The Zero-Waste movement has been gaining momentum in Hong Kong with the help of many amazing zero-waste entrepreneurs. Today, we are starting a 6 part series on some of these Hong Kong entrepreneurs! Keep reading for part #1.
The Hong Kong Hanging Gardens?
Dr Daisy Tam Dic-sze, our first Hong Kong Zero-Waste Entrepreneur, specializes in food security and ethical food practices at the Baptist University’s Kowloon Tong campus in Hong Kong.
Leftovers in Hong Kong constitute the largest category of waste by far. To promote against this waste, Dr Tam created a wall of vegetables growing through holes cut into plastic bottles. This is positioned in a small corner of Hong Kong Baptist University’s Kowloon Tong campus, into a green vertical “hanging” position.
“It’s an experiment I did with students to teach them about turning waste into a resource and to see what was the smallest scale of urban farming we could do,” she explains. These small efforts Tam makes might not change the entire world but they surely can influence people. Especially on the Kowloon Ton campus. Projects like Tam’s “hanging gardens” can hopefully set in motion a “zero-waste” snowball.
Tam’s interest lies in trying to find out how waste-reduction practices might become routine for those who have no interest in the environment. She adds, “to affect change, you need a catchy, quick solution and someone to make it trendy, then you need to go beyond that, so it’s not just a luxury offered to the middle classes […] It’s about designing a city with sustainability in mind.” What a great mindset to have! Often times, zero-waste products or the lifestyle itself, can seem very unachievable. However, with affordability in mind, zero-waste entrepreneurs can definitely make positive change happen for everyone!
What IS Zero Waste:
The zero waste lifestyle, if you’re unfamiliar with it, is a lifestyle where you strive to produce as little waste as possible. It says “zero” but really, it is just about trying your best to not produce unnecessary waste. Almost of all our plastic products can be replaced with reusable items that might take a little bit of getting used to, but are ultimately better for the environment.
Thanks for reading! Do you have any other Hong Kong entrepreneurs in mind? Let us know in the comments below!
Related:
Runners in Hong Kong Urged to Reduce Waste
