Run by elected and volunteer members, the Society depends financially on subscriptions and donations from its members, sales from its publications as well as donations companies, institutions and individuals.

Regular activities include guided local nature walks, slide talks and overseas eco-trips. These can be of either general nature interest or specialist in relation to birds, other vertebrates, butterflies, plants, and intertidal or marine zones. The Singapore Bird Race is in its 26th year, and a programme of regular island-wide censuses of birds is now in its twentieth year. Most activities are for older teenagers and adults, but the Society also has monthly Fun with Nature programmes for youngsters aged 5 – 9 years, and a related sponsored programme for primary schools. Activities are announced in its Nature News newsletter every two months, whilst it also produces a quarterly magazine, Nature Watch.

The Society is at any time involved in a number of book projects, conservation or restoration projects and data gathering on specific areas for feedback to government and other bodies on proposed developments in or adjacent to nature reserves and nature areas.

In the past the Society successfully persuaded the government to set aside and manage Sungei Buloh as a wetlands park, which was so successful that it was later enlarged and gazetted as a nature reserve. It was also able to stave off, through its Environmental Impact Assessment report, proposals to develop part of the Peirce Forests, in the Central Catchment Nature Reserve, into a golf course. It has relocated corals from several areas in advance of reclamation projects, and it joined with other nature groups to provide information to the government on the rich biodiversity of Chek Jawa, at Pulau Ubin, which led to the government deferring proposed land reclamation. It has published numerous conservation-oriented and biodiversity-based reports, checklists and guides, of which one of the earliest was the ground-breaking Master Plan for the Conservation of Nature in Singapore (1990).

Publications over the past 18 months have been “A Fieldguide to the Butterflies of Singapore” (February 2008) by the Butterfly Interest Group, and “Wild Animals of Singapore” (March 2008) by the Vertebrate Study Group and “The Singapore Red Data Book” detailing threatened species of animals (November 2008) and “Avifauna of Singapore” and “The State of Singapore’s Birds” by the Bird Group (May 2009). The Conservation Volunteers group has an active two-year old rescue and research programme in relation to Horseshoe Crabs at Kranji shoreline. In November 2008 the Society adopted Kranji Reservoir under the Public Utilities Board 3P programme, at to date is engaged in volunteer-based baseline surveys to help in conservation and restoration of the fringing freshwater marshland, public walks and training of additional guides for public walks.

Visit the Nature Society (Singapore) at http://www.nss.org.sg/.

Note: This article and images are provided by NSS.

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/

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.

Founded in 2003, ECO Singapore aims to challenge youth of age 17-35 to adopt a sustainable lifestyle and embrace environmental issues holistically. ECO Singapore actively drives and supports local and global environmental initiatives involving other environmental stakeholders. The organisation is run and managed mainly by volunteers in five departments: Forum Planning, International Affairs, Marketing and Communications, Publications and Research, and Volunteer Management and Development.

Our Vision

To be the leading environmental body advocating sustainable lifestyle for youth.

Our Mission

1. To challenge youth of age 17-35 to adopt a sustainable lifestyle and embrace environmental issues holistically.
2. To drive local and global environmental initiatives.
3. To support environmental activities/initiatives as a resource platform involving other environmental stakeholders.

Our Activities and Projects

• Enrich! – education programme
• Express! – quarterly publication
• EcoHouse – model of sustainable housing
• Eco Shop – sale of environmentally friendly products
• Eco Packaging Movement – team-up with food sellers to use environmentally friendly packaging
• National Youth Environment Forum – youth-led dialogue
• DunkIt! – National Day Parade clean-up
• UN Commission on Sustainable Development – participant
• Asia Youth Environmental Network – secretariat
• Asia-Europe Foundation – country representative

Contact Us

Address: 87 Beach Road, Chye Sing Building #06-01, Singapore 189695

Fax: 6336 0959

Email: marketing@eco-singapore.org

Website: www.eco-singapore.org

Note: This article and image are provided by ECO Singapore.

Established in 1995, the Singapore Environment Council (SEC) is the umbrella organisation for green groups in Singapore. The Council champions activities and needs of all who are concerned about protecting the environment. SEC core activities includes publicising key green issues, co-ordinating national projects and leading island-wide response to major environmental challenges. Over the years, SEC has given strength and bearing to the environmental movement here. The Council is an independently managed, non-government, non-profit organisation, with the status of an institution of public character.

SEC’s mission statement is to educate, inspire and assist individuals, business organisations and environmental groups to care for and protect the environment.

Some of SEC’s more prominent projects include the Climate Change Awareness Programme, Project Eco-Office, Singapore Environmental Achievement Awards, Schools’ Green Audit Awards and Green Transport Week. The quarterly magazine, Elements, seeks to increase readers’ awareness of environmental issues. In addition, SEC also boosts of a strong volunteer arm – the Green Volunteers Network (GVN) – which translates awareness into action.

