Job Duties

• Mainly be responsible for creative online promotion in environmental and conservation information
• Design and manage social media posts
• Conduct background researches and interviews
• Assist events such as Cleanup, DIY workshop & seminar (online or face-to-face)

Requirements

• 1-2 years volunteer experience in environmental activities is greatly considered
• Students studying in relevant field such as Arts & Science, Conservation, Urban Studies, Communications or Education are welcome
• Advanced skills in popular graphic software (e.g. Photoshop or illustrator) are adventage
• Video and audio editing skills are preferred

Interested candidates please apply with (1) full resume and (2) cover letter by e-mail (info@greensense.org.hk) on or before Friday, 28 April 2023

“Countryside Cleanup 2023″ is the latest programme organized by Green Sense.

To tackle the problem of countryside plastic pollution, participants are not only going to clean up the plastic pollution spots, but also implemeting “Reuse”, “Recycle” & “Reduce” the single-use plastics.

Each local Non-Governmental Organizations or Charity Institutions are free to apply one 3-hour activity. Countryside cleanup, waste audit, transportation and tools are included.

If applicants are not able to arrange outdoor activities, cleanup ambassadors can be assigned to speak at venue provided by school or organization for 1 hour. The sharing session covers plastic waste problem, cleanup and green living experiences, as well as green hiking etiquettes.

Photos and video recording may be included. Participants should fill in the post-event questionnaires and pledge for Green Living.

The last event day of the Programme is 31 August 2023. 20 beneficiary group will be determined on a first come first served basis. Successful applicants will receive a confirmation email with activity details after 5 working days. Please contact 8100 4877 for any details.

REGISTER HERE: https://forms.gle/6vstYdHbjzXXpcra6

This programme is sponsored by Overlook Investments Limited.

The Seven Principles of “Leave No Trace” are as follow:

1. Plan ahead and be prepared

• Prior to hiking, conduct research concerning outdoor knowledge and skills needed

• Be well planned and ready for an offline map to reduce risks

• Protect nature to get back to its resilience state from not going to highly concentrated trails

• Prevent food waste and to bring sufficient food and water

2. Use the constructed trails only

• Do not create your own trail for excitement because this practice would destroy the vegetation cover and lead to surface runoff

• Use constructed hiking trails, try not to take shortcuts in order to minimize the distrubance to natural environments

• When there is no constructed trail, step on places that are more stable, such as rocks, hay, and stones

3. Picking up Trash

• Bring your own container for food and water. Do not bring food with excessive packaging just for your own convenience

• Take away your own trash and do not leave them in the wild

• Do not leave food waste in nature even they would be decomposed. Food exposed under the sun would result in hygienic concerns

• Bring a bag and a pair of gloves for picking up trash along the way under hygienic conditions

4. Leave the environment as the way it is

• Do not pick any flora in nature

• Do not create unnecessary marks in the environment

• Not to alter the habitat and cultural environment in a local context

• Do not take away anything

5. Avoid the use of fire

• Keep away from setting fire in places other than the suggested area, fire would leave permanent marks on the land

• Avoid smoking. Cigarette butts could potentially lead to forest fire that would harm plants and animals

• Prevent setting fire and use high efficient cookery and lighting tools, in order to lower the impacts to the environment

6. Respect Wildlife

• Starting off not to feed animals to leave their living habits unchanged

• Not to hurt, approach, or intervene with wildlife in nature

7. Be a considerate individual to other hikers

• Be polite to other hikers

• Avoid occupying a resting area for a long period of time

• Let hikers heading uphill go first if two individuals or groups are walking into one another from two directions

• Keep your voice low to ensure a quiet environment in the wild

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To receive more detailed and interesting  information regarding Hiking Etiquette, please follow our Facebook and Instagram page.

Green Sense also hosts shoreline cleaning and other outdoor activities occasionally.

The first Action for Cleanup the Countryside have been successfully held on 6 May 2018. Green Sense fellows with 34 volunteers went to Po Toi Island to clean up the waste and carry out an ecotour at the same time. The main purpose of the event is to arouse the public concerns of plastic waste problems and increase their awareness of environmental protection. Moreover, it is important to introduce the biodiversity in Hong Kong to the public and to understand the importance of our countryside.

It was a sunny Sunday. All volunteers gathered at Blake Pier, Stanley. Before taking the ferry to Po Toi Island, our tour guide explained safety concerns and eco-friendly hiking etiquette.

After arrival, many of us can immediately felt the peace and comfort of the natural environment. We were refreshed! We passed through some old stores and a diesel-electric set. We experienced their simple and austere lifestyle.

After passing the areas of residents, we visited to Po Toi School. Some volunteers were eager to clear the rubbish on the path right away. Po Toi School is a building with historical value. It reflected how was the school life in the past. Although it has been abandoned for decades, its structure maintains and we can even peek at the classroom through a broken window.

Walking along the coast, we arrived the Po Toi Rock Carvings which constructed over 3000 years. It is one of the declared monuments in Hong Kong. It consists two parts: One group on the left consists of lines resembling, while the other on the right is composed of spirals in an interlocking arrangement. Many of us spent a lot of time in taking photos with the carve. We were amazed the crave stood in good shape.

