WaterWays Watch Society

WaterWays Watch Society (WWS) is a volunteer society formed since 1997. As a Non-Government Organisation (NGO), our society has been working very closely with government agencies like PUB, NEA and most recently NParks in the engagement and education of people on the need to keep our waterways clean and litter-free (in particular the Singapore River). Our mission as a volunteer organisation is to focus on education and developing awareness on the need for a clean environment.

Our Activities

Our activities include presentations/talks to the general public, corporates, community groups, especially schools, with participation in events like Clean and Green Week, International Coastal Clean-Up, World Water Monitoring Day etc. Our volunteer members, now over 130 strong, perform regular weekend Boat and Bicycle Patrols covering the Marina Reservoir. The long-term plan is to also extend our patrols on weekdays and the evenings. We also conduct environmental camps under our Camp Enviro-Awareness programme which is mainly catered for primary school students.

Achievements by our group have earned us endorsement from PUB and NEA and today, we work with NParks under their Park Watchers programme. We have been mentioned in Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s National Day Rally in November 2006 and presented with the President’s Environmental Award in the same year. In 2007, we were awarded the PUB’s Watermark Honorary Award for our work.

Contact Us

Address: Waterways Watch Society, 4876 Beach Road, Singapore 199587

Email: wwwsociety@pacific.net.sg

Website: http://wws.org.sg/

OneEcoStep

OneEcoStep is dedicated to provide Earth friendly and sustainable products. We provide 100% organic cotton bedsheets (sizes ranging from baby cot to king) and also natural soap, Soap Nut. One soap for all – laundry, window, car, pets, and dish. Just pluck from tree and into the washing machine. No chemical, no manufacturing process involved.

Tel: 65-8113 2204

Email: contact@oneecostep.com.sg

Website: www.OneEcoStep.com.sg

Jane Goodall Institute (Singapore)

In 1977, Dr Jane Goodall founded the Jane Goodall Institute for Wildlife Research, Education and Conservation to provide ongoing support for field research on wild chimpanzees. Today, the mission of the Jane Goodall Institute is to advance the power of individuals to take informed and compassionate action to improve the environment for all living things. The Institute is a leader in the effort to protect chimpanzees and their habitats and is widely recognized for establishing innovative community-centered conservation and development programs in Africa and the Roots & Shoots education program in nearly 100 countries.

The Jane Goodall Institute (Singapore), known as JGIS and an affiliate of the Jane Goodall Institute headquartered in the United States, was officially established in Singapore on 24 September 2007. JGIS has already had numerous successes including:

• Expansion from 2 to 13 Roots & Shoots groups in schools in Singapore
• A widely publicized visit to Singapore in October – November 2007 by Dr Jane that started with a key note address at the NVPC conference and culminated in the Wildlife Stampede in the Singapore Botanic Gardens that attracted 1,500 participants
• Greater awareness and promotion activities to protect the environment, protect animals and help people

The goals of JGIS mirror the global JGI goals that include support for issues related to our relationship with each other, the environment and other animals as well as primate and habitat conservation. To make it even simpler, JGIS uses a shorthand goal that we say is to “Save the Planet”. JGIS activities are designed to support the key objectives of JGIS.

Roots & Shoots

Development and expansion of Roots & Shoots is a core activity for JGIS in 2008. JGIS plans to develop common themes for Roots & Shoots groups in order to encourage more cooperation among groups. An example would be focusing on Reduce, Reuse and Recycle, with groups sharing ideas on how to reduce, where to recycle or other practices. Themes chosen by students are likely to be most effective in galvanizing action.

As the number of R&S groups grows in Singapore, new groups can learn from established groups and established groups can build their leadership expertise by sharing best practices with the new groups. Processes will be set up for sharing of best practices with new groups by established groups. While many groups are in schools, Roots & Shoots companies and non-profit organizations can also form Roots & Shoots groups.

Other opportunities for R&S in 2008 include:

• Outreach programs to schools, supported by MOE, to sign up more schools
• Other activities designed to share best practices
• Student-led networking sessions among all schools or school clusters
• Participation in student conferences and leadership activities abroad
• Joint activities with other groups and potential expansion into other non-profit groups

Contact

Address: 140 Robinson Road #05-02, Singapore 068907

Tel: 6323 5188

Email: hartung@starhub.net.sg

Web site: www.janegoodall.org (Singapore site coming soon)

Note: This article and image are provided by JGIS.

SG Recycle – All you need to know about recycling in Singapore

SG Recycle is a new blog that we set up and it is all about recycling in Singapore. It goes live today and the first post is What is Recycling?. A sneak preview:

Recycling refers to the processing of used and waste materials into new materials and products…. Recycling is one of the 3 ‘R’s – Reduce, Reuse, Recycle (in order of sequence) in waste management…. Recycling is not THE solution to our overconsumption and waste problem. Recycling is only ONE of the waste management solutions to reduce the disposal of waste to our incineration plants and landfill, and encourage the reuse of used and waste materials…. Recycling is here to stay. Either you choose to criticise it and don’t practise recycling. Or you can make it work and encourage others to recycle.

Our future articles will allow you to learn about the different types of waste materials that are recycled, how to recycle them, the different recycling programmes, the locations of recycling bins, the various recycling companies, and examples of recycling in other countries.

We decided to have a blog dedicated to recycling because we feel that there are still many people who lack knowledge on recycling in Singapore and some who have misconceptions and criticisms about recycling. Some critics of recycling that we met include:

• Top ex-government official in the environment agency
• Head of a local environmental group
• Karang guni man (rag and bone man) who always complain when he sees our recycling bag and says that it’s a waste of time

Sure, recycling has its flaws and it’s not the best solution for managing our waste. But we think recycling deserves some merit for diverting our waste away from the incineration plants and landfill. There is still much improvement in our recycling habits but it will improve with more education and practise. So SG Recycle is one resource to help you on your recycling journey.

Event: Clean Energy and Sustainable Development Forum

Venue: Singapore Business Federation Seminar Room 2, 10 Hoe Chiang Road, #21-01 Keppel Towers, Singapore 089315

This forum is jointly organised by the Singapore Environment Institute (SEI), the Singapore Business Federation (SBF) and the Sustainable Energy Association of Singapore (SEAS). Various speakers will present key findings of the Clean Energy and Sustainable Industry Survey, highlight issues and challenges faced by companies,  and identify incentive schemes and opportunities for companies in the clean energy, climate change and sustainable development sectors. More details and registration at the SEI website.

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