sue email us at e_generation@star-horizon.com for registration forms.

gogreener While it is a good idea to refund or credit back money to consumers when they return the PET bottles for recycling, I do not think it will work. Other countries already have such practice and the necessary machines to do this; eg: Denmark, Sweden, UK, Germany, USA, etc. They do not require consumers to pay advance deposit but will still reward the consumers by giving them discount coupons for grocery or some countries will even give cash in return. Such practice does not need two, but in fact three hands to clap to make it work; Businesses/companies, consumers and the govt. The machine is not cheap, requires maintenance and a question on who should pay for this machine/technology will also suffice. :) My two cents worth. Rgrds, GoGreener

tmorgens Dear GoGreener, I do not know where you take your above information from, but it seems slightly confused. Every of the above mentioned countries requires the consumer to pay a "x" amount beforehand (with exceptions in the US). A deposit refund scheme means that the consumer has to pay a deposit for the beverage container upon purchase, which he will get back once the container is returned. In Germany this is legally binging (25 cents). In Denmark ist is legally binging (b/w 14 - 40 cents), in Sweden it is legally binding (0,11 - 0,22 cent) in the USA there are 10 states with such a system. Now from a non-deposit perspective (coupons for grocieries) I agree that there has to be a cooperation between consumer and business, but the government has nothing to do with these incentive schemes since this is a business model. @ wq3j I would be interested to hear more about your research project! If you need any further information on this you can contact me. Our company produces the reverse vending machines with a market share of 80% globally also specialising on the topic of deposit refund! Best regards, Thomas

tmorgens P.s. it is correct that in the UK there is 1 retailer that runs an incentive driven model.

fishyyu i think is cool . i would wear it. thats cool fishy

fishyyu *will

jaschen I think that this concept would work in Singapore. As we usually follow the latest trend in town, If someone is willing to start this recycled fashion trend, everybody would also follow just to be hip and fashionable.

tzxorlena I think that this idea will work in Singapore! This would be the place where I can donate my old clothes :D ORLENA

liqianxin I would rather take my old clothes and donate them to children's home directly, or donate them to Red Cross Society. There are actually quite a few venues where you can make the donation, if you bother to look for them. (:

zhenhui I feel that this idea will work as singaporeans like to follow trend blindy hence I'm sure there are many out of fashion clothes that they don't want and thus, there will be many recycled clothes. Extra effort need to be done to make sure that this concept will last too.

dawnshuyun Personally for me, I dont think this concept will works in Singapore. Especially Singapore is a country that goes at the frontline for fashion. Even there are kind-hearted people who donates the clothes, think about the number of people that will actually buy 2nd hand clothes. If you are talking about accessories, possibility is high. But if you are talking about clothes, it will let people starts the pondering, where the clothes are from or even think about the owner particular blouse belongs to. To add on, is the advertising SIngapore media covers on our local bazzars and flea markets. Every month there might be a few going on, but press releases about these events are very little. Hence, I feel that if there's a shop in Singapore that sell clothes that people donate, window-shoppers will be alot more than buyers. And will lead to incurring unwanted costs.

shirleen I feel that it might not work in Singapore, but it is a good idea. Personally, i feel that Singaporeans are more conservative and would not be willing to accept items that are worn before. However, its the mindset of Singaporeans that they would only wear clothes owned by them and not others. I would accept to a certain level if the clothes are of acceptable conditions(: In addtion, i can play a part in contributing to the needy!

reshi198624 As Asian it is in our culture to have brand new clothes during the festive seasons, and for some culture it might even be a taboo to wear clothes thats has been worn before, but personally I feel its alright to wear recycled cloths. There are many options now to those who do not want to wear recycled cloths, such as t-shirts made from organically grown cottons. With organic cotton t shirts, it is absolutely possible to achieve a win-win situation. New cloths + environmentally friendly!

heizelinesays In my opinion, I do not think that the concept of transactions being made from used clothing going out to the more needy will work in Singapore. Most Singaporeans live rather luxuriously and there are not many unfortunate people in here. Thus, most of us have the mindset that there is no need to buy 2nd hand clothing from thrift stores or donate used clothing to thrift stores just so that the transactions made would go to the more needy as we have the assumption that every other person living in Singapore is as fortunate as us. However, were I to enter a thrift store which donates it's transaction to the more needy, i will purchase a piece of clothing if I do find one that looks really nice. They are pretty cheap to boot anyway ^^

emilylhs I think this might work in Singapore! Recently, a lot of go green events are being carried out. An example that can be seen is the Go Green Event organised by SP. However, rather than second hand clothes, I think the sales of apparels made of recycled materials will be a better idea. Singaporeans, especially teens does not like to wear second hand clothes. By making use of these materials to make something new will appeal to teens and the market more. :) Emily

yeesuan in my opinion, this concept would only work if the old clothes are sold at a cheaper price as compared to the prices at retail outlets. I believe Singaporeans, being very 'kia su', would not mind selling their old clothes to earn some cash and people wouldnt mind buying clothings that are in good condition and at a cheaper price. hence, we have a win-win situation here! If customers are concerned of the hygienic issues , the salesperson can explain that new clothes from factory actually contains chemicals that are harmful to their skin if not being washed before it is worn by the user. ( Which is true! ) Hence ,For both new clothes and old clothes, we need to wash them to ensure that they are clean and hygienic to wear. If this concept is used in Singapore, the main factor that would determine the success or failure or the idea is the mindset of the salesperson, how he/she sells the item and how he/she convince the customer to buy recycled fashion items and not the customer's perceptions. -YeeSuan

samanthawong I think that this concept might not work in Singapore. Selling of 2nd hand clothes, yes, it's a great idea and it can be seen in US and Europe. However, if you bring forward this concept in Singapore, how many customers can you attract and how many of them will purchase from the store? Very little people will not even bother looking or going into the store if it does'nt attract them.

rima92 This concept might work in Singapore however, it requires much of effort from both parties (Singaporean & The Charity retail shop) to make the concept works. Singaporean who don't mind purchasing clothes second-handed with the mind of helping the needy and poor so that the money could go to the charity and also the owner of the Charity shop who needs to publicize their shop now and then to ensure that shop gets the attention of the public. It might take time and effort but its definitely worth the try. -Rima-

sapphirexz I think that this is a unique concept as Singapore hasnt had it yet. However, it would perhaps work more for apparels such as caps, accesories, shoes instead of shirts and pants and also taking in account that they are in good condition. Personally i would not buy second hand shirts or pants unless they are of a very unique design and if i feel its worth it but i feel that it might work amongst teens nowadays as many teens are open to swapping of used clothes in blogshops to keep up with fashion trends. Perhaps to cater to a bigger market, the apparels can be used to make new items instead like a pair of old jeans into pencil case, bag or shoes. People might be more attracted to the item this way.

