Environment

Global energy consumption has skyrocketed over the past century as a result of population growth and globalisation. Therefore, demand for energy has risen, especially for non-renewable energy sources such as coal, oil, fossil fuel and nuclear energy. These innovations have had positive trends of higher living standards, decreasing global poverty, and longer livelihoods. However, the rising demand for non-renewable energy has raised several environmental concerns regarding its contributions to global warming and climate change. In order to resolve these issues, the global energy system will need to shift to utilising renewable energy resources to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which drives climate change. During the COVID-19 pandemic, global energy consumption has declined, resulting in adverse impacts on the non-renewable energy sectors who now have a smaller share of the energy market. Our presentation will be discussing the heavy reliance on non-renewable energy resources and how we can mitigate this amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.

As an island nation with roots in maritime trade, Singapore has a uniquely close relationship with the ocean. Yet, the surge in human development during the past century has contributed to the loss of countless ecosystems, breaking the long-standing tradition of harmonious human-nature relationships. This presentation aims to investigate the factors influencing Singaporeans with regard to developing care and concern for the local marine environment. A survey involving 60 Singaporeans was conducted, with the results showing that those with a stronger emotional connection to the sea, and who felt positively about marine life, possessed a greater degree of care for the marine environment. In contrast, practical reasons, such as the ocean being important to one’s occupation or hobby, may not be as reliable in predicting one’s degree of care for ocean conservation. Therefore, actions should be taken to cultivate Singaporeans’ emotional connections to the ocean, through innovative public awareness and education programmes.

According to the studies, in the next 10 years, the air temperature in all provinces of Iran will be 0.1-1°C warmer. This increase in temperature will cause rising sea-level, reducing freshwater resources, increase floods, 42%reduce rainfall, agricultural land destruction, and will lead to the 72.5%-drought of the catchment area, which will cause many environmental migrants in low rainfall areas in Iran. Therefore, to preventing temperature rising, Iran has committed to COP21 to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions by 12% by 2030, in case of lifting economic sanctions. The best way to achieve these goals in Iran is developing renewable-energy, especially wind and solar power-plants because Iran is a vast country with 300 sunny-days and high-speed wind tunnels, so it can supply its own energy and neighboring countries through clean energy. This approach will create employment in the field of sustainable development and even alternative livelihoods for farmers. Investing in the construction of wind and solar power-plants in Iran requires the creation of a culture and the expansion of international relations, which can be done through the purchase of carbon share by developed countries. By paying taxes on carbon emissions, developed countries are both encouraged to reduce their fossil fuel consumption and forced to invest in developing countries, which will help develop social justice in global warming. This study presents the practical methods of creating a culture for teenagers to become more familiar with the technical and economical parameters of renewable energy to demand a healthy environment for their future with more knowledge.

The use of disposables (plastic bags, straws and disposable cups) is on the rise, with plastic waste generated increasing from 10,000 to 17,000 tons from 2000 to 2020 (Saidan, 2017). The issue of overuse of disposable materials has led to environmental degradation, and it is imperative that society reduces the consumption of disposables with negative externalities. While current measures, which include discounts when customers bring their own reusable materials, have been put in place to discourage the consumption, they were largely deemed ineffective in changing the public’s habit of using disposables. This project leverages on the insights of behavioral economics to explain the limited effectiveness of current measures and propose a ‘nudge’ policy. Our group posits that the way in which these notices were framed (enjoying a discount when bringing their own recyclable materials) is less effective as compared to framing the use of disposables as a loss (when they need to pay extra money upon consumption of disposable items). To test this hypothesis, we designed an experiment to compare how the framing of choices affect students’ willingness to pay for an extra carrier in the school canteen. We hypothesise that due to loss aversion, when the carrier and food are priced together, there will be greater willingness to pay for the packaging. On the other hand, when the carrier is framed as an additional cost, there will be reluctance to pay for it

Singapore’s apparel market is valued at a whopping US$ 2,705 million in 2020. Given the magnitude of apparel consumption, sustainable production and consumption should be the key concern in the industry. With increasing environmental awareness on climate change, there has been increasing consciousness of responsible consumerism. This presents an opportunity for consumers, retailers and producers of fast fashion to adopt sustainable practices that slow fashion movement advocates. Such practices are already present in non-mainstream local fashion companies and individual consumer’s behavior. Furthermore, with the pandemic, ethical and environmental issues with regards to fast fashion began to emerge in the consciousness of the people.

