$3.5 billion to the court-appointed liquidators of insolvent oil trader Hin Leong Trading and top creditor HSBC after a 50-day civil trial. They were sued in August 2020 for US$3.5 billion in debt and US$90 million in dividends that they allegedly paid themselves, even though their firm was already insolvent. In the settlement reached by both parties in the civil suit, the Lims agreed without acknowledging liability to pay US$3.5 billion plus interest accrued from April 2020 to the date of payment, on top of costs. They, however, did not have enough assets to pay all the claimants that have taken legal action against them, and applied for bankruptcy. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Leow Quek Siong and Seah Ron Lin, the private trustees of Lim Chee Meng's bankrupt estate had asked him and Michelle Lim whether a third party would pay the bankrupt estate the surrender value of the three policies in question, which was about S$521,000 as at Jan 16. The bankrupt estate's trustees would proceed to surrender these policies to AIA Singapore if no third party would pay for them. Michelle Lim contended that her father intended to hold these policies on trust for her until she turned 21 years old, after which he would transfer the policies to her name. Thus, she insisted that these policies do not form part of the 55-year-old's bankrupt estate and are not available to any of his creditors. Lack of evidence The court noted that there was no legal documentation that formalised the arrangement for Lim Chee Meng to hold the policies for the benefit of Michelle Lim. Her policy documents also did not show any evidence of any trust arrangement between the father and daughter. Although Michelle Lim adduced four documents as evidence, the judge found that they were either self-interested representations or mere assertions. First, she referred to a letter in October 2021 from her father to carve out these policies, purportedly held on trust, from other assets subjected to a freezing order in the US$3.5 billion civil suit. Also, she cited another letter, purportedly from a personal wealth manager from AIA dated October 2021, claiming that these policies and five other policies with no surrender value were held on trust for her by her father. And, she relied on an e-mail dated March 2025 from Lim Chee Meng to the private trustees as well as a portion of his affidavit filed earlier for his bankruptcy proceedings and attached to the e-mail, in which he asserted that he held the policies on trust for her. The younger Lim claimed that her father had transferred other insurance policies to her two elder siblings when they each became old enough to hold the policies in their names. He did not surrender, assign or deal with the three policies without her consent or direction, even though he had financial needs before the bankruptcy, she argued. While Michelle Lim was named as the insured, the private trustees pointed out that she was not named as a beneficiary in the policy documents. They contended that the documents she submitted were all bare assertions, and that Lim Chee Meng did not transfer the three policies to Michelle Lim when she turned 21 years old in 2024 despite him having been reminded by AIA. The judge noted that all four pieces of documentary evidence relied on by Michelle Lim were dated after the commencement of the civil suit and her father's bankruptcy proceedings. The court should treat with caution assertions that valuable properties are held on trust for another, the judge added, especially when such assertions are made after legal proceedings have begun as the proceedings might result in bankruptcy or insolvency. 'Assertions, no matter how firmly expressed, cannot take the place of evidence; and in this case, the core claims comprised entirely of conclusions untethered to any corroborating factual account,' he commented. The judge also pointed out that the lack of direct evidence from Lim Chee Meng or Michelle Lim's elder siblings regarding the insurance policies he purportedly took out with her elder siblings as the named insured severely weakened her case.
Business Times
02-07-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Three insurance policies worth over S$500,000 to be part of bankrupt estate of OK Lim's son, court rules
[SINGAPORE] A granddaughter of fallen oil tycoon Lim Oon Kuin has failed to persuade the court that three insurance policies that named her as the insured and worth half a million should not be part of her father's bankrupt estate. High Court Judicial Commissioner Mohamed Faizal on Tuesday (Jul 1) dismissed the application of Michelle Lim to declare that the three insurance policies in question are held on trust for her sole benefit by her father Lim Chee Meng, who became bankrupt in December 2024. Lim Chee Meng's bankruptcy stems from his agreement together with those of his father – better known as OK Lim – and sister in September 2024 to pay US$3.5 billion to the court-appointed liquidators of insolvent oil trader Hin Leong Trading and top creditor HSBC after a 50-day civil trial. They were sued in August 2020 for US$3.5 billion in debt and US$90 million in dividends that they allegedly paid themselves, even though their firm was already insolvent. In the settlement reached by both parties in the civil suit, the Lims agreed without acknowledging liability to pay US$3.5 billion plus interest accrued from April 2020 to the date of payment, on top of costs. They, however, did not have enough assets to pay all the claimants that have taken legal action against them, and applied for bankruptcy. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Leow Quek Siong and Seah Ron Lin, the private trustees of Lim Chee Meng's bankrupt estate had asked him and Michelle Lim whether a third party would pay the bankrupt estate the surrender value of these three policies, which was about S$521,000 as at Jan 16. The bankrupt estate's trustees would proceed to surrender these policies to AIA Singapore if no third party would pay for them. Michelle Lim contended that her father intended to hold these policies on trust for her until she turned 21 years old, after which he would transfer the policies to her name. Thus, she insisted that these policies do not form part of the 55-year-old's bankrupt estate and are not available to any of his creditors. The court noted that there was no legal documentation that formalised the arrangement for Lim Chee Meng to hold the policies for the benefit of Michelle Lim. Her policy documents also did not show any evidence of any trust arrangement between the father and daughter. Although Michelle Lim adduced four documents as evidence, the judge found that they were either self-interested representations or mere assertions. First, she referred to a letter in October 2021 from her father to carve out these policies, purportedly held on trust, from other assets subjected to a freezing order in the US$3.5 billion civil suit. Also, she cited another letter, purportedly from a personal wealth manager from AIA dated October 2021, claiming that these policies and five other policies with no surrender value were held on trust for her by her father. And, she relied on an e-mail dated March 2025 from Lim Chee Meng to the private trustees as well as a portion of his affidavit filed earlier for his bankruptcy proceedings and attached to the e-mail, in which he asserted that he held the policies on trust for her. The younger Lim claimed that her father had transferred other insurance policies to her two elder siblings when they each became old enough to hold the policies in their names. He did not surrender, assign or deal with the three policies without her consent or direction, even though he had financial needs before the bankruptcy, she argued. While Michelle Lim was named as the insured, the private trustees pointed out that she was not named as a beneficiary in the policy documents. They contended that the documents she submitted were all bare assertions, and that Lim Chee Meng did not transfer the three policies to Michelle Lim when she turned 21 years old in 2024 despite him having been reminded by AIA. The judge noted that all four pieces of documentary evidence relied on by Michelle Lim were dated after the commencement of the civil suit and her father's bankruptcy proceedings. The court should treat with caution assertions that valuable properties are held on trust for another, the judge added, especially when such assertions are made after legal proceedings have begun as the proceedings might result in bankruptcy or insolvency. 'Assertions, no matter how firmly expressed, cannot take the place of evidence; and in this case, the core claims comprised entirely of conclusions untethered to any corroborating factual account,' he commented. The judge also pointed out that the lack of direct evidence from Lim Chee Meng or Michelle Lim's elder siblings regarding the insurance policies he purportedly took out with her elder siblings as the named insured severely weakened her case.
