Articles

8:30am to 4:30pm
Venue: TR+ 49 & TR+ 50 (Business Library Block) and HDB Jurong East

Climate change is a global concern. One of the more pressing issues is global warming. An event that brings together individuals from over a hundred nations (170 this year) to combat this issue is Earth Hour. Earthlink NTU pioneered its own Earth Hour campaign alongside a workshop with the objective to raise awareness on climate change and educate individuals on actions that we would all undertake everyday to do our part in combatting it.

Earth Hour is a worldwide movement that encourages individuals to reduce energy consumption. It asks of individuals to reduce their carbon emission by turning off lights from 8:30pm to 9:30pm on the last Saturday of March as a symbol of commitment to the planet. It was first held in 2007 in Sydney, Australia and over the years has grown in scale  more than 170 countries showed their commitment this year. This year, the tagline for the global campaign was  Change Climate Change , as World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) recognized the worsening situation despite the ongoing efforts in recent years.

As a highly developed economy, Singapore contributes its share in carbon emission. In fact, carbon emission per person in Singapore is amongst one of the highest in the world according to a study in 2011, surpassing even the likes of UK and China. To make matters worse, Singapore, as an island city is extremely vulnerable to adverse effects of climate change such as floods. Thus in conjunction with the global movement, Earthlink had organized its very own Earth Hour campaign which included a workshop to enlighten the participants on environmental issues, more specifically, climate change, as well as an outreach session during which the members and some volunteers were engaged in encouraging Singapore residents in HDB flats to follow the act of switching off unnecessary lights. The residents were briefly elaborated on the consequences of climate change in Singapore s context, and what can they do to return the nature a favor. For instance, replacing the types of electrical appliances with their energy saving counterparts. As an appreciation token, the residents were also handed out cactus.

On the 23rd of March, Earthlink NTU held its flagship event, Greenfest. The theme this year is  Synergy – emphasizing the importance of individuals taking action and these actions developing synergy, leading to a significant overall impact. Greenfest Synergy 2015 was originally scheduled to run on the 23rd and 24th of March, from 9:30am to 5:30pm on both days. However, out of respect for Mr. Lee Kuan Yew, who had passed away that very morning, Greenfest Synergy 2015 was only held on the 23rd of March, from 9:30am to 3pm.

Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan, the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources attended the opening ceremony of Greenfest. He began his speech by telling the audience a few stories about Mr. Lee Kuan Yew, and his selfless devotion to the nation. Dr. Balakrishnan then talked about how Mr. Lee Kuan Yew always stressed the importance of sustainability to Singapore, as well as the importance of young people, as these two things will ensure that Singapore will continue to thrive for decades to come. He concluded that Mr. Lee Kuan Yew would have wanted him to attend the event, and encouraged everyone present to continue their efforts in making Singapore a greener place.

After the speech, Dr. Balakrishnan was invited to launch the Powerz mobile app, which was jointly developed by Energy Research Institute @ NTU (ERI@N), GDF Suez and Earthlink NTU. The app aims to develop NTU to a more energy efficient place while making it enjoyable for staffs and students alike to play. With the launch of the Powerz app, the opening ceremony ended.

This year, a large variety of organizations were invited to set up booths at Greenfest. These include environmental organizations like Nature Society Singapore, The Dorsal Effect, and The Pangolin Story, as well as companies like Toshiba and Tetra Pak. Earthlink NTU s various portfolios also hosted booths of their own, which detail the activities and events they have organized. Each booth hosted mini-games of their own, which were interactive and informative. When participants complete a mini-game, they received a stamp. Participants could exchange 7 stamps for a goodie bag and a small plant at the registration counter.

The event proved to be very informative, with many environmental organizations educating the participants on various things, from butterfly species in the forests of Singapore to the presence of pangolins in NTU. It is also very encouraging to see companies like Toshiba promote environmentally friendly practices such as refilling the used toner cartridges from their printers, as well as recycling the cartridges when they get too worn out. In future, Greenfest encourages more participants and organizers alike to participate, to promote sustainability and environmental awareness to the NTU community.

Following the subcommittee outing to Pasir Ris Park in the first semester, Earthlink organized yet another outing to a popular nature spot in Singapore  MacRitchie Reservoir, the country s first reservoir. Bordering it is the Central Catchment Nature Reserve, the largest nature reserve in Singapore which acts as a catchment area for the surrounding reservoirs. Home to over 500 animal species and 1600 species of flora, some endangered species are also found exclusively in the forest.

