Eco Action Day
| Eco Action Day | |
|---|---|
| Eco Action Day Logo | |
| Status | Active |
| Genre | Environmental Sustainability Campaign |
| Date(s) | 5 June |
| Frequency | Annually |
| Location(s) | Singapore |
| Inaugurated | 2007 |
| Organised by | Ricoh Asia Pacific Pte Ltd |
| Website | https://www.ecoaction.sg |
Eco Action Day is a business-led campaign in Singapore that seeks to raise global awareness of the need to take positive action for the environment. It started in 2007 and is held on 5 June every year to commemorate the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)’s World Environment Day.[1][2]
The message for Eco Action Day is: “Green the Red Dot, Join the Movement”. Businesses, schools and individuals are invited to join the national campaign to green Singapore, a country that is also known as the "Little Red Dot", by taking green pledges and committing to actions that will reduce energy and resource consumption, mitigate climate change and move towards a more sustainable environment.
The campaign is helmed by Ricoh Asia Pacific (Ricoh), in partnership with key NGOs, the Singapore government, and private sector partners in Singapore. Partner agencies include but are not limited to the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, National Environment Agency, Energy Market Authority, Singapore Environment Council, and National Parks Board etc.
Eco Action Day Milestone
2019 to present
2019 saw Eco Action Day launch its inaugural community seed distribution in support of Singapore’s “30-by-30” vision to produce 30% of Singapore’s nutritional needs by 2030[3].
This initiative brought together Community Development Councils (CDCs), local schools and international schools, to cultivate sustainable production and consumption habits by planting and harvesting their own fruits and vegetables.
The kick-off ceremony was held on 23 July 2019[4][5] at Republic Polytechnic. There was a tree planting event, and a symbolic donation of a chengal wood arbour and a bench made from up-cycled toner cartridges.
The yearly United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) roundtable discussions continued, this time with a focus on recycling and the possibility of shifting to a zero waste nation[6].
2017 – 2018
2017 marked the integration of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into the Eco Action Day campaign[7]. A Circular Economy Challenge was used to engage youths and young professionals in discussions on how to develop circular economy solutions that are applicable for Singapore[8][9][10].
Roundtable discussions focusing on the SDGs were also introduced. These challenged companies in Singapore to consider how they could apply circular economy principles to their business models, generating new revenue streams while simultaneously building climate resilience[11][12].
In both 2017 and 2018, the Senior Minister of State for the Environment and Water Resources, Mr Masagos Zulkifli took the stage to share the Singapore government’s perspectives on SDG 12: Responsible Consumption & Production and SDG 9: Industry Innovation & Infrastructure respectively[13][14].
In 2018, Ricoh also took the lead to plant 315 tree saplings at Fort Siloso in Sentosa[15]
2016
Eco Action Day reached its 10th anniversary. In celebration, a panel discussion titled: “From Agreement to Action: Singapore’s Climate Pledge” was convened on June 3[16]. The Minister for the Environment and Water Resources, Mr Masagos Zulkifli joined the panel to provide insights about the local government’s role in ensuring environmental sustainability, economic competitiveness and energy security.
2014 – 2015
Eco Action Day introduced its official call-to-action: “Green the Red Dot, Join the Movement”, inviting organisations and individuals alike to join the national movement by taking simple actions to reduce energy and resource consumption.
This was marketed through online and social media advertisements, as well as physically though bus advertisements, posters and roadshows.
It was also in 2014 that Eco Action Day held its first panel discussion[17] on sustainable development issues and solutions . This was held at Ricoh’s Printing Innovation Center and was attended by representatives from the local government, businesses and civil society.
2010 – 2013
Eco Action Day’s logo was created. This was marketed through a series of outdoor advertorials at Raffles Place and Tanjong Pagar MRT Stations, the SMRT Circle Line Train Platform, and at ZoCard and Lunch Boxes distribution points in the CBD.
In 2012, Eco Action Awards were introduced to recognise and encourage organisations that have gone the extra mile towards sustainability.
2009
Eco Action Day began to reach out to the general public by setting up an official website and taking out physical advertisements in public spaces.
The focus in 2009 was on implementing green practices in offices, to reduce resource consumption. Awareness was raised by placing advertorial banners at Tanjong Pagar Park.