Volunteers started to clean the island. They were separated into two groups: One going uphill cleaning hiking trail and and the other for the coastal area. Many garbage was buried in the bush as Po Toi Island is a famous place for camping. Moreover, a lot of disposables were left there. For example, foam boxes, disposable utensils, aluminium cans, plastic bags and even LPG cylinders! The most difficult part for us is to collect a considerable amount of the “foam balls” which were naturally grind into different sizes. Even though it was hard to collecting the rubbish in high temperature, we were devoted to do so. All of us are willing to do more to compensate for the environment, and to protect the Earth.

After cleaning the island for a whole day,  volunteers carried bags of waste and head to the pier after the waste audit. Plastic disposables account for the most. The amount of waste collected are shown below:

Fortunately, some tourists were touched by our action and some of them promised to reduce the waste and minimize the pollution in the future . Public education are exactly means to influence the community altogether . All of us should set an example for our next generation by taking action in environmental protection.

If you have missed the volunteer action in May, please enroll the next”Action for Cleanup the Countryside ” at Tung Chung Bay on 12th August. Please click https://goo.gl/rDKwVP for enrollment and information.

Green Sense has invited Mr. Dickson Wong, a biology teacher at Ho Koon Nature Education Cum Astronomical Centre, as the speaker of the talk.

Mr. Wong obtained his M. Phil. in Environmental Science at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and is now a biology teacher at Ho Koon Nature Education Cum Astronomical Centre. A veteran in nature education with extensive experience, Mr. Wong brings his students into Nature and guides them to study first-hand the wild life of Hong Kong as well as issues in urban development and environmental conservation.

Mr. Wong is no stranger to Hong Kong’s biodiversity, having fallen in love with bird-watching a little more than ten years ago and now extended his interest of study to dazzlingly-variated insects, often-unnoticed spiders, and even aquatic life. In 2006, he published “A Guide to the Spiders of Hong Kong”, the first field guide for spiders of the city, which include a total of 222 species in 30 families. Mr. Wong is also a well-known conservation blogger, who frequently publishes articles online to stand up for Hong Kong’s natural environment.

In this talk, Mr. Wong will guide us in a journey through time and space, showing us the changes of Nature with the seasons and various landscapes of Hong Kong. We start from mudflats, mangrove forests and coral communities, then travel up along streams through woodlands and bushlands, and finally reach the hilltops. At the same time, through different angles, we study also Hong Kong’s precious birds, charming reptiles and amphibians, highly variegated insects, sturdy corals, fascinating spiders, and the tardigrade or ‘water bear’ – a microscopic yet near indestructible aquatic organism.

Event details:

Theme: An Overview of Hong Kong Biodiversity

Speaker: Mr. Dickson Wong

Date: 6^th January 2018 (Saturday)

Time: 9:30 to 11:30 am

Venue: Room 501, the Boys’ and Girls’ Clubs Association of Hong Kong, 3 Lockhart Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong

Admission fee: Free

To apply: https://goo.gl/G4iEe7

*Participants will receive a Certificate of Participation (Hours counted: 2 hours)

For any enquiries, please contact us through 8100 4877.

The tour started at the Peak Galleria, we witnessed the problem of light pollution. After that, we walked along Harlech Road to Lung Fu Shan Country Park. Frogs, spiders, centipedes and other nocturnal animals were seen from time to time. We gained an insight on the characteristics of different amphibians, reptiles, various animals and plants.

Hong Kong is well known of its high density of skyscrapers, and is called “concrete jungle”. Yet, there are many natural creatures living right beside us, and all we have to do is to look around carefully. Green Sense hope that participants could understand the relationship of human and nature through this ecotour, as well as ponder on the balance and trade-off between urban development and natural environment.

There are about 40% of land area designated as country parks and special areas, which nurtured a vast diversity of flora and fauna. To celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the Country Parks,  all are welcome to join the celebration programmes, visiting by oneself is also not difficult.

Hiking Scheme (Leisure and Cultural Services Department): http://www.lcsd.gov.hk/en/healthy/hiking/index.html

Enjoy Hiking (Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department): http://hiking.gov.hk/eng/trail_list/type.htm

More photos of the events: https://flic.kr/s/aHskWUNMiY

Back in 2011, Greening Master Plan (GMP) was first developed by the Government in the New Territories, and extended to all densely populated districts. Vast sums of 350 million was proposed to the Legislative Council in 2014 for the plans.

The tour started at the public area on the podium of IFC, Central. In viewing the implementation of the Central GMP, participants hovered around the Central Pier area. The greening practices,  the identification of different management departments  and the suitable species of urban trees were introduced.

More about GMP: http://www.cedd.gov.hk/tc/greening/

Please stay tuned for the next “Monthly Green”!

Highlights can be viewed at the photo gallery: https://flic.kr/s/aHskXdXbFM

Hundreds of  Millions are spending on Greening projects under “Greening Master Plan” (GMP)  in every districts. Is it effective? Veteran arborist Ms. Teresa So will take you for a field study in Central Western District, for sharing basic tree knowledge as well as views on the GMP.

Speaker: Teresa So
- International Society of Arboriculture Certified Arborist
- Uk Arboricultural Association Technician Member
- Working in the field over 9 years

Date: 1st April (Saturday)
Time: 10AM – 1PM (3 hours)
Assembly: Podium level 4, IFC, Central (Near MTR Exit F)
Quota: 15
Admission Fee: HKD100

Enrolment: https://www.eventbrite.hk/e/32717190999

For any enquiry, please contact Ms. Ma at 8100 4877.