Newsletter No. 200

CUHK Newsletter No. 200 4th April 2002 3 Cul t ivat ing a Green Spirit on Campus T he University held its second Environmental Protection Week from 12th to 20th March. Themed 'Waste Reduction and Resources Conservation', the event was aimed at encouraging staff and students to adopt the 'Four R's Strategy' in their daily lives: Reduce, Replace, Reuse, and Recycle. Workshop Major event s durin g th e wee k included a waste reduction workshop conducted by Dr. Gordon Ng, chair of the Conservancy Association on how Hong Kong can contribute to the fight against global wanning —how it can , fo r example , stabiliz e greenhouse ga s emission s b y reducing energy consumption. The workshop, which took place in the Ho Sin-Hang Engineering Building on 15th March, was complemented by an exhibition and a video show to introduce the concepts of waste reduction, recycling, and Hong Kong's Waste Reduction Framework Plan. Attending the workshop were students and staff, including a large number of minor staff. Ecotours Four ecotours were arranged on 18t h and 19th March to introduce students and staff of the University t o the rich flora and fauna on campus. The tours, which began at University Statio n and ended at the main entrance on Taipo Road, were led by graduate students of the Department o f Geography an d Resource Management. At the end of the last tour, Prof. Chan King-ming joined the participants i n planting an azalea shrub at the University's main entrance, and a small pot-plant, provided by the Landscape Section of the Estates Management Office , wa s give n t o eac h participant as a souvenir. ← Stopping to look at some of the University's trees ↓Planting an azalea shrub Talk On 20t h March , Ms . L i Lo k Sze , seasoned traveller, photographer , and artist , gav e a talk an d slid e show i n Y.C . Lian g hal l t o a n enthusiastic audienc e consistin g mainly of students. Ms. Li outline d how, years ago, she was captivated by pictures of the South Pole while working as an artist on an exhibition in th e Cit y Hall . Thi s initia l enchantment led her to embark on a lif e o f adventur e trave l an d campaigning for the green cause — she has been to the South Pole four times, the North Pole, seven times, as well as the Chomolungma summit (Mount Everest). She is currently assisting scientists by conducting science popularization work fo r the sake of environmental protection . In the talk, she cautioned that as the Arctic an d Antarctic circle s have an enormous influence over the global climate, pollution of those regions can result in disaster for all. The Environmental Protectio n Week is but a symbol of the University's continuou s efforts at environmental protection, and an opportunity to promote green concepts and awareness among the University community and the general public. Although activitie s for the week have come to a close, efforts are still ongoing at all levels of the Universit y and the green spirit i s still very much alive . Piera Chen Opening Ceremony The week kicked off with an opening and tree-planting ceremon y on 12t h March at the University Cultural Square. The guests at the ceremony included Mr. Donald Tong, deputy secretar y fo r the environment an d food, Mr . Thoma s Chan , directo r o f agriculture, fisheries, and conservation. Dr. Ellen Y.L Chan, assistant director (wast e facilities) o f environment protection, Mrs. Mei Ng , directo r o f Friends o f the Eart h and membe r o f th e Chines e Universit y Council, Dr . H o Kin-chung , vice - chairperson of Green Power, and, from the University, Prof . Arthu r K.C . Li , vice - chancellor, Prof . Li u Pak-wai , pro-vice - chancellor, an d Prof. Cha n King-ming , chairperson o f th e Universit y Steerin g Committee on Environment. On display on the occasion were energy-saving and quiet electric scooters , which were acquired by the Estates Management Office for use by their staf f a s a means o f transpor t o n campus. The University is the first among local tertiary institution s t o complet e a comprehensive environmenta l audi t an d launch a University-wide actio n plan t o protect it s campu s environment . It s firs t environmental report , released last year , provided detaile d informatio n abou t th e University's performanc e i n this respect , and dre w u p target s an d performanc e indicators for a University-wide action plan to go green and promote general awareness. Mr. Donald Tong (From left ) Mrs. Me i Ng , Mr. Donald Tong, Prof . Arthur K.C. Li, and Dr. Ho Kin-chung This include d replacemen t o f th e olde r school buse s an d fittin g ou t th e remainin g ones w i t h diese l o x i d a t i o n c a t a l y t i c converters. Th e secon d environmenta l report, Environmental Report 2001, wa s distributed a t th e openin g ceremon y o f Environmental Protectio n Week. The repor t sums u p th e University' s achievement s s o far, an d outline s l o n g - t e r m plan s f o r cleaning th e air , lowerin g noise , reducin g waste, protectin g waters , an d enhancin g environmental awareness . EMO's electric scooters Other event s hel d durin g th e wee k include d a flea marke t f r o m 13t h t o 20t h March , featuring booth s sellin g gree n foo d an d second-hand good s t o promote reus e an d wast e reduction, a Chines e debat e (upper) o n 14t h Ma r c h w i t h 'Shoul d th e Governmen t S u b s i d i z e t h e W a s t e Recycling Industry? ' a s th e motion, and a photo contest. Th e re wa s als o a p u b l i c forum (lower right) entitle d 'Is I n c i n e r a t i o n a Be t t e r Way t o Handl e th e Wast e Problem i n H o n g K o n g ? ' , held durin g lunc h o n 20t h M a r c h i n th e C u l t u r a l Square. Speaker s a t th e f o r u m i n c l u d e d representatives fro m th e government, Greenpeace , industry, an d a n exper t i n incineration. Forum Winning entry '末路' (Wasteland) of the photo contest