The three-month campaign “Recycling Helps @ South East 2012”, organised by NTUC FairPrice Foundation and South East Community Development Council (CDC), ended with resounding success as 4,850kg of recyclables were collected to raise $10,000 worth of NTUC FairPrice food vouchers for 400 needy families in the South East District. The campaign will officially conclude with twenty beneficiaries going on a budget shopping trip accompanied by the Mayor of South East District, Dr Mohamad Maliki Osman.

“Recycling Helps @ South East 2012” was launched in July with the aim for students from 14 South East schools (See Annex B for Participating Schools) to collect 2,000kg of recyclables for a good cause. For every 5kg of recyclables collected, a less-privileged family in the District will benefit with a set of $25 vouchers. Through the campaign, the organisers hope to deliver both the “green” and “gracious” message to the youths in the District. “Recycling Helps @ South East” is a 5E^[1] initiative under Go Green @ South East, the South East CDC’s Greenplan towards environmental awareness and sustainability in the District.

Chairperson for NTUC FairPrice Green Committee, Mr Koh Kok Sin, said, “FairPrice is pleased to support South East CDC to help promote green practices as well as to support the less privileged families in our community. We are glad that this campaign has received immense support from the students and staff of the participating schools and I congratulate the dedication and commitment that the students have demonstrated for this project. Together we can all make a difference.”

Mayor of South East District, Dr Mohamad Maliki Osman said, “In line with the national effort to keep Singapore clean and green, the South East District is also contributing by inculcating recycling habits in our young. We would like to thank NTUC FairPrice Foundation for their generosity which allowed us to embed values of helping the less-privileged in an environmental programme, creating an additional dimension and reason to recycle. The students raised more recyclables this year than the last, and we hope to see this programme continue to thrive and achieve an enduring impact.”

This campaign was supported by the Institute of Technical Education (ITE), whose novel “Green Bank” machines toured the 14 participating schools to collect, crush and tabulate the amount of recyclables gathered. The “Green Bank” machines made green dealings efficient and interesting for the primary school children.

In conjunction with Recycling Helps @ South East 2012, a poster design competition, themed, “Know Your Bins, Recycle Responsibly” was also launched. The competition saw 175 entries with creative poster designs by students who hope to help raise awareness and educate the public on the proper usage of recycling bins. The winners of the competition will be receiving their prizes at the event.