The Green Journey

Walking the talk

Posted by JLow on Jul 13, 2010

Now that the workshop is out of the way, everyone should be underway with their plans on setting up their own teams, looking into greening their own offices.

We too have started our own efforts at CSSHE department.

As you can see, we have started collecting the individual bins from the staff, and have also “volunteered” some help to put together these 3 bins, ready for waste (paper) collection. All they need now are proper labeling or stenciling.

How are your activities and efforts going?

Clever use of plastic bottle

Posted by JLow on Jul 2, 2010

I was circulated this chain-mail.

As such, I cannot properly credit the originator, or genius, who thought to cleverly “re-use” plastic bottles.

This chain-mail was written in Chinese. But I think you can figure this out by the photos.

You can use the “body” of the bottle as a cheap pot for small plants or flowers, or your kids’ water container when they are painting

Carried out your pledge?

Posted by JLow on Apr 21, 2010

So we did a follow-up to the MAS Townhall event, where we had asked fellow employees to make a green pledge; by writing your pledge-message as “leaves” for the barren tree

Below is one of the feedback we received. Thanks Suriana

Have you been able to keep your pledge and promise?
Keeping the pledge and promise has been a challenge to me. However, there are more discussions with my children of the need to save environment. The why? And the How? And also I reject the plastic bag if I can carry the items I bought.

What are the obstacles to keeping your pledge?
The main obstacles is always time. Looking around you, there is not many recycle bin. As for me we have to drive out to get to the recycling center. Most of the time when I the hurry we forgot the put the items in our car and end up pile them up at home

What have been the benefits from your pledge?
The main benefit it make you care and aware of the need to recycle. I just need to make more effort to do more.

Will you continue with it? If not, why?
Definitely.

What do your family and loved ones think or learned about your pledge?
My children are very curious at first. There are very interested with the stickers. And try to understand more.

Earth Hour 2010

Posted by JLow on Mar 25, 2010

It’s that time of the year again!

Malaysia Airlines have been participating in the Earth Hour movement a few times now, and this year is no exception.

This year the team will also be attending local corporations in their campaign and activity during the event itself, to see how they do it, do also spread the word about our participation. Should be another fun-filled night!

How will you be participating?

Are you local enough to notice this change?

Posted by JLow on Nov 2, 2009

Last week I attended our partner Wild Asia’s workshop on Responsible Tourism. I sat next to a lady from UK, Sarah, who is/was a business and travel writer (she now freelances still for the travel industry).

Still learning the ropes regarding my role in MAS’ Environment, I shared with her my personal take on this global issue. “… I’ve been saying to people, we live in a tropical country where it’s green everywhere and constantly raining..’What climate change?’ was usually the unspoken response I got when I talk to people about what I do now at MAS and this issue on the wider global scale..”

She looked at me and said “Really? My uncle, who’s been here since 1954 and living in Perak since then, has actually told me that he has in fact noticed that the temperature here in Malaysia HAS been getting warmer throughout the years….”

Not that I cannot take criticism or be told that I am wrong- I was dumbfounded that it took an expat to tell me this.

Personally I have always thought that it’s because my own family’s social economic status has improved through the decades while I was growing up. As a boy our home didn’t have air conditioning and we made do with what we had, which were the floor-standing or ceiling fans during warm days and nights- which wasn’t all that often. My parents’ room did have a big-hole-through-the-wall type of AC unit (the house was build in the 70′s), but it was a real luxury to have it switched on. As we “progressed” and upgraded to a bigger home my own room did have AC but again it was rarely used.

Somewhere along the way, I started using it, had my own place when I joined the workforce and slept with the AC on at nights, married and had kids, and they too are now accustomed to the AC.

It is now a little too warm at nights for us now not to have the AC on. At least for me.

This is my personal justification of not “realizing” the now-warmer local temperature, if indeed this is the case.

I have no reason to doubt Sarah and her uncle. I am however questioning why it had to take an outsider to tell me that he and others like him have noted this change when locals have been giving me the “what climate change” look.

Do you know if this is noted anywhere in our local met services? Found any literature on this?

Do you notice any change in our local weather since your schooldays?

John Low
Malaysia Airlines

“Climate change”: What pops into your head when you see these 2 words?

Posted by JLow on Oct 27, 2009

I found this article on the Guardian that talked about human psychology and the resulting required change in human behaviour, in tackling climate change.

I found this bit the most interesting:

An American study played people recordings of actors delivering speeches about climate change. The version that people responded to the best talked about “air pollution” rather than “climate change” – because pollution is something visible that they could relate to, with strong connotations of dirtiness and poor health. Climate change is about much more than just dirty air, but finding ways of making climate change more visible is critical. People simply don’t worry about things they can’t see (or even imagine).

Are you one of the few that can only subconsciously respond to “climate change”? One of those who think: Ah, let the technology guys figure this one out / not my immediate problem; one of those who think: Can I be creative enough to change my way of life to slowdown this change yet still make my life(style) an enjoyable one; one of those willing to make small sacrifices?

As I personally always tell people, “in Malaysia we live in abundance”. There’s green everywhere (most places at least), and plenty of rainfall.

What climate change?

Read the full article at The Guardian’s site.