KUCHING – An undergraduate from Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus may find herself on a trip to Germany if her campaign against the use of plastic bags proves to be a winner.
Angelica Fiona Tan was selected as one of Bayer’s Young Environmental Envoy, a program the German company organises in partnership with the United Nations Environment Program to develop young leaders and create environmental awareness.
Bayer is a global enterprise in health care, agriculture and high-tech materials.
The program requires the 12 selected envoys in Malaysia to implement environmental projects. Judging will be carried out in September and the two top-performing envoys will be flown to Germany in November where they will learn about trends and perspectives in environmental protection and sustainability.
Tan, the only envoy from East Malaysia, will kick off her campaign she calls “Bagtastrophe”. Aimed at reducing the use of plastic bags, it is organised with the support of the Swinburne Sarawak Biotechnology Club and the Swinburne Sarawak Green Club.
“I hope to highlight the catastrophe of the use of plastic bags which are accumulating rapidly in our environment and drive home the message that it is ecologically unfriendly,” said the second-year biotechnology student and treasurer of the Biotechnology Club.
“Through the campaign I hope to create positive changes like the use of more eco-bags or tiffin carriers for food takeaways.”
The first event will be a video and poster design competition open to universities in Kuching, from 8 to 27 July. This will be followed by a talk on plastics (10 July), Santubong beach clean-up where members of the public may take part (13 July), and an outreach activity for schools (20 July).
The campaign will culminate with a “Plastic-Free Day” event at CityOne Megamall on 3 August that will include prize-giving for the video and poster design competition.
“Bagtastrophe” is sponsored and supported by John’s Pie, Syarikat U Tech and CityOne MegaMall.
More information can be obtained at bagtastrophe.webs.com or www.facebook.com/Bagtastrophe.