COVER STORY

Southside’s eco-warriors Charmaine Ng meets the women leading Hong Kong’s climate change revolution

Mimi Law

Education Manager, Plastic Free Seas

Working alongside Tracey Read and Dana Winograd at Plastic Free Seas, Mimi Law has headed the Local Schools - Local Action programme for over two years. Born and raised in Hong Kong and Canada, she became involved with the charity after meeting Tracey, Founder of Plastic Free Seas, during a beach cleanup. Not long after, she started volunteering for the organisation on its boat programme, eventually joining as the driver of the local school education programme. Since then, Plastic Free Seas has expanded into the local school system and provides education in both English and

Cantonese. plasticfreeseas.org

What kind of services does Plastic Free Seas offer and what are the aims of the charity?

Our mission is to change the way people view and use plastic through education and action campaigns. We offer free customised talks and workshops to schools across Hong Kong and lead school beach cleanups for a small fee. We also have a corporate programme in which we offer Lunch & Learn educational talks and beach cleanups to companies.

What are some of the most challenging aspects of your mission?

One of my main tasks as Education Manager is to reach out to local schools and to secure opportunities to speak and raise awareness about this issue. Making those contacts and getting my foot in the door can be quite a challenge!

What has been the greatest lesson that the charity has taught you?

Change can and will happen, but not overnight. We have to be patient and persevere. What we are doing is planting seeds of change and just like in nature, different plants germinate and grow at different times.

What is one major goal for Plastic Free Seas this year?

The long-awaited launch of our new website, which will include resources for teachers, facts for students and information about our corporate programme. This includes handy wallet-sized downloadable phrase cards to encourage people to use less plastic with simple messages such as “No straw please”.

Prior to TREE, Kate Babington worked at The Body Shop, where she learned that businesses could be run with a ‘profits with principles’ mentality and make a difference to the communities from which they source. This business model sculpted her values and passion for sustainable sourcing and followed her when she helped build an ethical supply base for The Body Shop International. It was during this time she met Nicole, Founder of TREE, and the two quickly formed a friendship through a shared love for contemporary and sustainable design. In 2005, she joined the TREE family, where she created and honed the brand’s distinctive eco-aesthetic, which focuses on reclaimed or sustainably sourced solid wood furniture and naturally stylish finishing touches.

tree.com.hk

What are some of the steps TREE is taking to become more sustainable?

Sustainably sits at the heart of everything we do and we are constantly looking for ways to protect our natural resources. Our solid eco-wood collections are crafted from wood that is reclaimed, recycled, FSC-certified or sustainably sourced. We also work closely with Trees4Trees, a non-profit foundation in Indonesia to plant thousands of new trees and ensure our resources are replenished. Sustainability goes beyond our products and tree planting initiatives, too – we carry out green practices in every part of the business including using paper that is FSC, providing green cloth bags and reusing cardboard and packaging. We’re proud to have recently received a certificate of merit from the Hong Kong Awards for Environmental Excellence, which awards businesses and organisations that adopt green management.

What do you look for when selecting a piece of furniture at TREE?

Aside from ensuring that our solid wood furniture meets the highest standards of sustainability, we design and source an array of styles to ensure there’s a naturally stylish piece for every customer. We also look for and develop authentic, original designs crafted by local artisans, meaning that each is one-of-akind. We want to know the stories behind each product and share them with our customers.

Suzanne Younan

Founder, Green Dragons HK

Suzanne Younan grew up in a small town southwest of London and spent a lot of time outside as a child. Having lived in three different states in the US and Germany, she now resides in Hong Kong. In 2017, Suzanne founded Green Dragons HK after seeing the devastation that Typhoon Hato left on the city. In particular, the plastic pollution in the ocean that was revealed to her after the typhoon, was a huge eye opener. Being a keen dragon boater, she began to advocate for the environment and reduce single use plastic in her community. Facebook: Green

Dragons HK

What does Green Dragons do and what are the aims of the group?

Green Dragons HK is all about raising awareness about the dangers of plastic pollution to the dragon boat community.

We actively encourage teams to take a pledge to reduce single use plastic at training and race events and influence Dragon Boat Festival organisers to adopt more environmentally friendly methods. Our number one aim is to reduce the single use water bottles that feature so heavily at these events. approximately 1,500 people helping us spread our message, there are many more teams we would like to reach. We are a small core team working on the organisation, planning and execution of campaigns and events.

What has been the greatest lesson that TREE has taught you?

