Young environmentalists recognised for efforts to protect nature

Channel NewsAsia 11 Jun 08;

SINGAPORE: Five young environmentalists have been recognised for their efforts to protect the nature, but they are not the only Singapore youths who take the green message to the heartlands and beyond.

More than 500 youths are taking part in the first Green Torch Relay to promote Singapore's first Youth EnvirOlympics on Saturday.

The three-day torch relay travels 240 kilometres across Singapore, passing by Sentosa, the Merlion and Pulau Ubin.

Relay participant Lin Peisen from Raffles Junior College said: "We will be taking boats, MRT, buses and all sorts of public transport....we want to convey the message to the public to encourage them to take public transport so that we can cut down on carbon emissions."

Other young Singaporeans have been further afield to help the environment.

Last year's winners of the HSBC/NYAA Youth Environmental Awards – which recognise their outstanding contribution to the environment - got wet and dirty researching climate change in the rainforests in North Queensland, Australia.

Three of this year's five winners will help EarthWatch scientists survey butterflies in the protected Tam Dao National Park in Vietnam.

One of this year's winners, Regina Oon, said: "Hopefully I'll be able to come back to Singapore to contribute towards the climate change project that's currently led by National Parks and sponsored by HSBC to better study the biodiversity in Singapore itself."

More than 30 people have received the Youth Environmental Awards since 1998. - CNA/ac

Young eco-warriors with a passion
He Zongying, Straits Times 13 Jun 08;

SHE may be a greenie, but 23-year-old Regina Oon's passion for the environment is not shared by her family, which has meant having to work doubly hard to suss out sponsorships for overseas research and volunteering trips.

But she does not let that stop her.

From the time she entered university at the age of 18, the recent economics graduate from Singapore Management University has been approaching companies such as HSBC and organisations like Earthwatch for support. This has helped her land numerous opportunities, including helping rural villages in Yunnan province in China to replace firewood with more sustainable biogas.

Closer to home, she volunteers with the Singapore Zoo. She helped to set up its In Danger station, educating people about the Asiatic Black Bear.

That passion was rewarded on Wednesday, when she was one of three young people who won this year's HSBC/National Youth Achievement Award (NYAA) Council's Youth Environmental Award.

The decade-old award honours youth contributions to environmental causes annually.

Along with the other two winners - Singapore Polytechnic student Victor Lee Hong Zhi, 18, and National University of Singapore student Ong Wei Tao, 22, and last year's winner - Ms Goh Hong Yi, 18 - she will leave on Monday for Vietnam's Tam Dao National Park to research the conservation of butterflies in the area as part of the Earthwatch Study Trip.

They will be working with scientists and mentors to study the relation of changes in the butterfly population to the loss or disturbance of forest ecosystems.

Speaking at the ceremony, NYAA council chairman Leo Tan said it was encouraging to see several young Singaporeans landing these awards every year.

'This shows we have youth who really care for the environment and this bodes well for the future,' he added.