Swinburne inks pledge on 5R Green Campaign
KUCHING: Swinburne University of Technology recently signed a pledge for their 5R Green Campaign to spread awareness on sustainable lifestyle practices.
Pledging to practise the 5Rs – refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose and recycle – Swinburne’s Deputy Vice- Chancellor and chief executive officer Professor John Wilson and Wildlife Conservation Society ( WCS) director Dr Melvin Gurnal signed a reused bunting in a symbolic gesture here yesterday.
In his speech, Professor Wilson stressed the importance of practising environmentallyfriendly habits in our daily lives. “Our fi rst step to encourage staff and students was to ban plastic straws on campus from Feb 1, and we will be banning plastic bags and styrofoam boxes from food and drink operators on campus from May 1,” he said.
Meanwhile, Gurnal, who was invited as a guest speaker, urged those present at the ceremony to be aware of their own impact on the Earth.
“Every effort, from using cloth bags instead of accepting plastic bags when shopping, to bringing along tiffin carriers instead of expecting hawkers to provide food in styrofoam or plastic containers makes a difference,” Gurnal added.
He also showed those present some rubbish that had been collected, that were turned into artwork displayed at awareness booths, during beach clean- ups conducted by WCS and the Sarawak Eco-Warriors, which included members of the Swinburne Sarawak Green Club.
Other initiatives taken by Swinburne University include placing recycling bins at strategic points on campus, allowing staff and students to separate their waste and dispose of plastic bottles and aluminium cans to be recycled appropriately.
The Swinburne Sarawak Green Club also created drop- off boxes for paper waste, which would be repurposed into notebooks that are donated to children in needy communities, orphanages and non- governmental organisations.