liyanna The concept will work in Singapore towards the lower class who can't afford to buy clothing at shopping centers and retail shops. Clothes nowadays are very very expensive. People who don't have the privilege to indulge their money on clothing can go to this charity outlets to buy clothes. However there will be any issue on hygiene and cleanliness. Nobody wants to wear clothing that are not well taken care off. Overall I think this concept will help the lower class people to buy clothes at a cheaper price.

batista001122 I do not see why this concept will not work if Singaporeans can cooperate to make this concept a successful one by donating used recyclable items to the retail outlets instead of discarding them willfully causing environmental pollution.

yongzhen I do not think that the concept will work. Singapore is not that focus on recycling after all as compare to other countries. Even though most Singaporeans know the basic knowledge of recycling, but most of them does not put this knowledge in their daily life. Hence, I do not think it will work.

teckjoker If young adults love fashion, why not recycling? Mixing the two things together will help in promoting Green in Singapore and act as moving advertisement in creating awareness on recycling. Ngo Teck Chin

alextsuimk In my opinion, I believe this is something that would take time for Singapore. I feel that Singaporeans, especially females, prefer glamorous clothes. I believe that the idea of having clothes that have been used by others would not be something these people can accept. Everything is about appearance and impression nowadays, I believe people's stereotypic view on recycled clothes would affect greatly on how people wearing recycled clothes will be judged. Also, I believe that majority of the younger generation would not be willing to pay for 2nd hand clothes. The younger generation are very pampered and always want new things. I believe that although the response in donation of clothes would be high, the demand of the clothes would be low among the younger generation. However, I believe that this scheme would be welcomed by those who are charitable and do not mind buying 2nd hand clothes. These clothes can also help those families who are unable to afford clothes at regular price. In addition, I believe, over time, this scheme might slowly come to the acceptance of the general public.

tracylek Personally I feel that this concept might not be as successful as compared to it being used in European countries as Singaporeans are more conservative in a way that most people would not want to wear something that other people have already worn, and this mindset is observed especially within the youths. Thus I feel that this concept will not work in Singapore.

jiaxiu i think that this concept might work in Singapore! But it will definitely take some time for it to work as Singaporeans are rather fussy about their material stuffs, especially the clothes they wear. To encourage Singaporeans to pick up this recycling concept, i think more green events should be held to influence them. Personally, i think if there is a charity shop in Singapore here, i would definitely shop there. By doing so, i will be playing a part in charity and this little contribution helps. :)

s55769 Thanks for your comments. Enjoyed reading all your view points and agree that recycled fashion may take time to take off in S'pore. As for me, I like shopping at vintage shops and finding a 1960's handbag or even a pair of sunglass is such a thrill for me especially since I love that era and I am addicted to MadMen. See you all in class, Ms Kim :o)

jingjing I disagree. The misusing of the recycling bin cannot be said that Singaporeans are not concerned or mature enough to be involved in the recycling programme. In my opinion, I think that the misusing of recycling bin is cause by lazy-ness. It can be very inconvenient to ask people to sort their rubbish then throw them in the correct bin. so due to lazy-ness, Singaporeans then to overlook the chain of consequence of misusing the bin. Singaporean can be said to be very concern about recycling programme. I waasnot sure when has this new trend started, in many events, recycling have been often emphasis. Other than that, environmental education had been including into education system as well. I think this have help to pushed the future generation to think further for the environment, when they have to make use of raw materials. Singaporeans will be involved in the recycling programme with more passion, if more measures can be taken to push them to think further. After watching variety show, Behind every job. Singapore produces seven tons of refuse everyday and half of it gets sent to NEA's incineration plant to be incinerated? If you think the smell from everyday refuse is foul, the smell at the plant is 100 times worse! I realise how much hard work has to be done to ensure that the rubbish has been classfied and dispose properly. The show has really impacted me, if more of such shows can be shown/publicise, I believe it can get more and more people to be involved in the recycling programme~

geraldine135 I disagree. Although Singaporeans mis-use the recycling bins, but is not the majority who do that. They are still a minority that recycle the correct items and place them in the correct bins. As to why Singaporeans are not concerned enough to be invovled in the recycling programme, it is probably because they are lazy. They are lazy to categorise their rubbish and to bring it down to the recycling bins to recycle them. It could also be because the recycling bins are placed too far from their block of flat, that is why they just placed all their rubbish into a plastic bag and throw it into the refuse chute. As I have recently watched a variety show, Behind Every Job, there is this episode where it shows local hosts assigned to visit the incineration plant. In this episode, it shows that before the refuse are being sent to incinerate, there are workers whom will sort out Singaporeans' refuse first. Maybe this is the reason why Singaporeans are not so concerned about recycling because there will still be workers at the incineration plant who will sort out the refuse first before incinerating them. As Singaporeans produce tons of refuse everyday, imagine the hours the workers will have to work everyday to sort out their refuse! However, I believe Singaporeans will understand the hardship the workers are going through. In conclusion, in order to increase the awareness and importance of recycling, town councils should probably come up with more recycling programmes, involving that particular neighbourhood to bring down all items that are recycable. In addition, schools should assigned students weekly to go to those elderly neighbourhood to help the elderly recycle those recycable items as it might be too heavy for them to carry down to the recycling bins. This way, students are able to know the importance of recycling, take part in recycling, and start recycling. If more recycling bins are placed near HDB flats, Singaporeans would then be not afraid of the hassle to bring their refuse down. In short, Singaporeans are just lazy! Therefore if the government wants Singaporeans to take part in recycling programmes, they should start knowing the reasons why Singaporeans are unwilling to do so! They should probably start interviewing neighbours and then do the approriate act. But I believe, with the constant pushing from government, Singaporeans will definitely start to slowly get invovled in recycling programmes, and eventually take the initiative to recycle.

