• Environment Fair Fun • Green Sharing by the Youth
Environment Fair Fun
On 23 and 24 April, CUHK Jockey Club Initiative Gaia (Gaia) held another successful environment fair and Museum of Climate Change (MoCC) roadshow in Metro City Plaza II in Tseung Kwan O, attracting over 37,000 visitors. The theme of the 2016 fair, Gaia’s signature annual event, was ‘climate change and biodiversity’, and the aim was to promote a green, low-carbon lifestyle using interactive information and game booths.
One of the audience’s favourites was Chung Ying Theatre Company’s first public performance of its original play, The Drama of Climate Change. Oriented to primary and secondary school students to raise awareness of climate change, the play was a definite crowd pleaser at the fair.
A highlight of the MoCC exhibit was an appealing panoramic virtual tour of the museum to enhance awareness of climate change and to inspire and encourage visitors to visit the MoCC for a more holistic experience. Toby, one of the MoCC interns, said the brief walk through the MoCC Virtual Tour Booth seem to have attracted a lot of interest in visiting the actual museum. The virtual tour was followed by a quiz and a chance to win a souvenir—the winners seemed to like the limited-edition MoCC eco-bags a lot!
The New York-based Rare Animals Really Endangered (R.A.R.E.), a strategic partner of Gaia, used art to raise environmental awareness of the public. Matthew, one of the participants, said he was especially affected by the R.A.R.E. exhibit, particularly the rainbow artwork a German artist produced from beach rubbish, and the contaminated samples of HK sea water, full of plastic and other waste. He said this was an eye-opener for him and made him more aware of the importance of reducing plastic waste to protect our marine wildlife and our health, and to ensure a healthy, sustainable food supply.
Among the other activities at the popular annual event were exhibits by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, which introduced its Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan to better conserve biodiversity in Hong Kong, and the Jockey Club Charities Trust, which encouraged citizens to live a greener life through a variety of environmental community outreach programmes. China Holiness Church Living Spirit College showcased its innovative Organic Farming and Environmental Education Park, and the Environmental Association presented the lovely Fung Yuen Butterfly Reserve, using engaging interactive environmental games.
MoCC interns introduced the aquaponics concept (growing fish and plants together in an integrated system) and put on a fascinating demonstration on how to make a simple aquaponics system. Toby, one of the interns involved in the aquaponics demonstration, said that a number of visitors were interested in learning how to apply the aquaponics system in a home setting and that there was a lot of communication among participants, partners and visitors about adopting a green lifestyle. Participant Sin-ting reflected on the flexibility of the aquaponics concept, which can be applied to large-scale food production or inexpensive small-scale home use, using just a recycled plastic bottle, a piece of wood and cotton. She pointed out that this simple system can help us produce food while reducing and reusing waste, and learn about the interaction of living things.
What will make the Gaia environment fair even better next year?
by Paul Paskewitz
Green Sharing by the Youth
A Green Leadership Camp was organised by Gaia in July 2015, to nurture green pioneers on school campuses and future leaders for a green society. Eighty students from 20 schools went through a competitive review process and were selected for the leadership camp. The four-day camp included talks by speakers from CUHK and environmental organisations, a workshop on organising green campaigns conducted by professional trainers, and an opportunity for the students to design their own green campaigns—which have subsequently benefited over 10,000 students and members of the public. Let’s see what some of the students have to say about their experience.