2007 – 2008
The idea of Eco Action Day was born in 2006, when the Ricoh group first rallied its employees, customers and stakeholders to take action to reduce their environmental impact in commemoration of World Environment Day.
The first Eco Action Day in Singapore took place a year later, on 5 June 2007[1].
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Roundtable
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were introduced to the Eco Action Day the year after the campaign celebrated its 10th year anniversary. Since then, the campaign has included an annual roundtable, revolving around different SDGs. These are as follows:
2019: SDG 13 Climate Action
In 2019, the focus was on “Recycling: The road to zero waste?[18]
Aligned with Singapore’s goal towards a zero waste economy, the roundtable discussion focused on sustainable waste management and recycling via a circular economy.
2018: SDG 9 Industry Innovation & Infrastructure
In 2018, also Singapore’s Year of Climate Action[19] , the roundtable discussion focused on industry innovation.
Participants from the government, public and private sectors, brainstormed about how businesses could integrate principles of SDG 9 and addressed obstacles to sustainability. Topics covered included: obstacles faced in ensuring that innovation is always sustainable, key opportunities for businesses to establish better product lifecycle management, and actions to speed up progress on implementing circular economy principles.
2017: SDG 12 Responsible Consumption & Production
Topic of the year was moving “towards a circular Singapore”[20], and participants discussed how to apply circular economy principles in their business models, so that they could generate new revenue streams while still contributing to climate resilience.
Circular Economy Challenge
The Circular Economy Challenge was launched on 22 February 2017[8] to engage youths and young professionals in developing circular economy solutions applicable to Singapore. This initiative was in support of United Nations’ SDG12: Responsible consumption and production.
Team MSW, a group of four young professionals aged between 27 and 29 years old, clinched the overall win with a proposal to up-cycle durian husks[21]. The team proposed collecting durian husks from the point of sale and having them returned into the supply chain as feedstock. By using these durian husks to make takeaway containers for the durian fruit, companies would be able to reduce use of non-biodegradable materials such as styrofoam boxes.
Their idea was first pitched at the Eco Action Day roundtable, and later also presented to the Vice President of the Sustainability Management Division at Ricoh Group.
Eco Action Day Panel Discussions
| Year | Theme |
|---|---|
| 2016 | From Agreement to Action: Singapore’s Climate Pledge |
| 2015 | Driving Sustainability for the Future |
| 2014 | Small Island States and Sustainable Development: Singapore’s Development |
Eco Action Awards
2016 Winners
- Most Creative Eco Award - CHIJ Our Lady Queen of Peace
- Most Inspiring Eco Award - Nan Hua High School
- Most Fun Eco Award - West Spring Primary School
- Most Fun Eco Award (Merit) - Queenstown Primary School
- Most Effort Eco Award - Systems on Silicon Manufacturing Company Pte Ltd
- Most Effort Eco Award (Merit) - Panalpina World Transport (S) Pte Ltd
- Best Eco Practices Award - Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
2015 Winners
- Most Creative Eco Award - Crescent Girls' School
- Most Inspiring Eco Award - Loola Adventure Resort (Bintan)
- Most Inspiring Eco Award (Merit) - StarHub Ltd
- Most Fun Eco Award - Crescent Girls' School
- Most Effort Eco Award - Orchid Park Secondary School
- Most Effort Eco Award (Merit) - West Spring Primary School
- Best Eco Practices Award - Systems on Silicon Manufacturing Company Pte. Ltd.
