Environment
A green economy. A sustainable nation. Active participation all round. Find out what we the participants said about our environment.
Keeping our focus on environmental sustainability
We care about the environment and are concerned that environmental sustainability and climate action are being deprioritised in favour of jobs and economy. COVID-19 has given Singapore an opportunity to work towards becoming a green economy and a sustainable nation, and we all need to do our part.
We can do more to advance the environmental sustainability agenda. For example, Singapore can lead the development of standards and certifications in sustainability and the circular economy, using the credibility we have built over time on the international front. SMEs, social enterprises, and NGOs would like more funding support to drive sustainability-related initiatives, as they feel that current sources of funding are not widely known, or difficult to access due to the many requirements.
We hope that the government can deepen its engagement with youths. Our youth hope that Singaporeans will pay more attention to climate change and food sustainability issues, and aspire to have a clean and eco-friendly city to live in. They would like Singaporeans to think less about their immediate needs and more about how their consumption habits have a wider impact on the environment. The government can offer our youth more resources and opportunities to take action on sustainability, and co-create policies and initiatives with them.
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Responsible consumption and waste management
We think it is important for our society to shift our mindset towards responsible consumption and waste management. COVID-19 resulted in more waste being generated for some sectors. Post-pandemic, we hope that society shifts to a “Bring-Your-Own” lifestyle to reduce waste. While some of us find it inconvenient and are uncomfortable with reusing plastic bags or reusable containers, others suggest imposing a charge for those who do not use “Bring-Your-Own” items to change behaviour. In addition, many of us observe that Singaporeans do not use recycling bins correctly. Some suggest infrastructural changes, such as using segregated recycling bins instead of mixed ones, and introducing more enforcement measures.
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Strengthening Singapore’s food security
COVID-19 made us realise that food security is important, and more can be done to educate and involve the public. The pandemic has highlighted the need for food security and how critical our goal to produce 30% of our food by 2030 is. To help raise awareness about food security, some of us feel that we can do more to involve the public in community farming, even if it is a small contribution towards meeting Singapore’s food demand.
The government can also provide more space for farming, and invest in food technologies and research to increase local production in land-scarce Singapore. Some of us suggest improving the image of farming to attract more people to enter the industry. Our youth suggest improving the branding of local produce and encouraging people to buy local.
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