From Trailing Spouse to Trailblazer

FLEUR MAIDMENT is an Australian environmental scientist whose expat posting in Singapore helped put the plight of another regional country on her radar - including its issues with water quality.

- LIZ COWARD

After moving here in 2016, Fleur balanced caring for the family’s teenage children with taking the well-trodden path of familiarising herself with Singapore by hiking the island’s trails and exploring the city’s culture and history. She also became heavily involved in ANZA, designing trips for both newcomers and old hands with their tours committee.

Fleur most enjoyed discovering Singapore’s multiculturalism – “the richness of Chinatown, Kampong Glam and Little India; the diverse food that ranged from a roll of popiah at the local hawker centre to multi-course degustation menus at some of the city’s luxurious venues such as Zen and Born,” she says. “I also loved paddle boarding from Ola Beach Club and seeing the sea birds, otters, flying fish and occasional turtle and, of course, travelling further afield and exploring the wonders of Southeast Asia.”

In a hint of things to come, Fleur also supported One Planet on its beach cleanups, and Tabitha, a Cambodian charity supporting women’s homewares; she also completed a teaching course in English as a Second Language.

However, in 2018, during one of her visits home to Australia, Fleur met Tha Blay Sher, a former Karen refugee from Myanmar. They were both attending a local Rotary meeting to hear a presentation on water filters. It had piqued Tha Blay’s interest because her relatives in Myanmar were regularly suffering from stomach upsets. She suspected this was caused by the local water supply and was keen to purchase a water filter. Hearing this, Fleur suggested that “she put some science behind it first”, and offered to accompany Tha Blay on her next visit to Myanmar.

On the ground in Myanmar