South West District launches S$100,000 fund for environmental campaigns

Sara Grosse Channel NewsAsia 19 Jan 14

SINGAPORE: Youths in the South West District can now get funding for their efforts to tackle environmental issues affecting their community.

The S$100,000 "South West Youth ECo Challenge Fund" will see people between 17 and 35 years old develop environmental campaigns.

These include projects aimed at encouraging recycling and reducing littering.

Environment agencies such as NEA and NParks will identify the environmental issues for the youths to champion.

The fund was launched Sunday morning at South West District's annual environmental event "ECo Day Out", where residents can receive groceries such as rice and packet noodles for their recycling efforts.

This year, the district saw a 6 per cent increase in recyclables collected, as compared to the previous year.

Under the ECo Challenge Fund, youths will be mentored by environmental experts over a period of six months to one year and be given a grant of up to S$10,000 per project.

Dr Amy Khor, mayor of South West District, said: "I think the youth have lots of energy, they are very passionate about environmental issues, and we thought that this fund would be useful in providing them with the resources to initiate useful, impactful and creative projects in the community."

Corporate and community organisations that have contributed and promoted environmental sustainability in the district were also recognised for their efforts and dedication by Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Dr Vivian Balakrishnan.

This year, winners of the South West ECo Awards were Dairy Farm Singapore in the corporate category and ITE College West in the community category.

- CNA/xq