fenyh I agree that majority of Singaporeans are not mature or concerned about recycling programmes. How many percent of actually play our part in the nationwide "Bring Your Own Bag Day" campaign? For some they won’t even aware of this campaign. We are not like the United States where recycling is part of their culture and it’s a habit they have cultivated since young. The supermarket in the states provides disposable paper bags instead of plastic version. However in Singapore we encourage shoppers to bring their own recycling bag but frankly do you? Personally I would rather pay for the plastic bag. Yes it’s true that only a minority of Singaporeans misused the recycle bin but the truth is a majority of us do not even use the bin at all. As a result there are lesser recycle bins around us now; they have been replacing by monthly recycling bags sent to our letter box. Thus this create problem for those who are keen in recycling their bulky items .Therefore some people would rather dump it along the corridor rather than going the extra mile to sent it to a recycling center. The recycling projects in Singapore are at the beginning stage. Cultivating recycling culture takes time and so we can’t expect instant success. Statistic has also shown that 15 to 20 percent of the recyclables collected were disposed off. This shows that the general public are not mature or well educated on what recyclable are as they usually put it with unrecyclable items. Many people still treat recycling bins as ordinary rubbish bins. Although schools now, encourage recycling through events, competitions and project to educate the school children. We still have a very long way to go before the general public accepts recycling activities as part of their daily life. Singapore has a reputation for being clean and green but Singaporeans do not have a reputation of going green.

shuying93 I do agree that most Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programmes. For example, one of the weak link is the "garung guni" engaged to collect the "recycling bags" from each household. They are not interested if there are no "added value" in the bags like old newspaper or electric appliances. So for the other materials which have no “added value” but can be recycled, the “garung guni” may not even bother about it. In Singapore, how many people actually bother to use the recycle bin? Most Singaporeans don’t even bother to look if it is a recycle bin or a non-recyclable bin. Most of them would not even spend a second to think if the item they are disposing can be recycled or not, they just simply dispose it into the non-recyclable bin because most of them might be lazy to look at which is recyclable and which is not. So to save the trouble, most of them would just throw it into the non-recyclable bin and that would solve the problem of throwing the non-recyclable items into the recyclable bin. Take a look at other countries such as Japan, households are required to segregate their trash into different recycling bins, if the waste is sorted into the wrong bin, no collection will be made. And in certain boroughs of London, users will be issued a fine if authorities find recyclable waste in their mixed waste bins. Just by comparing Japan and certain boroughs of London with Singapore, it shows that Singaporeans are not concerned enough to be involved in recycling programmes. User education is a long-term investment. Hence, I believe that it would take a while for Singaporeans to be diligent in their recycling habits, and also, some form of regulation may be needed to get them engaged in the recycling programme.

taywy I agree to a large extent that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme. Firstly, when we’ve the many kinds of Recycling Programmes, be it the “Bring your own bag day” Campaign, “Recycling at Home” through the National Recycling Programme, or what have you, how many of us Singaporeans actually took part in it? For this, there are three groups of people. One, people who are unaware of these programmes at all. Posters, banners, commercial ads and every kind of advertising gimmick up, but still, the majority just doesn’t know of the programmes’ existence. Two, people who knows about it, and does something about it. The keyword here is “something”. Some people respond to the recycling programme for just a while. It could be that they’re just too busy to remember it after their recycling act for three days, or what they’ve done for that few days is just for the sake of doing so, to say that “I’ve done my part for the environment”. And of course, there’s this group of people putting in their utmost effort to participate in every of the recycling programme, which makes up the third group. But how big is this group? Regretfully, it only holds up to the minority of the minority among Singaporeans. In a sense, I’m more inclined to think that Singaporeans are just not very concerned towards the environment. In a developed country like Singapore, we all live in a life of luxury, so comfortable that none of us would want to change this lifestyle just to suit the recycling programme. “We’ve rubbish bins, so let’s just throw our rubbish into the bin. Who cares whether it’s to recycle plastic, glass or paper; it’s so troublesome.” or “The shopping centre will provide us with the shopping bags needed, so why bother to take this ugly and dull recycling bag which doesn’t suit my dressing today, and it’s such a chore to take an extra bag out!”; such mentalities are commonly going around at the back of most of our heads, simply because we’re used to the life we’ve led for years, where recycling isn’t the hot topic of the town. In addition, Singaporeans will think that Singapore will have the ability to get what’s needed easily, and hence there’s no need to go about recycling this and that – they could just be easily bought by the government soon! These are wrong and immature concepts that have been instilled in our minds by no one else, by us. Hence in conclusion, I agree that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme to a large extent. But still, impossible is nothing. So long as everyone is being taught of the right thinking, and is willing to start contributing more and more to the environment each day, given time, Singapore will also be a recycling country!

amirahr I do agree to a certain extent that majority of Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme. Although schools may have done their part in helping to create awareness by organizing talks about the recycling programme or giving out pamphlets about the recycling programme, the students may not cultivate the habit of recycling at home. It may be because they fail to see the importance of recycling and cannot be bothered to get themselves involve in such a programme as they feel it does not benefit them. Apart from not taking part in the recycling programme, there are certain Singaporeans who misuse the recycling bins by throwing their rubbish in the wrong bin. There are also lesser recycling bins in HDB estates which may be because lesser Singaporeans are taking part in the recycling programme. For example, Singaporeans would rather sell their newspapers to the “karang guni” because it is easier and more convenient for them as the karang guni come and collect the newspapers from at their door step. Another reason for people not taking part in the recycling programme may be because they are not aware of such a programme as there is not enough exposure about the recycling programme. I realise that there are no posters, pamphlets or anything related to recycling in my neighbourhood. Another example to show that there is only a minority of Singaporeans taking part in the recycling programme is when Singaporeans would rather pay for plastic bags than bring their own bags when going shopping because they feel that it is such a hassle. Unlike in other countries, we are not given paper bags when going grocery shopping, which can be recycled. Plastic bags cannot be recycled and the recycling programme cannot be a success without the help of Singaporeans. I feel that Singaporeans tend to be selfish and would not make the extra effort to help out in any programme unless they get a reward in return or the government impose a law on recycling. In conclusion, I agree that Singaporeans are not mature and concerned enough about the recycling programme to a large extent. However, with more awareness and effort from Singaporeans, the recycling programme can be a huge success. Singaporeans need to show more concern and be more aware of such a programme.