While sustainability is a driving force behind everything we do at TREE, you can’t always be perfect. It is completely normal to make mistakes, that’s how we learn and grow! As long as you strive to be better, avoid worrying about what others are doing and focus on your efforts, the rest will naturally follow.

Tell us about a memorable moment while working with Green Dragons?

Last year, we purchased a mascot who we named ‘Lappy the Lap Sap Dragon’. He is a big hit with the dragon boaters and supporters. The core team and I have all taken a turn to don on the ‘Lappy’ costume, which isn’t so pleasant on hot days at the beach, but we always have a lot of fun!

What has been the greatest lesson that Green Dragons has taught you?

That you cannot change people overnight, however passionately you present your case. Individuals have to have their own green ‘aha’ moment. You can make people aware but something inside has to motivate them. Until you feel it and it gets under your skin, one can always be swayed to turn a blind eye to the issues our planet faces.

HULA is an online platform which retails pre-owned designer women’s wear from over 1,000 luxury labels, including Chanel, Dior and Louis Vuitton. Founder Sarah Fung has over 15 years of fashion experience working at Lane Crawford and running a UK-based lingerie and swimwear line. After being inspired to pursue a more sustainable approach, she launched HULA. Last year, the company opened a warehouse space in Wong Chuk Hang where shoppers can try out items featured on the website. At least five percent of net sales are donated to partnered charities, including Liberty Asia, Food Angel, Habitat for Humanity, Redress and Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centre.

thehula.com

What is your opinion on fast fashion?

Because of fast fashion, textiles waste has been on the increase in the last decade (we now buy over 10 times more than we did a decade ago), making it one of the biggest polluters in the world. There is no point donating old clothes to charities that send them off to, say, Africa, as the country has accumulated heaps of unwanted clothing. Before HULA, I used to buy fast fashion and thought nothing of it. Nowadays I stay away from it and haven’t walked into a fast fashion store for over six years!

• Ditch the straws • Bring your own water bottle • Bring your own lunchbox and utensils • Choose clean beauty products • Buy groceries in bulk • Cook your own meals • Eat less meat • Shop secondhand • Join a beach cleanup • Have a staycation in Hong Kong

How have people’s attitudes towards fast fashion changed over the years?

In Asia, buying pre-owned is often frowned upon, many people turned their noses up when HULA first started. However in the last 24 months, I have seen the perception of pre-owned change, largely due to growing sustainability awareness in Hong Kong. Sustainability is so important (and almost trendy) right now. Once you start buying preowned, it is really addictive as it’s hard to pay full price afterwards. There is also a bigger appreciation on past season collections. True fashionistas know which items and collections are worth hunting down.

What advice do you have for people looking to cut down on fast fashion?

Try to shop secondhand or pre-owned, first of all. Some of these items are surprisingly as cheap as fast fashion. If you must get something new, shop for better quality items that last longer or brands that are trying to combat environmental issues. Until fabric

tech and production processes can be truly environmental on a mass scale, I strongly believe that buying pre-owned is the fastest way we can try to combat this issue.

Where to shop environmentally-friendly

Edgar

A bulk grocery store on Moon Street, Edgar stocks an impressive variety of nuts, dried fruit and freeze-dried vegetables which you can buy in bulk. An extensive collection of packaging-free products and body care items are also available for you to live your most sustainable life. 5 Moon Street, Wan Chai. edgar.hk

Live Zero

Located in Sai Ying Pun, Live Zero is Hong Kong’s first zero-waste grocery store and stocks a range of eco-friendly and plasticfree products including beeswax food wraps and bamboo toothbrushes. You can also shop for your staple ingredients in bulk – the store has a range of food items such as wheat flour, pumpkin seeds, dried fruit, quinoa and more. G/F, 33 High Street, Sai Ying Pun. livezero.hk

Lush

The Lush store in Causeway Bay is the brand’s first ‘naked’ store in Asia. It hosts an abundance of plastic-free alternatives to your everyday cosmetics. Shop bottlefree shower gels and lipsticks at this green mecca for all things health and beauty. Shop Q, G/F & M/F, Hong Kong Mansion, 2-10 Great George Street, Causeway Bay.

hk.lush.com

Slowood

This impressive store in Kennedy Town spans an impressive 3,000 square feet of space with floor-to-ceiling windows. In addition to providing grocery staples in bulk, Slowood stocks over more than a hundred local and international brands that offer a range of environmentally-friendly homeware and kitchen utensils. A small section of the store is sectioned off as a café serving vegetarian light meals. 11 Davis Street, Kennedy Town. slowood.hk