As part of the activities, the participants hiked along the designated walking trails through the forest. They were first divided into groups and led by experienced nature guides. Along the way, the participants were exposed to exotic plant and animal species, and a few significant trees as well, for example, the Singapore 5-dollar Tembusu tree. During the walk, some of the fortunate participants also came across some bizarre animals such as monitor lizards and skinks, not forgetting the commonly seen squirrels and monkeys. It was an unforgettable walk filled with nature wonders indeed.

And of course, the main attraction of MacRitchie is the reservoir itself. Apart from the trails through the forest, there are boardwalks skirting around the perimeter of the MacRitchie Reservoir. It allows nature lovers to enjoy the serenity of the reservoir while strolling along the water s edge. From these activities, the participants have learnt a few facts about the reservoir, and how it basically works. They also had the chance to walk on the bridge spanning the reservoir s floodgate. In a nutshell, the whole activity provided an opportunity for the participants to embrace the wonders of nature, and discovered new things about nature while doing so. The participants ended the journey sated, pleased and excited by the sights and education of the day.

On 21st March 2015, Earthlink NTU organized Singapore World Water Day 2015 at Jurong Lake, adopted by Earthlink NTU in 2012. This was the first time Earthlink had taken the responsibility of organizing the entire event. This year, the event worked on three themes  Water and Sustainable Development, Water Conservation and Water Problems Locally and Globally. The event was held in support of World Water Day, a globally celebrated movement pioneered by the UN in 1993.

World Water Day is especially meaningful to Singapore as Singapore has historically faced struggle with ensuring self-sufficiency of water supplies. Rolling out measures such as the construction of multiple reservoirs, desalination water plants and NEWater plant were implemented to improve its capabilities in this area.

Our Guest of Honor was Ms. Grace Fu, the Second Minister for the Environment and Water Resources graced the opening ceremony of the event. Ms. Fu delivered a speech emphasizing the importance of water conservation in Singapore. She tied in the views of then critically ill Mr. Lee Kuan Yew into the speech, noting that Mr. Lee had always placed a huge emphasis on water policy, even stating it to be paramount and that all other policies would  bow before water policy.

At the event, booths were set up at Pavilion Area at Jurong Lake. One of highlighted display was the mural done by River Valley High School which made up of 50000 water bottle caps. The mural brought across the message of conserving water, in order to sustain sufficient water supply. Moreover, the booth of Engineers Without Borders (EwB) Asia showcased a few sustainable engineering solutions which provide clean water to disadvantaged communities in developing countries. These include the LifeStraw, which allows one to suck up clean water from a water source, as well as Ceramic Pot Filter and Biosand Filter, both relatively small-scale and designed for use in household.

There was also the The Dorsal Effect s booth. They explained their aim of helping fishermen in Lombok, Indonesia in securing alternative livelihood that is promoting tourism industry in the area instead of hunting sharks for their fins which contributed to shark fins trade. Earthlink NTU, the event organizer, also set up our own booth showcasing the events we have held throughout the year. NTU Green and Sustainable Technologies and Nanyang Environment and Water Research Institute (NEWRI) were there with informative posters about water technologies and research.

Activities were also held during the event such as mass walk, mass qigong and a fishing  clinic , hosted by the NTU Anglers Club. The intent of the mass walk in particular was to symbolize how far people in developing countries often have to walk to obtain clean water. This was to encourage the particpants to be grateful for having clean water out from the tabs.

All in all, the event combined a myriad of activities and information booths which serve the best information and habits to promote and inculcate efficient water use.

Do you know what a pangolin is? Are you aware that Singapore still has pangolins?

In order to answer those two questions, and just to introduce this adorable mammal ( yes, they are mammals! ) to the people at NTU, Earthlink NTU s Nature Guiding committee held the Pangolins Rise Symposium on the 9th of March. The symposium featured 5 speakers from various organisations, with each of them talking about a different aspect of pangolins.