veiledscoops Singaporeans have been reminded countless of times to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle; The three 'R's that have been implanted into our minds from the National Environmental Agency. Many posters and advertisements have been publicized however, till now, we now know how ignorant Singaporeans are. Globally, Singapore has the lowest recycling rates in the developed world - A source found by a group of students from the National University of Singapore. This shows how amateur Singaporeans are towards recycling and saving the environment. Singaporeans have been familiarized and pampered to think that they have whatever they need anytime and anywhere. Shortage have never been a problem in Singapore, which causes recycling to be a minor factor to worry about in Singapore. However, Singaporeans are oblivious to the situation the world will face if they do not reduce, reuse and recycle. The "Go green" campaign happens annually for a few weeks. But what happens after the campaign movement ends? Singaporeans goes back to their daily lives, where rubbish goes into trash cans instead of the recycling cans. Similarly, for the "Bring your own bag day", it was a complete failure the first time it was launched. Thus, a second round of "Bring your own bag day" was relaunched, where participation from the public was a notch better. However, after the "Bring your own bag day" movement ended, Singaporeans, went back to their comfort wagons and enjoy the convenience of keeping plastic bags from the supermarkets. Recycling bins are not so much of a common sight in Singapore but one should know that they do exist. However, even if an area has a recycling bin, the other recycling bins are miles apart. Singaporeans, as we all know, will not be willing to travel not even 100m to the recycling bins. They would rather throw their rubbish into the rubbish bins which are a more common sight in streets or public places in Singapore. Recycling bins are also located in residential areas. However, only a minority of them has the privilege of having the recycling bins. Even if they have recycling bins, only one large recycling bin is available for a cluster of HDB residential flats. A typical Singaporean will not be willing to travel two or three blocks away just to throw their bags of recycled items. Therefore, I have come to a conclusion that Singaporeans are oblivious and not environmentally-alert enough towards recycling. Furthermore, recycling is not for the good of the country, but for the good of the whole world as well. To notice the insensitivity of Singaporeans towards being environmentally friendly, it is completely disappointing.

jeryl "Taking care of the environment is something which concerns all of us. We don't all have to take on global causes, but each of us can contribute locally by keeping Singapore our island clean and green," said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the launch of the Clean and Green Singapore 2011 campaign. According to what Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had said, it is true that everyone can play a part in going green in Singapore, but how many Singaporeans would actually do it? At Punggol Primary School, students have turned old bottles into flower pots, at Jurong Primary School, students have created bottle gardens, and these are the two schools out of 328 schools which went the extra mile in going green. What about the other 326 schools which did not go the extra mile in going green? Students, teachers and even the principals have individual responsibilities in implementing ‘go green’ campaign in school but from what I have researched, only two schools went the extra mile in going green in their school, not talking about taking part in go green campaigns outside. Therefore I agree to a large extent that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme. Do you know that there are more than 1,500 recycling bins all over Singapore? Recycling bins are placed not only in HDB estates but also in food courts hawker centres and coffee shops. Having to eat out almost every day, I noticed that the cleaners there do not even sort the cans/plastic bottles out but instead, throwing it all into the main rubbish bin which is meant for the leftover food. How often are Singaporeans really concerned enough to throw the correct rubbish into the correct recycling bins? Not very often I would say, in HDB flats where I live, I see big rubbish bags and old furniture left at the very corridors. Majority of Singaporeans, I would say, have the lazy nature in them where doing things the fastest and easiest way is sufficient. Majority of Singaporeans are not mature? Not concerned? Once again, I agree to a very large extent. I personally believe that even if the government comes up with a Go-Green campaign in Singapore, people would do and take part for the sake of doing it, not out of their own will. It is disappointing to know that and the government should do something about this issue before more Singaporeans do not see the importance of ‘going green’ in Singapore.

zhengjpzhengjp i agreed with the statement saying that singaporeans are not ready for recycling programes. from my obersevation, although there are recycling bins provided at many places but people seldom used them. of of the reason is that i think most of the times the government will do the go green jobs so that the citizens take all these efforts for granted. they may tend to forget that they need to make their contributions as to make the country to run the go green programmes successlful. it is because that citizens are already living in a clean and green environment so many of the people do not have the mindset and support for go green programmes. "Generally, I feel that Singaporeans are not ready to embark on the trail for a better and greener environment.Unlike other countries like USA, Taiwan, Japan, etc.I am saying that is because recently our company recently brought in a revoluntionary Green product which had a very successful exposure in the USA and had enjoyed great publicity response over thereBut down here, not only the response from our surveys came back with negative or cold response in view of using a Greener product but when i search thru the web in Singapore, we had very little site which supports a Greener environment." (http://www.reach.gov.sg/YourSay/DiscussionForum/tabid/101/mode/3/Default.aspx?ssFormAction=%5B%5BssBlogThread_VIEW%5D%5D&tid=%5B%5B452%5D%5D) this is a statement made by a guest, it goes to show that other guest to the country also feel that most singaporeans are not ready for the reclycling programmes. although all the people are educated and taught about the importance of recycling but many still do not bother to care. back to the roots to the problem, why do people not ready for the recycle programmes? in my opinion i think is because that people do not have strong moral values in them. for example, if there is no laws against littering, i think most probably many people will litter. another example is the reserved seat in the trains and buses, althought there are signs to show people to give up their seats to the needies but many of the people will pretend not to see the signs or pretend to sleep when they see any needies. does it means that signs are not strong enough to influence the public or people are just selfish? so maybe the law needs to step in for the keeping the reserved seat as well as for the recycling programes to go well? but of course to a small extend there are still people who does care about recycling programes. like one of my friends mum, she will always use the reclycle bins when she sees them. in conclusion, i felt that the reality is the world is moving too fast and too competitve which make many turn into selfish individuals hence in order to involve all into the recycing programes is pretty challanging and when neccessary maybe the government can take more serious actions to enforce the recycleing programes. jiangping

nhmay I agree to a large extend that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme. As you all can see, Singapore had been trying their best to encourage Singaporean to reuse, reduce & recycle for the past few years in many ways such as educating them in school, television, newspaper, radio and other forms of media tools too. However, up till now, do you think Singaporeans did play a part in it? Honestly speaking, I think the majority don't. If they did, then why do we still find those recycling bins being mis-used AFTER SO MANY YEARS? I personally think that Singaporeans are mainly lazy and this result them to be immature. To many of them, they can just throw their used cans/ newspaper in their house rubbish bin. Why would they want to walk down to their HDB flats to throw it or just to recycle it? They will definitely find it a hassle to do so. On top of that, not all recycling bins are located below HDB. Sometimes they have to walk a further distance just to recycle their items. And if they find it a hassle to do so, I would say that they are not mature enough to think for the earth. Just because they are lazy, it results the earth a HUGE problem in many years to come later. Thus, I think they are not mature enough yet. Besides that, most Singaporeans are not concern about recycling issues because there’s no issue about it NOW. That doesn’t mean that in future it won’t have any problem just because you don’t see a problem now. Singapore is trying their best to prevent global warming and etc. However, Singaporeans don’t think there’s a need to do so. They should start to change their mindset about recycling. Most of them always think that, “I don’t have to do it, because others will.” However, if everyone have this common mindset, who will recycle and save the earth? I remembered there was once Singapore want us to put all recycle items in a green bag and leave it outside our house. It was quite successful from start. Everyone was enthusiastic and everything. But what’s happening now? Are Singaporeans still doing it? The answer will be no. Maybe there are still some, but i believe the number is getting lesser and lesser. In conclusion, I personally think that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programmes. Most of them are lazy, they have the wrong mindset in mind as well. Thus, I think that Singapore can try to work closely with Singaporeans. Make all the recycling campaign BIG and ONGOING. Let Singaporeans realise the importance of recycling and if it’s ongoing, Singaporean won’t get a chance to forget about recycling easily. Make it more close to them by having neighbourhood event, giving them goodie bag. So as they help they might feel happier too ! HWEEMAY/depm/06