Email: info@sec.org.sg

Website: www.sec.org.sg

Address: 1 Cluny Road, House No. 3, Singapore 259569

Note: This article and images are provided by SEC.

About Japan for Sustainability (JFS)

Japan for Sustainability is a non-profit organization. We share information on developments and activities originating in Japan that lead toward sustainability, with the aim of building momentum toward a sustainable path for the world.

Japan for Sustainability (JFS) does the following activities:

• Provides a variety of information on the environment and sustainability, from Japan to the world, via our web site and e-mail magazines.
• Covers not only current developments but also traditional wisdom, craftsmanship and practices of day-to-day life, as well as local activities.
• Works to develop special partnerships with people in Asia, in order to cooperate to find paths toward sustainability in this region.
• Welcomes feedback and comments from overseas and shares them in Japan and with partners in Asia, so that we can improve efforts and activities in this region by learning from each other.
• Creates a vision for a sustainable Japan through discussion among various stakeholders.

JFS Projects

1) Kids’ “Create Your Future” Website

JFS has launched their Kids’ “Create Your Future” Website with an aim to encourage children worldwide to take interest in and gain an understanding of environmental issues, and to think and act independently in response. Through this site, we emphasize the concept of taking a creative approach toward the realization of a more ecological future on our planet unrestrained by conventional ideas, and we aim to introduce innovative ways of thinking to support concrete methods for sustainable living.

2) The JFS Indicator Project

JFS has chosen 20 headline indicators for sustainability based on an analysis of over 200 data sets in several sustainability-related categories. This is the first ever numerical evaluation / trial calculation of national sustainability for Japan, undertaken by citizen volunteers through open discussion and study sessions to achieve a more sustainable Japanese society. The results obtained compared across time periods between 1990 vis-a-vis and a hypothetical perfect score of 100 projected for 2050 which is based on the model-”Japan in 2050, moving closer towards a sustainable society”.

3) Daiwa – JFS Sustainability College

The 21st century is shaping up as the era of the environment. A concern about environmental issues has led to emergence of the idea of sustainability, which is expanding as the most important concept of today. Under the circumstances, JFS opened “Daiwa-JFS Sustainability College” in partnership with Daiwa Securities Group, aiming at boosting awareness and facilitating actions of the young people who will lead the next generation in Japan as well as enhancing sustainability in society as a whole.

Contact JFS

1-13-1-205, Mita, Tama-ku

JP-Kawasaki, Kanagawa, 214-0034/Japan

E-mail: info@japanfs.org

Internet: http://www.japanfs.org

Contact person: Noriko Sakamoto

Note

JFS Uses Green Power for Its Energy Requirements: The Green Power Certification System is a scheme in Japan that offers a new way for companies and organizations to voluntarily engage in energy conservation and environmental protection. Participants earmark their electricity consumption to be supplied from power produced from renewable energy, and do not have to invest directly in equipment and facilities. In return, they receive a Certificate of Green Power that certifies them for embracing the benefits of renewable energy, namely, energy conservation and the reduction of CO2 emissions.

The vision of the Gansu “Green Camel Bell” Environment and Development Center is Green Mountains, Clear Water, Blue Sky, Man and Nature in Harmony, and its mission is to protect the environment in West China. Green Camel Bell’s working fields include:

• Environmental Education and Communication
• Capacity Building
• Rural Community Development
• Water Resources
• Desertification
• Wildlife Conservation

When Green Camel Bell (GCB) was established on November 4, 2004, it was the first civic environmental organization in the Gansu region. It is devoted to environmental protection in western China, and it contributes to the improvement of the compromised and declining ecosystems of western China. In keeping with its constitution, purpose, and objectives, GCB has focused on the following work since its establishment: promoting environmental protection in Gansu, adopting effective measures to resolve environmental problems in Gansu, educating elementary and secondary school students in environmental protection, promoting the development of environmental associations in Gansu’s colleges and universities, and organizing training and capacity building projects for environmental volunteers. GCB plays an active role in Gansu’s environmental protection, environmental education, and the growth of local environmental organizations.

Since its establishment, Green Camel Bell has successfully conducted activities including “Fruit for Greeting Cards”, the “Gansu Flash Design Contest for Environmental Protection”, “A Green China Welcomes the Olympics – Protecting our Mother Rivers”, the “Gansu College Students’ Green Camps of 2005 and 2006”, and the “Cropland Conversion to Forest and Grassland, and the College Students Forum”. In addition, GCB has completed the first and second “Saiga Antelope Horn Market Surveys”, and has conducted a series of environmental education projects including “Environmental Education in Minqin County”, the “Antelope Car Environmental Education Training Project”, “Building an Environmental Education Base in Lanzhou”, and “Speaking at the Lanzhou Zoo”.

