Episode #9 - Will Fan (in English): an Australian entrepreneur with Chinese and Vietnamese heritage living in Singapore (episode in English)

The Banana Split Project

Welcome to The Banana Split Project, where I collect stories from Western Asians - so-called "bananas" - coming back to Asia! My name is Viviane Salin, I am French with a Chinese/Indonesian heritage, I've lived in Singapore since 2006, and this is my first episode in English. So far I've had 8 episodes in French with French Asians living in Singapore.

Today, I am very happy to discuss Western Asian history and identity with Will Fan, who was born and bred in Sydney, graduated in the US, and lived in Dubai and Shanghai before settling down in Singapore 5 years ago. His parents came from Macau and Vietnam, and worked hard to give him the best chances to succeed later in life.

Will is a typical example of a successful son of Asian immigrants, who left their country to look for a better future, escaped a war-torn country and built a new life in a Western country, in this case Australia, while other parts of the family went to the US. He went to Singapore for business opportunity and co-founded New Campus, a lifelong learning company.

Together we will talk about his parents' journey, his youth in Sydney, but also casual racism in Australia. We'll explore Westernized Asians' multiple identities, what it is to be an Asian expat in Asia, and why it is important to share our culture and vision now.

Listen, and give me your feedback: [e-mail]

For more info, and to see photo/video of our guests, follow our Facebook and Instagram, and visit www.bananasplitproject.com.

I am also looking for more testimonials, so if you are a "banana" living in Asia, and feel you have a story to share, please reach out to me!