tanmc I believe Singaporeans are ready for recycling programmes, and are already going through some of these programmes right now. This can be seen from the numerous recycling programmes available in Singapore which promote the 3 Rs. These programmes are very well received by the general public and therefore, we can infer that Singaporeans are playing a big part in reycling. As such, it will not be wrong to say that Singaporeans are actively embracing the act of recycling and do understand how important recycling is with regards to saving the environment. I do not agree that recycling bins being unused or misused is a reflection that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme. I believe such recycling bins have been misplaced i.e. they may have been placed at inappriopriate or inconvenient locations that residents of HDB flats do not pass by or notice with ease, and therefore, this may lead to reduced usage of the recycling bins. Also, it could also be that the recycling bins were not properly labelled, leading to misuse as there may be a misunderstanding in the actual use of the bin i.e. without a proper label, many will treat a recycling bin as a rubbish bin. Therefore, I strongly believe that such treatment of recycling bins is an accurate reflection of Singaporeans' mindsets. depm06

shahirahr I agree to a large extent that Singaporeans are not matured or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme. For the past couple of years, Singaporeans have been constantly reminded of the 3Rs ; Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Students in primary and secondary schools are the main targets as it is believed that the young should be taught about the importance of saving the environment. However, how can the youth and students be motivated and driven to save the environment if working adults and middle-aged Singaporeans, mainly their parents, do not lead and pave the way for our own children? Young Singaporeans need direction and leadership in cultivating a good life habit of making the conscious effort to preserve and protect the environment. There should be a constant conscious effort to protect our environment and not a habit that we get into on weekends, holidays or “recycling-days”. This is what that lacks in our community, particularly the adults. As such, before we start telling our youth about the importance of protecting the environment, we must first correct our adults who are choosing not to put in the effort to participate in the campaigns and recycling programmes available in the country. It is evident and clear that Singaporeans are not ready or mature enough to be actively be a part of the global movement of saving Mother-Earth. This can be seen through the recycle bins that are not only not utilized but in fact misused by the community, recycling bins that are vandalized, damaged and strewn with rubbish and bulky items that were disposed off. As such, we can see that even though Singaporeans know the purpose and reason for the recycle bins being around the neighbourhoods, they turn a blind eye and are blatantly ignorant about the country’s on-going effort to build a society that is environmentally-friendly. A huge majority of Singaporeans are not even participating actively in the campaigns launched by the government to promote the green-initiative. The “Bring your own bag day” campaign received very poor response as Singaporeans are seen to rather pay more for the non-biodegradable plastic bags than to bring their own shopping bags for the sake of convenience. I feel that this is very selfish of Singaporeans as even though they are fully aware that plastics are very harmful to the environment as they are non-biodegradable and combustion of plastics release chlorofluorocarbons that depletes the ozone layer. Being aware of how hazardous and harmful plastics can be, Singaporeans ought not to be selfish and take a more proactive approach towards protecting the environment. In conclusion, it is clear that Singaporeans generally do not participate in Go-Green campaigns that much. In fact, most are doing things that harm the Earth. However , we can’t deny that there are indeed some of us that go to the extra mile to do our part to save the Earth despite through small things such as saving water and switching off the power when electrical appliances are not in use. It is in my opinion that Singaporeans should follow in the footsteps of people in other countries all over the world in having the conscious effort in protecting our environment in every way that we can even if it is in the expense of our own convenience, to create a better home for the future generations. Shahirah R. DEPM05

vivian0510 I agree to a large extent that there are many Singaporeans out there who are still not ready for recycling programmes. Firstly, I believe it is because they are too lazy to categorize the waste materials before throwing them away. Typical singaporeans would just throw it in a common bin which will solve their problem of getting rid of their waste. Futhermore, Singaporeans live in a fast-paced society and people are usually caught up with work or studies. Thus, the common excuse is that they could not afford the time to meticulously seperate their rubbish before throwing them away. Another reason why individuals are not playing their part in environmental conservation projects is due to the tragedy of the commons which we identified in 1968 through the eyes of Gerrett Hardin. It meant that people tend to shrink responsibility because they feel that others will do the job in conserving the environment and hence they will be able to have a free-ride. Thus people are not encouraged to play a part. Last but not least, Singaporeans are very pragmatic and a simple act of categorizing their trash would not bring about any tangible benefits in the near future and hence they are not encouraged to do so. This is a very logical postulate. However, there are also people out there who play their part by throwing their waste into the recycle bins. Therefore, i think it is not right to stereotype all singaporeans to be immature and not ready for the recycling programmes. For example, there is a programme held by the National Environmental Agency (NEA) in collaboration with the Housing Development Board (HDB) whereby each individual households are encouraged to bag their recycable trash and put it outside their house and the personnels would then come to collect it on a monthly basis. However, how many Singaporeans actually actively participate in this program? The answer is, a minority of them. This has led to the eventual removal of this program. In essence, the majority of Singaporeans are not putting in enough effort to conserve the environment due to laziness, the fast-paced nature of our sociey as well as the tragedy of the commons, thus leading me to the concluding stand that Singaporeans are not ready for recycling programs. Chua Vivian DEPM/FT/1B/06

