What is sustainability? How far is it related to us? What do we need to sustain? These seem to be philosophical questions, but they are actually the doorway to sustainability education and the catalyst to energise the minds of the younger generation to reflect on what they can do now and for the future.
PolyU is one among the many universities around the globe that promotes sustainability education and seeks to ensure that its campus is a vehicle to advance sustainability in everything from governance and operations to education and research. In addition to developing student knowledge and key skills, PolyU seizes all opportunities to educate the next generation not to lose sight of building a sustainable future for all and keeping in their mind their responsibility towards the environment.
The Campus Sustainability Office (CSO) of PolyU is working hard in supporting students to become actively engaged in learning and action for sustainability. One of its ways to engage with the students is through organizing campus-wide campaigns such as the Plastic Free Friday and epic events such as the PolyU Campus Sustainability Weeks and VeggieLicious. It also provides easy access to information about sustainability through a number of informative websites such as the PolyU Campus Sustainability and Live GREEN, plus many online tools. It generated massive publicity on the different sustainability initiatives on campus, through both face-to-face and online channels effectively.
Communication with students does not stop in the age of the Coronavirus crisis. In a recent online briefing to students, representatives from CSO had a seasoned presentation to the students about what PolyU has been doing in empowering the campus community to act on sustainability. From campus landscape to hardware, policies, green practices like clean recycling and bring-your-own, to activities and fun-filled games, sustainability has been the core of the University’s values. This message was clearly delivered to students during this online briefing.
The challenges of sustainability and sustainable development are multifaceted and complex. Addressing them, in the long run, requires quality education for the future generations of learners so that they can devise solutions. PolyU is doing whatever it can to support and train the young leaders and strengthen their capacity to address the present and emerging environmental challenges.