- Best Eco Practices Award (Merit) - Samwoh Corporation Pte Ltd
2014 Winners
- Most Creative Eco Award - BuildVision Consulting
- Most Inspiring Eco Award - Global India International School Queenstown
- Most Fun Eco Award - CHIJ Our Lady Queen of Peace
- Most Effort Eco Award - Orchid Park Secondary School
- Best Eco Practices Award - Keppel Land Limited
- Best Eco Practices Award (Merit) - Management Development Institute of Singapore (MDIS)
2013 Winners
- Most Creative Eco Award – Keppel Land Limited
- Most Inspiring Eco Award – Cathay Pacific Airways Singapore
- Most Fun Eco Award – ITE College East
- Most Effort Eco Award – Keppel Land Limited
- Most Effort Eco Award (Merit) – Panalpina World Transport (S) Pte Ltd
- Best Eco Practices Award – Panasonic Asia Pacific Pte Ltd
- Best Eco Practices Award (Merit) – Arup Singapore Pte Ltd
2012 Winners
- Most Creative Eco Award - Keppel Land International Limited
- Most CO2 Emission Saving - Glaxo Wellcome Manufacturing Pte Ltd
Ricoh’s Global SDGs Action
Eco Action Day is complemented by Ricoh’s global campaign, Ricoh Global SDGs Action. This was originally known as Ricoh Global Eco Action, and was only renamed in 2019[22].
This global campaign is a month-long event that starts on 1 June. It encourages Ricoh Group employees across the globe to consider how they can achieve the SDGs, and to take steps in that direction.
See Also
- List of environmental articles
- List of environmental dates
- United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Neo, Michelle (June 5, 2007). "15 organisations to cut energy use for a day". The Straits Times. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Tay, Sheralyn (June 5, 2007). "The long green mile". Today. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ hermes (2019-03-08). "Singapore sets 30% goal for home-grown food by 2030". The Straits Times. Retrieved 2020-02-04.
- ↑ "Eco Action Day 2019". www.rp.edu.sg. Retrieved 2020-02-04.
- ↑ "Ricoh marks finale of 13th annual Eco Action Day campaign". International Business Times, Singapore Edition. 2019-07-23. Retrieved 2020-02-04.
- ↑ hermes (2019-05-31). "Stakeholders share ideas for a zero-waste S'pore". The Straits Times. Retrieved 2020-02-21.
- ↑ "Eco Action Day Campaign - United Nations Partnerships for SDGs platform". sustainabledevelopment.un.org. Retrieved 2020-02-04.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Eco-Business. "Join the Circular Economy Challenge". Eco-Business. Retrieved 2020-02-04.
- ↑ podcasters, Omny Studio is the complete audio management solution for; Stations, Radio. "Midday with Howie Lim: J.D Kasamoto, General Manager, Service & Environment Division, Ricoh Asia Pacific - MONEY FM 89.3 - Omny.fm". omny.fm. Retrieved 2020-02-21.
- ↑ Eco-Business. "Should we really be aiming for a circular economy?". Eco-Business. Retrieved 2020-02-21.
- ↑ "循環型社会へ産官学連携 リコー、環境フォーラムを開催 シンガポール・マクロ・統計・その他経済". NNA.ASIA (in 日本語). Retrieved 2020-02-21.
- ↑ "Ricoh Asia Pacific commits to using 100pc clean energy by 2019". Tech Wire Asia. 2017-07-06. Retrieved 2020-02-21.
- ↑ "Speech by Dr Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State for the Environment and Water Resources, at Eco Action Day Industry Roundtable, 31 May 2018, 9:50am, at Ricoh Printing Innovation Centre". www.mewr.gov.sg. Retrieved 2020-02-04. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "Speech by Dr Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources at the Eco Action Day Circular Economy Roundtable on 1 June 2017". www.mewr.gov.sg. Retrieved 2020-02-04. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ hermesauto (2018-11-28). "Overwhelming support makes Singapore's Year of Climate Action a success: Masagos Zulkifli". The Straits Times. Retrieved 2020-02-04.
- ↑ Eco-Business. "From agreement to action: Singapore's climate pledge". Eco-Business. Retrieved 2020-02-04.
- ↑ Feng, Zengkun (June 6, 2015). "Singapore's green efforts get mixed report card". The Straits Times. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "Eco Action Day Roundtable 2019 | Recycling: The road to zero waste?". events.eco-business.com. Retrieved 2020-02-04.
- ↑ Eco-Business. "Industry Innovation in the Year of Climate Action - Eco Action Day Roundtable". Eco-Business. Retrieved 2020-02-04.
- ↑ "Circular Economy Industry Roundtable: Towards a Circular Singapore". Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "Solutions for a Circular Economy in Singapore" (PDF). Green In Future. p. 19. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "Ricoh Ramps Up SDGs Commitment on World Environment Day". Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help)
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