tingting I agree to a certain extent in the point of saying putting recycle bins in HDB estates will often not used or mis-used and reflect that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme. As I believe Singapore has been putting lots of effort in educating the next and current generation on environmental issues. For example in schools, they allocate a space known as the recycling corner in both their classroom and their school, but the recycling corner usually ended up to be their nearest rubbish bin and what usually are in there will be paper ball and newspaper the school gave. For projects conducted within neighbourhood like sorting out their rubbish, newspaper/old clothes collection, usually results in inactive participation. Having to go through so much trouble, they still fail in the part of conveying the message on the importance of recycling. The mis-used of recycle bins does not only happen in school but also within the HDB estate as most of the residents are just plain lazy to find the right bin to throw in their garbage, and also to sort out their garbage. So as compared to countries like Japan or Hong Kong, we had contributed little or nothing to environmental issue. “Japan is a model country in terms of recycling. Their efforts have surpassed many countries. Japan has recently passed a number of laws that have helped the country’s recycling issues. These laws have produced tremendous results in Japan’s favour.” [http://www.uwstout.edu/static/rs/2007/Recycling.pdf] In the nutshell, I think Singapore still have lots of things to be done on the recycling issue before it can really be known as the Clean and Green City. Chua Ting Ting DEPM/06

peiqin Singaporeans are definitely ready for recycling programmes. The past few years the government has been setting up the base for promoting recycling programmes. Like for example, it is common in schools to see recycle bins. These recycling bins and recyclables collection are usually provided for free by the public waste collectors who are also in charge of collecting waste from the schools. The government educates the public from young, children in kindergartens and childcare centers can deposit their recyclables in nearby centralised recycling bins or in recycling bags. In addition, they include activities into children’s curriculum, and often provide talks and encourage students to recycle. Other activities that government has introduced include Project E.A.R.T.H. (Every Act of Recycling Trash Helps), placing recycling bin under HDB blocks, the Bring Your Own Bag Day (BYOBD) and many more. Bins that are placed under HDB blocks are often used by households. The trashes in every house mostly are by house wife. House wife are known for their thriftiness and their ability to reuse every item in their house. They know what to throw and what not to throw, and things that can be recycled or reused. Thus, I feel that bins are not misused, but used to its fullest capacity. With the amount of effort that the government has put in, I believe that Singaporean is ready to contribute their part to save the environment. DEPM1B05- PEIQIN

peijunt I agree that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programmes. I find that Singaporeans are not mature because they are not contributing much enough to the environment friendly issue even after the educating of environment in school, radio, Television and road show event. First of all I think that not all Singaporean will take the initiative to throw their stuff into the specify bins. They would rather go to a nearer bin than going to the recycle bin which is further from them. So basically they did not see the need to recycle stuff and reuse them. They think that it not their responsibility to do that and they will wait for other to do. And secondly, I think that it true that most Singaporeans are not mature enough resulting in mis-using the recycle bin. Once you open the bin, you will find a lot of junks eg. Banana skins, rubber bands and pens, are thrown into the recycle bin. You will also be able to find items inside the bins are not being classified correctly. And lastly, the “bring-your-own-bag day” campaign did not really fulfill its purpose. Not many Singaporeans will be willing and mature enough to bring their own bag to supermarket that particular day. Some would even choose not to go supermarket on that particular day because they find it troublesome. In conclusion, I think that Singaporeans should be more environments friendly and be willing in reuse, recycle and reduce. They should throw the right thing in the right bins and not throwing other unwanted stuff into it. Walking longer distance to use the recycle bins is a way of providing the next generation a better environment. DEPM1B06 PeiJun

kfangting I agree to a large extend that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in recycling activities. Although the government had tried their very best to instill recycling habit in Singaporean, it does not work. Many Singaporeans do not see the point of recycling. I often hear people saying that disasters that many countries are facing now will not strike Singapore; therefore they are not worried of it. These environmental problems have yet to bring great difficulties to our daily lives and therefore, many still do not see the consequences of not ceasing environmental problems from getting bad to worse. It reflects the selfishness of typical Singaporeans and that they are not concerned how the disastrous consequences would affect our next generation. Just because it is ‘none of their business’, many or I should say the majority of them are still reluctant to start recycling. It is difficult to change their mindset and make them believe that their actions do make a difference. They find it a hassle to get involve in recycling programmes, be it collecting materials at home or depositing them in the recycling bins. Therefore, many people are not concerned and do not see how important recycling is. On the other hand, some might argue that Singaporeans do participate in recycling programmes. Have you ever seen people queuing up to exchange their recycling materials to receive something in return? This does not indicate that all of those who are queuing are doing recycling because they want to contribute to the society. Instead, it might be the rewards that are making them to do so. Also, we seldom notice people depositing their collected materials in the recycling bins. “We had saved religiously, but the payout was terrible,” James remembers. “That was the last time I ever tried to recycle. It barely paid for my gasoline to get down there.” (http://compostinginsingapore.wordpress.com/2010/06/04/how-true-why-people-dont-recycle/) Based on this statement, we can see that people are doing recycling due to incentives but not on purpose to save our mother Earth. People are complaining even with a little amount of incentive, can you imagine if recycling is totally without incentives, I doubt people will be willing to recycle. In conclusion, I felt that selfishness and lack of concerned is the main problem why people do not participate in recycling programmes. Singaporeans need more encouragement and time to get used to the recycling habit and participate in various recycling programme. DEPM/FT/1B/05 Fang Ting

jiahui Firstly addressing the issue of recycling. By recycling, it does not mean that the public is suppose to dump their rubbish into the recycling bin everyday,instead recycling could be done in a way or another.It should not be limited to just the usage of recycling bins.Also, other than recyling,reducing and reducing is also equally important. In fact, recycling is happening all around us, it is just that we are all oblivious to it. For example, nowadays parents are using plastic bottles to grow plants which is also recycling but just that we are reusing this item for any usage which could also be considered as recycling. Also, the exercise about the public bringing their own bags on wednesday is also receiving a lot of support and this is an act of reducing the usage of plastic bag which is non-biodeagradable. Hence, both the reducing and reusing is quite successful. Now,to address the problem of recycling. Firstly for recycling, there are a lot of recycling drive going around in schools in singapore. For example, in my former secondary school, our school had the annual recycling drive competition which offers attractive prices to be won and through that, the students are motivated to do their best and try hard for the drive. Surprisingly,tons and tons of newspapers and tin cans were gathered and the drive was more than just successful. Hence, the award factor comes into play. For singaporean, we are driven by the seduction of money. It is a basic human lust and greed. Through money and benefits, we human are willing to put in our effort. For example, elderly are always sloggin their guts out to gather tin cans at coffeeshops and then crushing them and selling it for money. The reason why they do that? Because of the monetary benefit! Since those recycling programmes did not offer any monetary benefit, hence we typical singaporeans do not care much about it. Hence we are not to blames for being immature, There should be some form of benefit to actually drive the singaporeans to actually put in effort to do their part in protecting mother nature.For example, there could be maybe a reward of 10 cents for every gram of recycled material that is dumped into the recycling bin. Hence, singaporeans are more motivated to support the recyling programme. Hence, i conclude that singaporeans are not immature or unconcerned, it all boils down to whether there are any benefits for them. Yeo Jia Hui DEPM 1B/05