Certainly, more can be done to leverage these opportunities so that sustainable fashion can gain more traction. Nonetheless, there is a need to address the myths and challenges associated with sustainable fashion. With more companies jumping into the green bandwagon, greenwashing is becoming a concern.

Hence, this project serves to explore the opportunities, myths, challenges and innovation in the sustainable fashion movement in Singapore through the eyes of the fashion industry.

In Singapore, the number of air conditioners are expected to rise 73% by 2030. Air-conditioning constitutes 19% of Singapore’s carbon emissions, making it the second highest source of emissions in Singapore. With air-conditioning taking up a quarter of Singaporean household’s consumption, it generates up to 3037kg of carbon emissions per year for each household. If this problem is not mitigated, there will be dire consequences for Singapore, as carbon emissions are a vital factor in climate change. The Centre for Climate Research Singapore has projected that there could be an increase in daily mean temperature of 1.4C to 4.6C, more intense and frequent heavy rainfall events, and mean sea level rise of up to 1 metre by 2100.

This research project explores ideas in retrofitting air conditioning systems to be more energy-efficient. Firstly, this entails utilization of hydrogel in the evaporator, which helps to reduce energy usage. Secondly, we will be using R723, an alternative, more environmentally friendly refrigerant to hydrofluorocarbons. The third modification is the removal of the compressor, which frees up space and decreases energy consumption. This modified model helps solve the problem of thermal stratification in tall buildings through the creation of an energy-efficient air-curtain. The focus of this study is to investigate whether the modified model of air conditioning is cost and energy efficient, by targeting three factors; firstly, the detrimental environmental impacts of current air conditioning systems in Singapore; secondly, the effectiveness of R723 as a refrigerant compared to other possible refrigerants; and lastly, the overall efficiency of the modified model and its commercial and domestic application.

At the current rate of plastic waste generation in Singapore, the local Semakau landfill will be filled by 2035, with the use-and-throw process of plastics in the bubble-tea industry being a major contributor. Our research paper aims to evaluate effective ways of reducing single-use plastics in the bubble-tea industry to mitigate the associated negative environmental impacts. We hope to improve existing plastic waste management strategies in this industry to make it more eco-sustainable.

We gathered opinions from stakeholders in the bubble-tea industry through quantitative research; data from bubble-tea managers was collected through onsite interviews while online surveys were conducted for consumers. Concurrently, secondary research focused on existing solutions, trends and statistics of plastic waste in Singapore. The purpose was to investigate the level of eco-sustainability in the bubble-tea industry, so solutions or meliorations could be theorised to reduce plastic waste.

Our undergoing study has found that reusing plastics has more environmental benefits than recycling as this extends its life cycle. Plastic consumption and recycling is unregulated and minimal in Singapore. Additionally, 130 of 250 survey respondents do not use plastic alternatives in bubble-tea purchases, while 163 of 250 respondents do not recycle their bubble-tea cups.

Upon analysis of the data, the installation of recycling points at various bubble-tea shops was found to be the most viable among the measures in reducing plastic waste. Its ranking on factors like scale of impact and acceptability by consumers were the highest compared to existing solutions like plastic-use fees or recyclable tumblers and straws.

Climate change has become more prevalent in our modern world, signifying the need to address its effects in order to ensure that they do not become irreversible.

Climate change has impacted our lives by increasing the frequency of natural disasters occuring resulting in the destruction of infrastructure and disruption of access to basic necessities. Tourists are deterred from visiting countries with natural disasters as it is dangerous, negatively impacting the tourism industry. There is a shift in focus of the government’s objective in addressing climate change, causing differing views within the political landscape.

To address climate change, organisations were set up like Singapore’s Youth for Climate Action (SYCA). SYCA conducted workshops for engagement on climate change through talks in schools, outreach events, and group discussions.

Currently, the solution proposed by SYCA is not sustainable and ineffective in reaching out to climate change, as it merely encourages but does not enforce it. Wasted food accounts for about 8 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions.Thus, we decide to start a food waste reduction project. Schools will be given four electric biodigester machines and three manual compost bins. The fertiliser can be used in gardens on the school compound, and the machines are used to teach students about composting and food waste. This ensures students to only order food they can finish and educates them about consuming only what they need and reducing food waste.