The first speaker- Ms. Natalia from The Pangolin Story, gave an introduction on what is a pangolin. Pangolins are insectivorous mammals, and usually prefers to dine on ants and termites with their long tongues. The most notable things about them are the scales covering most of their body- much like a suit of armour- and their tendency to curl up into a ball when threatened. Those two defensive adaptations combine to make pangolins nearly impervious to most predators; with the exception of one predator, of course. The strategy adopted by the pangolins obviously backfire when faced with poachers, who could just pick the pangolins up and go on their merry way. Pangolins are indeed found in Singapore; however, they are threatened by extinction. Pangolins have been sighted in several places such as Pulau Tekong, Pulau Ubin, and the Western Water Catchment Area. Pangolins would often wander into urban areas from the Western Water Catchment, which explains the numerous pangolin sightings at NTU, and the need to raise awareness among NTU students.

Next to speak was Mr. Ade from Wildlife Reserves Singapore, who works as a pangolin handler at the Singapore Zoo and is familiar with the captive management of pangolins. Pangolins are rarely found in zoos as they do not handle captivity well, and also because we lack information about them. Mr. Ade showed the audience various aspects of managing captive pangolins, like enclosure conditions, food, and enrichment activities. The Pangolins at Singapore Zoo are fed a mixture of raw beef, chicken eggs, mealworms, ant eggs, and various supplement powders (Do you feel hungry yet?). They are also brought for walks, and are allowed to forage in the forested areas nearby. Mr. Ade also talked briefly about their pangolin breeding program, which was a small success. However, they only managed 3 pangolin births over several years due to the difficulty in breeding pangolins.

The third speaker was Ms. Anbu from ACRES, which rescue wildlife trapped in urban settings. Ms. Anbu shared several cases of pangolin rescue with the audience. Pangolins have a tendency to get trapped in weird places when stressed by people, as evidenced by the time where they rescued a pangolin from a boat in Lim Chu Kang. Ms. Anbu also encouraged the audience to report to ACRES when they spot trapped wildlife.

The fourth speaker was Professor Stephan from NTU s very own SCELSE. Professor Stephan talked about the links between mitochondrial diversity and the risk of extinction faced by animals, and why it is important to sequence the mitochondrial genome. Basically, the less diverse the mitochondrial genome of a species, the more likely it is for that particular species to get wiped out by disease and changes in the environment. Therefore, it is very important to genomic sequencing on pangolins to find out the risk of them being extinct. This highlights the need for more research work on pangolins.

Last but not least, Dr. Chris from TRAFFIC talked about pangolins in wildlife trade. Due to the demand for pangolin scales as an ingredient in traditional medicine, and pangolin meat as a sort of luxury meat, pangolins have become the most poached wild animal in South East Asia. The low risks and high profits involved, as well as rampant corruption in the countries involved, caused a steep increase in wildlife poaching in the South East Asian region. As mentioned earlier, pangolins breed very slowly and is nearly impossible to farm, hence all of the pangolins being traded illegally are almost certainly poached from the wild. Dr. Chris also stresses the importance of research, as they need more facts to convince governments to implement measures against wildlife poaching.

Earthlink NTU held Keep Them E-Live on 10th and 11th of February 2015.

Keep Them E-Live was an event organized by Earthlink s Recycling Division, with the theme being the recycling of e-waste. The overall objective was to raise awareness regarding the recycling of e-waste and its various benefits. Also, the event was held to encourage the NTU community to become supporters of the recycling of e-waste and to practice it in their daily lives.

For Keep Them E-Live, Earthlink set up a few booths at the Pavilion, near TCT Lecture Theatre, in NTU. To attract people passing by to participate, Earthlink held a lucky draw. To take part, participants were required to visit the booths and meet specific targets to get at least 5 stamps on their stamp cards (obtained on registration at registration counter), which they could then redeem for a place in the draw. Participants of the lucky draw stood to win many attractive prizes, including Starbucks cards and tumblers as well as CapitaVouchers worth $50, $100 and $200 in total.

The E-Zoom booth featured informative posters about the benefits of recycling e-waste and other relevant facts, as well as an exhibit showing the process of how components of some electronic devices are recycled. The exhibit featured materials provided by Tes-AMM, a company which provides e-waste management solutions. After the posters and exhibit had been shown to participants and explained to them, the participants were quizzed to test their learning.

At the E-Print booth, participants were shown how much resources could be saved by recycling different types of e-waste, and had the concept of their carbon footprint explained to them. They were given suggestions regarding habit changes they could make in their daily lives to reduce their carbon footprints, and asked if they wished to fill up a pledge card with one habit they intended to change.