GCB has drawn up the first “green map” of Lanzhou and has published and distributed materials on environmental protection such as the “Green Camel Bell Newsletter” and the “Collected Works of the Gansu College Students’ Green Camp”. GCB’s current projects include the “Gansu Water Protection Project”, the “Local Environmental Teaching Materials on Desertification in Minqin, Gansu Project”, and the “Capacity Building Project for Environmental Organizations in Gansu”.

Contact Details:
Telephone： +86-931-2650202
Fax： +86-931-2650202
Website： http://www.greencambell.ngo.cn
Address： Room 102, Unit 4, 17th Building, MingRen HuaYuan, Qilihe District, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, P.R.China
Post Code： 730050
E-mail： info@greencambell.ngo.cn; greencambell@126.com

Note: This article and images are provided by Green Camel Bell and the copyright belongs to them.

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The Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres) was founded by a group of Singaporeans and registered as a society on 24th May 2001 (Registration No.: 176/2001). It was registered under the Charities Act on 11th January 2005 (Registration No.: 1849) and registered as an Institution of Public Character on 1st June 2007 (Registration no. IPC000559).

The mission of Acres is to create a caring and socially responsible society where animals are treated as sentient beings and where the environment is preserved for future generations.

Acres aims to:

• Foster respect and compassion for all animals.
• Improve the living conditions and welfare of animals in captivity.
• Educate people on lifestyle choices which do not involve the abuse of animals and which are environment-friendly.

Acres strongly believes in promoting community involvement in tackling animal welfare issues and in building partnerships with all related bodies to improve animal welfare.

In all projects undertaken:

• Acres aims for the research to result in practical changes for the animals and the environment.
• The approach is scientific, creative, practical and positive.

Acres has conducted more than 170 roadshows and/or talks to raise awareness on animal and environmental protection issues in Singapore and to create a more socially responsible community. It currently has more than 4,000 individuals on its supporter database.

Acres has a wide variety of volunteer positions open to people of all ages and backgrounds. Acres has worked closely with several schools and more than 1,000 students have volunteered for Acres as part of their Community Involvement Programme (CIP).

In 2007, Acres will be opening Singapore’s first wildlife rescue centre, the Acres Wildlife Rescue Centre (AWRC), which will:

• Help end the cruel illegal wildlife trade through serving as an educational facility. The AWRC will create awareness on the illegal wildlife trade and other animal protection issues.
• Provide a safe haven for animals rescued from the illegal wildlife trade.
• Serve as a platform to promote volunteerism in Singapore and globally.
• Complement and assist the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority’s enforcement efforts to tackle the illegal wildlife trade.

Address: 30 Mandai Estate #05-06 Mandai Industrial Building, Singapore 729918
Tel: (+65) 6581 2488
Fax: (+65) 6581 6318
Wildlife Crime Hotline: (+65) 9783 7782
Website: www.acres.org.sg
General enquiries: info@acres.org.sg
Volunteer enquiries: volunteer@acres.org.sg

Note: This article and images are provided by Acres and the copyright belongs to them.

Nature Trekker (Singapore) is a non-profit organisation specially dedicated to all nature lovers and adventure seekers to share and explore. Nature Trekker (Singapore) was established with a mission to cultivate outdoor adventure lovers to learn and appreciate nature, thereby giving our beautiful yet fragile environment the due respect it deserves. Hence, that simple guiding principles has its mission carved onto a name itself. The term “Nature” precedes “Trekker” in our establishment signifies the greater importance of appreciating nature in the organisation’s main objective while the latter represents the adventure seekers and outdoor enthusiasts who are nature-lovers.

Nature Trekker (Singapore) has organised numerous outdoor trips, both local and overseas, with activities spanning from outdoor trekking to nature appreciation (eg. bird watching session, plant walks, nature photography trips, etc). All the wonderful adventure and nature trips are made possible because of a team of dedicated and experienced volunteer outdoor trainers/guides who, unified by their love for nature, volunteered their personal time and commitment to this unique non-profit organisation. Nature Trekker (Singapore) will continue to strive towards its mission and welcomes those with the little “adventure seeker” in you or even the pure nature lovers to come aboard and sign up with this big family that is ready to bring you to more exciting and fascinating trips. Membership to join our organisation is free of charge. Those interested to be part of our “big family” can apply via http://www.naturetrekker.org/. We have also participated in numerous exhibitions, green fairs, talks, seminars in public domain and tertiary institutions. We have been frequently consulted by the media (TV, newspapers, magazines, etc) on issues pertaining to nature, outdoor and the environment.

• Name of Founder and Head: Mr Ben Lee
• Email Address: naturetrekker@pacific.net.sg
• Organisation Address: 412 Chinatown Point Post Office, Singapore 910501
• Office Telephone: 6300 6000
• Mobile Phone No: 9655 6555

Note: This article and images are provided by Nature Trekker (Singapore) and the copyright belongs to them.