qiaoting I disagree. The statement "This is a reflection that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme." is a type of generalizing. We cannot based on some mis-used recycling bins as a conclusion that all Singaporeans are not mature or not concerned about the environment. Not all Singaporeans are realistic and benefits driven. Although the change of attitude is slow. there still is a change! Which is better than not doing anything. These few years the government has been producing environment friendly events to help further promote the use of the three Rs. Reduce, reuse and recycle. I believe almost every Singaporean is aware of the monthly program of "Bring your own bag day"This is helping us to create an avid habit of bringing our own bags for shopping purposes. Lots of other shops have promotions for being environmental friendly too. If Singaporeans are not mature or concerned about the environment, would there even be any promotions about it in stores? Personally, my family and some of others that I know of do separate the trash from the recycled materials. I believe that as long as one person does their part in recycling, there would be an influence to the others. Bit by bit the situation to turn out to be better. QiaoTing DEPM 1B/05

yuminakajima well, there's always two side you can take, either you agree or disagree. for me, I'm on the fence. and why so? the reason are as follows: You can't fault Singaporeans on the whole as not ready to go green just because of un-used and mis-used recycling bins. As said above, recycling is not just about the recycling bins being fully utilise. recycling comes in a lot of ways.for example, In singapore, the refillable packs of houshold products are the MOST popular in supermarket. this shows that singaporeans do take the effort to make sure that the product bought is environmentally friendly, which also means that Singaporeans are learning how to go green. However, it may be somewhat true that singaporeans are not ready to go green. In Singapore, we are fortunate enough to be well to do, which results in us being wasteful-( we waste resources/things very easily) we have not seen as much suffering as poorer countries, thus leading to us being very spoilt as a whole. Also, we have never encounter any shortage of stuff, such as plastic bags, therefore causing us to have this" it wont happen to us" mentality and attitude, so we waste and use as much as we can. not just that, In hawkers, we do not even clear our own plates, we let the old uncles and aunties do so, how much more would we do recycling at home/work/school. we are too spoilt. Singapore is a young nation. It takes time for our society to change mentality. with education and proper teaching, I believe that this recycling situation would improve. More and more recycling campains would start and more people would put in the effort to go green. Nakajima Yumi. DEPM 1B/05

zeliatan I disagree that Singapore is not ready for the go green projects in Singapore. We can't use the example of recycling bin to judge Singaporeans mentality. Recycling bins is only a small part of the Go Green project. We should look at other parts of recycling in Singapore. Yes, there are still citizens out there that still do not bother about the whole go green rah rah in Singapore. But we still have a lot of people out there that cares. In my view I feel that people have been recycling a long time ago. Take a recycle bin as a karang Guni man now. They are invited to households to collect unwanted papers, spoiled electronics and etc. These Garang Guni then either recycle the materials or fix them to sell again. Isn't it recycling? This time people just have to take an additional effort to go downstairs to recycle those materials. Re-using of Plastic soda bottles as waterbottles has been what people have been doing all along. Re-using of plastic containers to contain food. We have been re-using many things all along. We are always told ' Use two sides of the paper!' 'Bring your own bags to the supermarket!' and etc. We have been doing the 3Rs (reduce, recycle and reuse)for very quite some time, how can we say that Singaporeans are not changing for the better of mother Earth? The government had put in effort and money to advertise and persuade Singaporeans to Go Green and i would say they have done a good job and should continue doing so. People say that culture cannot be changed overnight, so does our mindset.If everyone educate one another and remind one another to continue doing their part to Reduce, Recycle and Reuse. I am sure the new generation to come will be better than before. Hence i conclude that we are actually ready to go Green but it just takes time for people to change. Zelia Tan Jia Yi DEPM/1B/05

melissatal First and foremost, Singaporeans are Singaporeans and forever will be Singaporeans. So, what I am trying to say and percieve is that Singaporeans are incorrigible and are not exactly environmentally conscious. Given that there would be a recycing programme set up by the government, initial reactions of Singaporeans would not be as enthusiastic as to what the government would propose. They would complain about it being troublesome and that they would need time and what nots to adapt to the go green culture. Singaporean culture is such that if the government wants something to be done, like in this case, recycling being the main objective, they really have to pump in funds to commercialize the 'Go Green' message through all means of media publicity-radio, television,posters, school talks,road shows,campaigns etc. So, personally, my stand would be that NO, Singaporeans are still not ready for recycling programmes and the government needs to do more iniatives if they really want the nation to Go green. \m/ Although recycling bins have been placed in HDB estates, they are often not used or mis-used, This is a reflection that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme. Do you agree? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- As to the second part of the question, it is an absolute YES. It's obvious enough. The recycling bins are put there for a purpose- to reuse, reduce and obviously recycle to make the earth a better place to live in. But Singaporeans living in the HDB estates don't seem to be making full use of the recycling bins or are just plain oblivious to their surroundings and do not even notice the recycling bins. So, YES, i do agree on the point that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned about the recycling programme. I strongly believe the main reason is because us SIngaporeans know that our country is just a small little red dot on the map and we don't contribute to environmental issues because we are too small to be noticed,when actually, for all we know, every small contribution to save the environment is counted. \m/ Melissa Tal DEPM1B/05

p1033018 I disagree that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme. There will definitely be Singaporeans who are involved actively in the recycling programme and hence, we should not generalise that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough. The recycling programme is a relatively new programme that was introduced to singaporeans a few years back. If we were to compare the efforts put into this programme with the past few years, we definitely have made huge improvements in a way that more and more Singaporeans are more concerned about the Go Green issue. Singaporeans are also working hard to come up with more eco-friendly schemes to help save the environment. We are slowly but surely making progress to help save the environment. As to whether Singaporeans are ready for the recycling programme, I do not think of it as a question but rather we should do our part as a community to save earth. With regards to the misuse of recycling bins, of course, there are a minority of singaporeans who will just make life difficult for the people who are sorting out the recycling bins by just throwing their rubbish in any of the recycling bins. this could probably due to laziness. Every once in a while, a big plastic bag will be placed at our doorstep which is to be used for recycling.i believe that Singaporeans are not using the recycling bins because they could probably be putting them into the plastic bags for collection. There is also this Bring Your Own Bag Day. This helps with the awareness of going green. Even though it is only one day in a week, at least its a start. Who knows maybe in future, we will have to start paying for plastic bags. Therefore, i disagree that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme when we have already started to do our part to help save the environment. Elaina Minjoot DEPM/1B/05