There were two game booths, E-Tour and E-Toss. At E-Toss, participants were made aware of the 4 RENEW e-waste bins located on the NTU campus, with one on-site for display purposes. They were also asked to separate items into two different  bins , one for e-waste and the other not. Some info on what e-waste was recyclable was given. E-Tour involved matching countries with statistics and policies fitting the event theme.

E-Live showcased the lifecycle of e-waste, with the booth helpers also sharing how recycling e-waste can close the loop and reduce net e-waste. Models made using various recycled materials were used, including high-rise building models made with used milk cartons.

At the E-Snap booth, participants were encouraged to take a photo with their pledge cards from E-Print and share it on Facebook and Instagram with the public appending the hashtag #keepthemElive, in order to promote e-waste recycling.

One booth was dedicated to Powerz, a mobile application supported by collaboration between Earthlink, NTU and French utility company GDF SUEZ, which undertook app development. The app aims to utilize the power of gamification and a significant community of users to promote energy efficiency in NTU. It is scheduled for release on the App Store and Google Play Store between late February and early March.

Considering the relative obscurity of e-waste recycling, Keep Them E-Live would definitely have proven to be an eye-opener for all participants. Hopefully, those who have participated in the event will remember and keep in mind what they have learnt and become, if not ardent, then steady supporters and advocates of the recycling of e-waste. Then, the efforts of the Recycling division in organizing this event will have proven fruitful  and Mother Earth will likely benefit as well.

It is fifteen minutes past twelve. The talk will not start until 30 minutes later, but Dr. Jane is going to arrive any time now. There I was, standing outside the lecture theatre with Kah Fei (one of the event photographers), Stephany (the Nature Guiding Director), and Ruskin (Earthlink s President). I busied myself with fidgeting in the corner.

 Are you excited? Stephany asked me.

 Very , I answered plainly- I knew that I would stumble over my words if I gave her a longer answer.

She smiled, and looked at the file she was carrying.  You know, more than 600 people registered for her talk.

 Can the lecture theatre even hold that many people? I asked.

 The lecture theatre can only seat 577 people, but we are expecting that some people wouldn t be able to make it. However, I was still getting emails from people yesterday night, asking if we have any seats left. Stephany replied.

Ruskin turned around to face us.  Of course, Dr. Jane is incredible; legendary even. 300 people registered on the third day we opened the registration. We already expected the theatre to be pretty packed.

I could tell that Stephany and Ruskin were at least as nervous as I am, which I guess is perfectly normal. Dr. Jane Goodall is, as Ruskin had put it, legendary in her own right. Known as  The Woman Who Redefined Man , Dr. Jane Goodall had spent more years researching chimpanzees than I have been alive. Now, she focuses her efforts on conservation, and travels around the globe regularly to promote her Roots & Shoots initiative. How would anyone not be nervous to meet such a figure face-to-face?

10 minutes later, there is a flurry of activity as staff from the Jane Goodall Institute gather near us to escort Dr. Jane when she arrives. I spot a black sedan driving towards us, and see Dr. Jane sitting in the front passenger seat. As the car comes to a stop, Ruskin hurries over to escort her out of the front seat. After a brief introduction, we led Dr. Jane to a waiting room. As everyone got seated, Ruskin explains the schedule to Dr. Jane.

 So, we need you to talk for about 45 minutes. Said Ruskin.

 Only 45? I m not sure if that s enough, Dr. Jane said with a smile.  I m 80 after all; I have lots of stories to tell.

With laughter filling the room, I could feel my anxiety getting washed away. We spent the next 15 minutes talking about various things, the most interesting topic being how Dr. Jane disliked giving talks while seated- according to her, it is hard to breathe if she talks while sitting. (To those of you who came that day, you may recall that she did not use the armchair even once during the entire duration of the talk.)

Soon enough, it was time for Dr. Jane s talk. We took a longer path around to get to the back of the lecture theatre. I entered along with the group, and was instantly greeted by the magnificent sight of a theatre packed to the brim with excited people. I briefly marvelled at her popularity while hurrying to an empty seat. After a short introduction by the emcee, Dr. Jane stepped up to the podium to speak.

She took a deep breath, and let out a long chimpanzee cry.

The audience fell silent.

Dr. Jane smiled a little and said,  That means:  I am Jane; I am here in chimpanzee.

As the audience exploded into a thunderous applause, I felt a smile on my face- I knew that the next hour was going to be very interesting.

