In the “Frasers Environment Month” of March, Frasers Centrepoint Singapore is demonstrating its full commitment to promoting environmental awareness. Under the theme “Live Green, Waste Less”, we planned a full schedule of activities this month to inspire staff, tenants and members of the public to embark on the “Frasers Environment Month” journey together.
Eco workshop participants posing with their new, upcycled tote bags at Alexandra Point.
Through a series of workshops, engagement sessions, educational tours, and even a coastal clean-up, the programme will raise awareness about upcycling and recycling, water sustainability as well as the conservation of resources.
The month-long initiative kick-started on 3 March, when our staff got their creative juices flowing in an Eco workshop. In the first of two Eco workshops, they learned how to upcycle creatively by fashioning new tote bags from old t-shirts.
The Frasers Centrepoint Commercial team in the midst of cutting up their old shirts.
Did you know that Singapore’s landfills will run out of space in just 18 years at our current rate of waste production?
Staff not only walked away with new tote bags, they better understood the urgent need to reduce waste after learning shocking facts such as how every individual in Singapore produces about 1,385 kg of waste per year. With a population size of 3.54 million people, the amount of non-recyclable waste produced and incinerated would result in extremely high levels of greenhouse gases.
After cutting, participants tied up the bottom of the shirts to create the base of the tote bag, and personalised it with paint.
As a continuation of the ECO workshop, participants will learn other fun upcycling projects such as how to make bottle planters from non-recyclable materials on 31 March.
Yet another resource in dire need of recycling and conservation is water. On 10 March, 30 Frasers Centrepoint Singapore staff took an educational tour of Singapore’s NEWater Plant and learnt the importance of conserving water, and where our water really comes from.
Staff at the NEWater Plant Tour, learning about the history of NEWater.
The tour revealed more about how reclaimed water is one of the “Four National Taps”, which are fundamental to Singapore’s water sustainability. These four water sources include water from local catchments, imported water, reclaimed NEWater and desalinated water.
According to Dr. Pang Chin Hong, Corporate Planning, Frasers Centrepoint Limited, we often take things for granted in Singapore and forget that resources like water are precious. Tours like these remind us to treasure what we have now.
After the tour, staff gained better understanding of Singapore’s water journey. Ms. Emily Fong, Centre Manager of YewTee Point, concluded that “it gave us better insight into how water is treated, especially when we sign water bills every month at the malls. We just don’t realise where the water comes from.”
Raising awareness amongst staff helps to create action, thus, in collaboration with national water agency, PUB, we are also hosting a series of water sustainability exhibitions across Singapore to inspire the community to conserve water and increase their understanding about how important water is as a lifeline. The exhibitions showcase simple ways to save water.
The exhibitions are held across Frasers Centrepoint Singapore’s office spaces and malls, specifically Bedok Point, Anchorpoint, 51 Cuppage Road, Valley Point, Robertson Walk, Alexandra Technopark and China Square Central.
Frasers Centrepoint Singapore will also continue its support of global climate change movement, Earth Hour. Working collectively with our tenants and various internal teams, lights at our office buildings and retail spaces will be switched off from 8.30pm on 25 March. Tenants will also be invited to a tenant engagement seminar called “Better Places for People”, on 28th March, where we aim to raise awareness about the importance of creating healthier, greener buildings together, which have been proven to maximise the occupants’ well-being and productivity.
As people who design, build and manage spaces for communities, Frasers Centrepoint Singapore will strive to work with our staff and partners to reinforce environmentally-friendly best practices to create greener, healthier office, retail and residential spaces.
Although Frasers Environment Month concludes in March, our sustainability efforts will carry on.
Ultimately, by coming together to conserve planet Earth, we sustain and create a healthier, happier home for ourselves and future generations. Because together, we can make a real difference.