Speech by Mr Chan Soo Sen, Minister of State, Ministry of Education & Ministry of Trade and Industry, for Singapore Environment Council's Schools' Green Audit Awards at Singapore Polytechnic Auditorium on Saturday, 8 April 2006, 9.45 am

SPEECH BY MR CHAN SOO SEN, MINISTER OF STATE, MINISTRY OF EDUCATION & MINISTRY OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY, FOR SINGAPORE ENVIRONMENT COUNCIL’S SCHOOLS’ GREEN AUDIT AWARDS AT SINGAPORE POLYTECHNIC AUDITORIUM ON SATURDAY, 8 APRIL 2006, 9.45 AM

Professor Leo Tan Wee Hin , Director, NIE and
Vice Chairman, Singapore Environment Council

1. I am pleased to be here with you this morning, and I am very happy to see so many Principals, teachers and students present.

2. I understand that there are not just award winners present today but also schools that are just starting out or are interested in finding out more about how they can make the school environment a better place to study, work and play in.

3. As Singapore and the rest of the world become more urbanized, as a result of economic and social progress, we will find environmental problems becoming more acute and pressing. As our country rises in status on the world economic stage, Singaporeans must also accept the responsibility of ensuring that the country ranks high on global environmental standards.

4. As global citizens we have the responsibility to minimise our negative impact on the planet.

Issues such as conservation of our limited natural resources, climate change and waste minimization are in the forefront and we will have to deal with these issues. The environment will need to be an integral part of our growth and development plans for the present and in the future.

5. As educators, you have the unique opportunity of impressing upon our children the importance of environmental protection. If done right, your students will grow up loving the natural environment and learning to live environmentally responsible lives. The aim of any environmental education activity should be to produce participants who are aware of and concerned about the environment and its problems and who become concerned enough to actively search for feasible solutions and act to prevent new problems from occurring.

6. It is important for our students to learn about the natural environment. The Schools’ Green Audit meets this need and has succeeded in being adopted by primary schools, secondary schools and junior colleges in Singapore. Its comprehensive coverage of all environmental areas of interest within school grounds has even attracted the interest of schools and green groups in other parts of the world.

7. With the support of organisations such as the Singapore Environment Council and the National Environment Agency, our schools have implemented various programmes that help to increase awareness of the environment amongst our young people. Three schools which have attained the top level Lotus Award for three consecutive years are Bukit Panjang Government High School, Chua Chu Kang Secondary School and Temasek Secondary School.

They will receive the Singapore Environment Council’s Sustained Achievement Award for their long term commitment to educating their students on environment issues.

8. Both Bukit Panjang Government High School and Chua Chu Kang Secondary School have ‘koi’ ponds and have made excellent efforts in adding more greenery to the school with more plants, and even fruit trees, in the case of Bukit Panjang Government High. These efforts not only beautify the school, but also help to create a conducive environment for learning, and will allow students to interact with and learn about the natural environment. In addition, Chua Chu Kang Secondary School has put in place measures to conserve energy, such as switching off the lights in the canteen and classrooms during off-peak periods, and setting the air-conditioning at 24 degrees Celsius to prevent excessive wastage of energy.
Teachers in Temasek Secondary have also begun posting their lessons and teaching resources on the school’s e-learning platform. Besides allowing students to access notes and lesson materials online, the initiative has helped to cut down on paper usage. I understand that all three schools have got active recycling and energy conservation programmes in place.

9. Of worthy mention is Marsiling Secondary School which is receiving the Orchid award today. The school has opened an Energy Conservation Learning Centre in April 2005, which contains books and resources on energy conservation issues, and displays students’ solar energy projects as well. To keep their school environment “green”, Marsiling Secondary has also installed solar powered water sprinklers for its Herb and Spice garden to reduce the usage of electricity.

10. I am very proud to know that students in Singapore are making it a point to do their bit in protecting the environment through the projects and programmes that they have put in place, and by helping to increase awareness among their family and friends of the need for environmental protection, to ensure a clean and green world for future generations.

11. My congratulations go out to all the schools that will be receiving awards at today’s ceremony. I hope you have a fruitful day ahead.