After the applause has died down, Dr. Jane started talking about the story of young Jane. She described herself as a curious child, and told the audience of the time when she hid in a chicken coop for a few hours just to find out how hens laid eggs. Of course, no one knew where she was, and her mother was worried sick looking for her. However, when they finally found Jane, her mother did not reprimand her with harsh words; instead, Jane s mother listened patiently to her excitedly sharing her findings.

Dr. Jane then went on to talk about the book that inspired her dream of going to Africa: Tarzan of the Apes. She admired Tarzan for being close with nature, but jokingly said that Tarzan had married the wrong Jane. Even though times were tough back then, her mother always supported her dreams. Jane s mother told her to work hard for things that she really wanted, and she did. I noticed some parents among the audience members, and I am sure that this was an excellent lesson in child upbringing for many of them.

After that, Dr. Jane briefly talked about how she saved up money working as a waitress, the magic of her first voyage to Africa, how she met Louis Leakey and became his secretary, and how he secured funding for her research in Tanzania. However, she needed someone to accompany her; and her mother volunteered. Dr. Jane recalls how her mother encouraged her when she was worried that the expedition would fail. Sadly, her mother left before the breakthrough discovery of tool use in chimpanzees.

Dr. Jane also describes how similar humans and chimpanzees were. Chimpanzees are capable of acts of love and altruism, as evidenced by how Spindle, a 12-year old male, adopted Mel- a totally unrelated orphaned child. On the other hand, chimpanzees can also perform acts of violence like hunting down other chimpanzees from neighbouring groups. Dr. Jane goes on to describe evidences of intelligence in other animals, such as those demonstrated by crows and octopuses. This reinforces the need for actions to be taken to preserve the habitats of not just chimpanzees, but various other animals around the world. As Dr. Jane puts it herself:  After all, we are part of, not separated from, the rest of the animal kingdom.

She then talked about why she turned to environmental conservation, and questioned the reason for people nowadays to no longer think about what effect their actions may have on the future generations, but only about the immediate effects on themselves. Dr. Jane also talked about why she founded the Roots and Shoots Program – to empower young people and to listen to their voices.  Every single one of us makes a difference every single day, she asserts. At the same time, Dr. Jane also gives us reasons to have hope for the future – resilience of nature, human intellect, and the indomitable human spirit. She concludes her talk by saying that we must act to change the world now, and  Never say that we can t do it. Just simply say we must do it, and therefore we will use our collective brains to make it happen; because we can. Because we must.

As the audience delivers a deafening ovation, I notice that my eyes are dry. I instantly realise that my gaze had been fixed on Dr. Jane for the whole time she was talking. That charisma of hers is what makes the Jane Effect so strong, after all.

The audience is then invited to ask Dr. Jane some questions. One member of the audience asked Dr. Jane if there is anything we can learn about war by studying chimpanzees. Dr. Jane started her answer by referencing Louis Leakey s theory on how humans and chimpanzees shared a common ancestor. She believes that humans did indeed inherit aggression from this common ancestor, but does not believe that war is inevitable. Dr. Jane also believes that humans possess enough intellect to supress this violent instinct, and thinks that most major wars are motivated by greed instead of such instincts.

With all questions answered, the talk ended. Ruskin was invited on stage to present gifts to Dr. Jane: an orang-utan plush toy and an Earthlink T-shirt. As Dr. Jane descends the stage, a mother and her child present her with a drawing. Dr. Jane accepts it with a smile and agrees to a photo together. Seeing this makes me realise just how much of an inspiration she is to everyone; young and old alike.

As she leaves the lecture theatre, I recall something she said during the talk:

 I ll tell you that every single one of you in here, every one, has an in
domitable human spirit. Just let it out, let it out and you are capable of changing the world a lot more than you think right now.

I smile, and instinctively know that Dr. Jane Goodall will continue to inspire people from around the world for many, many years to come.

On 24th January 2015, fellow Earthlinkers were invited to attend the launching of EcoClick 2015 Nature Photo Competition in Bukit Batok Nature Park from 8.30am to 1.00pm.

The participants were welcomed by the fresh air and morning breeze. The sight of people exercising and walking their pets were simply energizing. Participants hiked to a nearby pagoda and gathered there for a short briefing about the itinerary.

