By Ku Anis Sofia Bt Ku Ibrahim - 21 December 2019 @ 3.15pm
On October 2019, the 7th Asia Pacific Urbanisation Forum had graced Penang Island in partnership Urbanice Malaysia. This international exchange involving multiple nationalities took place in none other than in spice The aims of this forum to discuss sustainable living and urbanisation that is constructive and effective in hopes of providing a better future. This forum is also aiming to promote the 17 Sustainable Development goals and projects that have been able to achieve part of the goals.
So as a part of their goals APUF-7 has devised APUF-7 Sustainability Plan: Checklist. This checklist consisted of three segments in is to encourage Paper and Plastic Waste Reduction, Food Waste Reduction and as well as Public Transportation segment.In light of this Checklist students from USM under CGSS had been brought to volunteer and help measure the quantifiers involved in this plan.
For the next 5 days students were tasked with asking participants to fill up surveys which was to help calculate the usage of public transportation under the Public Transport segment of the checklist, and this was also the carbon footprint of the event that day. Calculating the number of vehicles was also amongst the task needed to get a more accurate reading of the carbon footprint left by those attending. Students were also asked to pass stickers to participants who were effectively using less paper and plastic or if they were using a recyclable or reusable materials and containers whilst attending.
This was in order to encourage less usage of one use papers and plastics under the Paper and Plastic Waste Reduction segment. This was also similar for the Food Waste Reduction segment of the checklist where students would pass stickers to those using their own containers,cutlery or reusable mugs water bottles and straws throughout the event. In addition to this students had to also calculate the amount of food wastage and paper wastage accumulated at the end of the event daily by weighing all of those waste disposed for the Paper and Plastics Reduction segment as well as for the Food Waste segment.
The results of the survey will be displayed daily as a way to encourage those attending the following days to produce less waste and used more reusables and also to attend via public transport to produce less carbon footprint. Other than that CGSS students had also collaborated with AnyWheel which were a scooter service provided within the areas in Spice Arena to promote their services.
The 5 days of the event was indeed a fruitful one as it had managed to inspire the students and introduce them to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. This will in hopes aspire them to tackle on projects similar to those presented throughout the event in their own mean on campus so that they too may contribute a change within their communities.