lowjh In this fast growing world of technology, we are using too much material that we are not able to replenish for and thus this calls for a case of recycling. Recycling not only helps to reduce the case of lacking on raw materials but it also helps to save the environment as refining raw materials like iron for the construction of other materials required large amount of energy which will thus be harmful to the environment. In Singapore’s context of recycling, I feel that Singaporean is still not ready for recycling programs. This is because as shown in a research done by the straits times, even though there’s a lot of recycling bins around, Singaporean has been abusing it use. Even though this problem persists the Singapore government has not been doing much preventive measures to counter that and thus I believe that Singaporean is still not ready for recycling programs. Although recycling bins have been placed in HDB estates, they are often not used or mis-used. This is both a reflection that Singaporean are both immature and not concern about this issues as the issue on recycling is not heavily emphasised in Singapore. However I feel that the Singapore government should do something about this issue. As in the long run, in order for our society to be able to sustain itself we have to adopt recycling heavily. This is because Singapore as a small country, we do not have natural resources and hence we have to import from other countries. The government has to come out with policies or campaigns to publicize the importance of recycling or else in the long run Singapore will suffer. Low Jun Hao DEPM 05/1B/FT

chingyanni I believe that Singaporeans are not ready for recycling programmes yet. This is due to the certain reasons stated below. First of all, unlike Japan, who established the recycling cause in their country a long time ago to the extent that it is already a culture, Singapore was introduced to the “go green” campaign a little too late which doesn’t leave an impression on Singaporeans and causes them to brush off the idea of recycling..Most Singaporeans are not cultivated from young to recycle and go green and as such, are not really ready for recycling programmes yet. Plus, Singaporeans typically are self-centred people and don’t really care about saving the environment, which partly is due to the lack of government initiatives. However, if these recycling programmes are initiated and more stricter on Singaporeans for a long period of time then Singaporeans will start to be more concerned about recycling and the environment. In order to mature Singaporeans into being more concerned about recycling the government and local environment activists should not only strongly encourage Singaporeans to recycle more but also convey the message to everyone that how serious the global environment issues are affecting our lives and what we can do to salvage the world for our future generations by using all types of mediums like creating advertisements or even movies about these issues to create further awareness about the environmental problems and leave a deeper impression on Singaporeans too. CHING YAN NI DEPM/05

sheila2155 I agree to a large extent that that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme. This can be seen that from Singapore trying their best to encourage people to reuse,reduce and recycle through flyer, media etc. One of the examples is the National Environment Agency (NEA) implementing the National Recycling Programme (NRP) since 2001, where recycling bags or bins are given to residents living in HDB housing estates and landed properties.These recycling bags and bins are provided by the appointed recycling contractors and the recyclables are collected fortnightly (once every two weeks) at your doorstep. It was quite successful in the beginning but as time goes by, only a small minority group of people is doing that. This shows that people do not find recycling as a major issue in Singapore and would not even bother about it at all. In this way, the people are not mature enough to think for the environment. If one could reduce the amount of plastic bags used each day, bits and bits adding together could make a great difference in helping to save the earth and reduce global warming. Placing recycling bins in HDB estates is an obvious answer to people to recycle their items. However, from what we see is that people often does not use or mis-use them. Another reason as in why people does not choose to recycle their items in the recycling bins below their block is that they are lazy to walk the extra few more steps. This is because there is a refuse chute inside their house or they can just sell their newspaper to the 'garung guni'. They have this mindset that it would be easier for them and save their trouble from walking down. In conclusion, I agree that the recycling bins in HDB estates are often not used or mis-used due to the reason of Singaporeans being not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme. Sheila DEPM/06

fengshan I disagree to the point mentioning about Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme. As what we all know, almost the whole world is GOING GREEN, not to mention about Singapore. Even shopping malls and housing estate are also going into eco-friendly. Thus, as we walk along the neighbourhood, we would be able to recycling bin placed at the void decks of HDB flats. But most of the time, it was more like a small scale rubbish chute below each flat. It would be cluttered with bottles, papers and everything else. It might seems that Singaporeans are just being inconsiderate by just dumping their rubbish at the recycling bin when they could just throw down the rubbish chute at their own level. but however, not everyone understands how does recycling of rubbish is carried out. Normally, people think that, by just placing their things, like empty bottles, carton cardboards by the recycling bin, they would be playing their part in GOING GREEN, but most of the time, the recycling bin area would be cluttered and messy before the personnels could arrive in time to pick up the recycling materials. Hence, people would just place their stuffs there. They were just unsure of what they should do and how does recycling was being carried out. However, I agree to a certain extent that Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme. When they had just finished their food or had just finish using their tissues and they are trying to look for dustbin, but it was nowhere to be found. Thus, for convenience sake, they simply just dump their rubbish into the recycling bin when the things that they had thrown is non-biodegradeble, unable to be recycled. Therefore, I agree to the point whereby recycling bins are often not used or mis-used due to the reason of Singaporeans are not mature or concerned enough to be involved in the recycling programme. Feng Shan DEPM/1B/06

joeylee I agree to a certain extent that Singaporeans are not matured enough to be involved in the recycling programme. However, a small amount of Singaporean still has the habit of recycling every day, week or month. We cannot deny the fact that most people do not litter but neither do they recycle. One of the main reasons why they don’t recycle is because the recycling bins are too far from where they were standing at and hence they were too lazy to walk to the nearest recycling bin to throw their rubbish. Another main reason is because they do not know how much the earth is depleted of its resources. They do not know the side effects of using too much of the earth’s resources. Singapore has launched many recycling projects such as recycling week etc. Not only have those, some of the supermarts such as IKEA, NTUC implemented a recycling scheme whereby buyers have to bring their own bag when they purchase anything from the store. Every plastic bag cost around 0.5-1.0cents. They all have only ONE main purpose, which is to train us Singaporeans to start to recycle, save the earth! But in my opinion, these campaigns are like just forcing us to recycle against our own will. Hence, I think these campaigns are not quite a success in Singapore as people still do not recycle on our own. However, a small group of people living in Singapore still recycle. For example, in my family, only my maid recycles. Every once a week, she will bring all the used bottles to the recycling bins near my house to recycle. I think it’s still good even when only one member of the family recycles. Joey Lee DEPM/06