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The following is issued on behalf of the Environmental Campaign Committee:
The Environmental Campaign Committee (ECC) held the World Environment Day (WED) 2014 publicity event today (June 5) at Plaza Hollywood, Diamond Hill to promote the "Eat wise, Waste less" green living lifestyle.
Officiating at the event were the Secretary for the Environment, Mr Wong Kam-sing; the Chairman of the ECC, Mr Lam Chiu-ying; the Permanent Secretary for the Environment/ Director of Environmental Protection, Ms Anissa Wong; and representatives of supporting organisations, namely the Hong Kong Housing Authority, Hong Kong Housing Society and Hong Kong Association of Property Management Companies Limited.
Addressing the event, Mr Wong said that Hong Kong's daily per capita solid waste generation rate is higher than that of neighbouring cities and that 40 per cent of our waste is food waste. He encouraged members of the public to start reducing food waste generation in daily life and to spread the message of environmental education with a view to achieving the target of reducing food waste by 40 per cent by 2022.
During today's event, a representative of the winner of the ECC's other signature programme, the Hong Kong Awards for Environmental Excellence (HKAEE), shared experiences and insights on food waste reduction. Star chef, Miss Kit Mak, also performed a cooking demonstration using food trimmings, and shared green recipes and cooking tips with the audience.
The ECC organised a series of educational programmes in the school year 2013-14 including the "Use Less, Waste Less in My Hands" Campaign and "Waste Less School" Internet Platform, to encourage students to "go green" by taking environment-friendly action at school and at home. During today's event, the organiser announced the launch of phase 1 educational materials for the "Waste Less School" Internet Platform. Prizes were also presented to the winning schools and students of competitions under the "Use Less, Waste Less in My Hands" Campaign and the "2014 ECC MTR Environmental Award for Schools" sponsored by the MTR Corporation. Students' winning entries were also showcased in the exhibition set up at the venue.
Also launched at today's event was a roving exhibition which aims to convey the message of resource conservation and food waste reduction using display panels and interactive game booths. The exhibition will run from June to August. The ECC's Student Environmental Protection Ambassadors will introduce visitors to WED and brief them on the exhibition panels at some roving exhibition venues. The exhibitions are scheduled as follows:
Date Venue
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June 5 Plaza Hollywood, Diamond Hill
June 7 to 8 Ocean Park Hong Kong
June 13 to 18 Hong Kong Science Museum
June 20 to 22 Metro City Plaza III,
Tseung Kwan O
June 25 to 30 Hong Kong Wetland Park
July 3 to 8 Po Leung Kuk Jockey Club
Tai Tong Holiday Camp
July 10 to 15 Po Leung Kuk Pak Tam Chung
Holiday Camp
July 19 to 20 Yau Lai Shopping Centre,
Yau Tong
July 21 to August 1 Millennium City Phase V (apm),
Kwun Tong
The United Nations has been celebrating WED on June 5 every year since 1972 to encourage worldwide efforts to protect the environment.
Founded in 1990, the ECC aims to enhance public participation to protect the environment. It holds promotion events for WED every year and organises environmental programmes including the HKAEE, the Hong Kong Green School Awards and the Student Environmental Protection Ambassador Scheme. Information on ECC's programmes and activities is available at www.ecc.org.hk.
Ends/Thursday, June 5, 2014
Issued at HKT 18:44
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