During the nature walk, participants were able to capture a glimpse of Bukit Batok s natural beauty while leisurely strolling down the brick paths. Interestingly, the brick path is laid in a pattern such that it allows water to drain and provides grip for footing. Crossing hills and rough terrains, participants were able to appreciate the various plantations sprouting around the park, for example, rubber trees, Simpuh Air and orchids. Little critters such as squirrels were seen chasing and playing tag while monitor lizards were present to sunbath and enjoy the scenery at the same time. Participants were also lucky enough to observe birds such as woodpeckers in their natural habitat.

After numerous captivating moments captured in photos, participant arrived at a lake that was once a quarry, which runs deep and still. After a short break, the launching event took place. The members of Nature Guiding portfolio presented a short skit with a 10 storeys high cliff wall as backdrop, truly one-of-the-kind experience for the participants.

Near the end of the event, participants were provided some light refreshments to replenish some energy after the tiring but rewarding hike across Bukit Batok Nature Park. At close to 12.30pm, participants boarded the chartered bus back NTU after taking a group photo to capture the moment.

On the 1st of February 2015, Earthlink NTU was invited to set up a booth for ECo Day Out 2015, organised by South West CDC to encourage local residents to recycle more. Earthlink s subcommittee members from the Events Executive External (EEE) portfolio arrived an hour before the starting ceremony to set up the booth. After an opening speech by Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan and Ms. Low Yen Ling, the mayor of the South West District, the event was started. Almost immediately, a small crowd had gathered in front of Earthlink s booth.

Earthlink s booth hosted a mini-game where participants had to sort 5 items into recyclable waste and non-recyclable waste bins. Participants were presented with various waste items such as batteries, drink cans and packets, plastic wrappers, and tissue. Those who could successfully sort the items into their respective bins were gifted with a small cactus plant. Apart from that, if the participant listened to a short explanation about small things everyone could do to help the environment, they are awarded a stamp. When they successfully collect 5 stamps from the various booths in the area, they could exchange it at the main counter for a goodie bag.

The cactus plants proved popular, as there was no shortage of people visiting the booth. Earthlink s members did not get a moment s rest throughout the event- they were busy keeping the crowd in line, conducting the mini-game, and handing out the plants. Most people that visited the Earthlink booth were surprised to learn that some items, such as batteries and plastic drink bottles can be recycled. In fact, the booth was educational to the people that hosted it as well- EEE subcommittee Richmond admitted that he did not know that batteries are recyclable before this event.  We could only start recycling batteries en masse recently, as the methods used weren t efficient enough before. he added.

Apart from Earthlink s booth, many other booths also hosted interesting activities. The National Parks Board taught participants how to weave pandan leaves into various things like grasshoppers, roses, and fish, while the Repair Kopitiam taught participants how to change faulty wires and fuses, use drills and saws, and basic DIY in general to discourage people from simply buying new things when something breaks.

After a hectic 2 hours, the last of the plants were handed out. As Earthlink s members finish packing up the booth, all of us were invited to lunch by the organizers. South West CDC staff members were surprised by the fact that we brought our own lunchboxes and cutlery, and commented that they should make that a standard practice among their staff. EEE director Lim Jin Way was happy with everyone s efforts, and was pleased to call the event a success.

While many realize the importance of recycling in conserving the environment, they may not always know how or where to begin. Fortunately for NTU students, there was a recycling drive organized by Earthlink last December. The recycling drive is a biannual event, held during the ends of both semesters every year.

It is vital and urgent to promote the notion of recycling and its value particularly amongst the youths.There is only one landfill in Singapore, the Semakau Landfill. It is estimated that it would be completely filled by 2035. In fact, this is the case for many places around the world too. An event such as this is necessary indeed in the efforts to reduce waste by changing waste materials into new products. What s worth mentioning here is not only did this campaign bring awareness to the students, it also brought along convenience so that the students could exercise the practice of recycling from within their comfort zones, as they did not have to go through the hassle of carrying the waste to recycling centres. Throughout this 1-month campaign, recycle bins were located outside the examination halls and at the halls of residence. Papers, clothes, plastic bottles and other recyclables were some of the common waste received from the students.

There was also a 2-day door-to-door collection where there were approximately 50 Earthlinkers being deployed to the hostels in NTU. Students were approached in their place of residence and recyclables were collected from them. Overall, the response was pretty good and by the end of the campaign, a total of 900kg of recyclables were collected from the bins as well as from door-to-door collection.

Recycling is a key component of modern waste reduction, hence on-going efforts are truly needed to ensure the habit of recycling will be instilled among people. Look for the recycle bins near you and start doing the nature a favor now.