Eva Fung is a second year student of Business Administration (Human Resources Management) in City University of Hong Kong. She participated in Youth Platforms to share her points of view on environmental issues and other issues actively. She was the task force member of meeting with the Secretary for the Environment Mr. Edward Yau and shared opinions on the official environmental promotion videos. She was youth representative at “New Generation of Asian” seminar and discussed the IT development in Hong Kong. She devotes to the environment by proposing her secondary school to build a “Green Gallery” which let her fellow students have an elementary understanding of environmental protection and relax after their after finishing their engaged schoolwork. She believes that protecting the environment is the responsibility of every citizen but not the burden of the government solely. She also suggests that illustrating realistic examples to citizens could make them to be disillusioned that the natural resource is no longer inexhaustible.
Cindy Fung
Throughout her secondary education, participation in the Student Environmental Protection Ambassador Scheme and volunteering for local green groups such as WWF, and Conservancy Association awakened for the first time her awareness of the adverse implications of climate change on the beloved nature. But she was not astonished by the urgency of the natural crisis until her undergraduate study of Government and Public Administration at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, where she researched and discussed environmental issues in a political context. Reasons from lack of conservational technology and financial support to living convenience and business profitability often nip CO2 emission cut-down in the bud in governmental planning. What has made her further feel the pinch of climate change was the experience of linguistic interpretation for Globalization Monitor, which exposed her to the powerful influence of globalization on the environment in terms of energy exhaustion and resource conflicts. And internship with UNHCR has brought her to a closer look at the devastation of weather polarization such as prolonged drought and metres-deep flood, escalated snowstorms and record-high heat waves, which exert a domino effect of harming mankind livelihood.
Yet she reposes her faith in the old saying that “there is always a silver lining in every cloud”. Looking on the bright side, she was impressed by the enthusiasm of environment-conscious counterparts and on-campus green practices like food composting and organic farming during her exchange year at Williams College, and positive impacts of conservation efforts in Yellowstone National Park, USA during her summer internship there. All these have painted a better picture of a sustainable future with harmony between nature and mankind. To disseminate this green “picture” and magnify green voices, she partook in training on ecotourism by local green concern group, Footprint Hong Kong, in the hopes of igniting tour attendees’ appreciation of nature and raising the public concern for the importance of environmental protection and ecological balance in the face of worsening environmental deterioration. Furthermore, she has stayed in close contact with youth networks such as AIESEC, UNICEF, a youth-targeted radio programme on Radio Television Hong Kong (Mandarin Channel) and Federation of Outstanding Student Leaders to seek collaborative opportunities for green causes. She will take part in environmental researches and community service in Central America with Raleigh in the coming summer.
To her belief, 2041 Expedition will enlighten her in a way that signals a path towards concord between the living and the wilderness. The experimentation with Antarctica exploration will enrich her understanding of real-life environmental conditions which is of the essence in her commitment to spreading green messages. Through interchange of ideas with green enthusiasts, creative brainstorming and observation-based reflection, she aspires to gain hands-on experiences in wilderness collaboration and leadership so that she can contribute to many more outdoor expeditions in the years to come by assisting in preparation and passing down the knowledge to future participants. This opportunity of a lifetime will reinforce her lifelong devotion to advocating environmental preservation and sustainability down the road.
Carol Pun
Carol Pun is a first year student of Engineering (System Engineering and Engineering Management) in The Chinese University of Hong Kong. She contributes in community work proactively especially in the environmental protection field. When everyone was indulged in post-exam entertainment and relaxation in F.7 summer vacation, she took initiative to work as a summer intern in the World Wide Fund for Nature of Hong Kong. She conducted research and fact checked regarding recent environmental issues which assisted the department head. The valuable opportunity offered her insights and experience to gain deeper understanding of the environment. She strongly holds the belief that human being should strive for a better life together and the fundamental step is to protect our motherland, the Earth. Our next generation does deserve a beautiful and comfortable place to live. For the same reason, she devotes herself in community services such as being a volunteer in Equestrian Events of 2009 Olympic Games in Hong Kong and takes up leadership role like being assistant guider of Girl Guides. She is well recognized by the certificate of Award for 1000 hours of volunteer service.
Dixon Kwong
Dixon Kwong is a final year student of Business Administration (International Business and Global Management) in University of Hong Kong. His journey of environmental work began with a Lions Club Exchange Programme in Germany, where he saw how different the attitude could be when comparing environmental awareness and lifestyle of European and his home city of Hong Kong. Since then, Dixon feels a pressing need to melt the heart of the people of Hong Kong to raise both their knowledge and awareness on environmental protection, and thus make Hong Kong a greener city.
Back to Hong Kong, he convened the Youth Policy Forum on Environmental Protection, having suggested environmental policies of Hong Kong face-to-face with Mr. Edward Yau, JP, Secretary for the Environment, and 120 youths of Hong Kong. Since then, he has been proactively involved in environmental protection: being a visiting student at Harvard Kennedy School of Government on Environmental Politics and Environmental Economics in 2009/10, representing the University of Hong Kong at the United Nations Climate Change Conference Copenhagen 2009 (COP15), attending Legislative Council Special Meeting on Hong Kong’s Climate Change Strategy and being a on-stage panellist at a Climate Change Briefing organized by the Environmental Protection Department.
When Dixon entered the University of Hong Kong, he set a goal to himself to make a ‘green’ impact to society in his three years of university life. Now that the final semester has come, recalling the Policy Forum convened by Greenagers, and the Facebook Group, media exposure of Greenagers, he is not yet satisfied and desired a greater ‘green’ impact. Joining 2041 Expedition will allow him to achieve the greater ‘green’ impact. 2041 Expedition is helping him not only to meet his university goal set, but reaching beyond that goal in the future. In the short run, Dixon wants to be a Green Speaker, to share his experiences to Hong Kong people, and we can make a difference to climate change at a global level. In the long run, he longs for being the Green Leader, to always find a greener alternative in any choices he will face in his family, work, society, and country.
