Sustainability starts at home. Within the halls and the academic buildings, we are focusing on ways to make the experience of being a part of the HKUST community a green one.

 

Environment Week – Every spring the university takes a week to highlight some specific environmental or sustainability related issues. This year the week included a "Trash and Treasure" Campaign and Green Products Fair. The campaign aimed to deliver the waste issue in Hong Kong and ways to make changes. It kicked off with an opening ceremony and discussion forum on effective waste management strategies in Hong Kong with speakers from the government and different sectors. An eco-fashion talk and green products showcase followed with an emphasis introducing the concept of upcycling practices from waste to valuable products. Simultaneously, the Green Products Fair featured vendors selling a wide range of green products, from organic snacks to personal care products. NGOs, social enterprises and companies were invited to promote their green products to students and staff. Special discounts were offered, attracting a lot of attention and participatio

 

Greening the Student Halls – Led by Hall III Residence Master Professor Irene Lo, students organized a "Floor-based Domestic Waste Recycling Campaign" to encourage student residents to recycle as part of a competition that pit floor against floor. In the end, over 700kg of waste paper, 130kg of metal and 350kg of plastics were collected. In addition, a small-scale food waste composter was set up to turn collected food waste into soil fertilizers. Student residents also have the opportunity to learn about green living through DIY workshops, designing flowerpots with collected plastics and using the compost generated by the composter for planting. In Hall VI, members of the Live Green Learning Community held similar activities, including a rooftop grass planting activity, "Do it Green" workshops that reused carton boxes to make photo stands, and make their own hand cream and air refresher with natural ingredients. All these activities were successful in keeping things fun and light.

 

Student Hall Check Out Recycling Campaign – During the hall checkout periods, students always end up with extra stuff that cannot be brought home. The Student Housing and Residential Life Office (SHRLO) organizes the Student Hall Check Out Recycling Campaign at the end of every semester to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill and give items a second life. Student residents are encouraged to donate unwanted but usable personal items to local charities for their redistribution to those in need. In 2013-2014 academic year, 450kg of clothing, 60kg of living commodities and 5 electrical appliances were collected.