Go Green Day in Taman Hijau

By Thomas Greene

The Residents’ Association of Taman Hijau in which I live/reside, had on last Saturday, the 3rd of November
2019, organized a Go Green Day. The residents of Taman Hijau and Taman Merah, the neighbouring
area/Taman, were involved in this Go Green Day programme and most of the activities were carried out
in the Residents’ Association Building, at the adjacent basketball court and children’s playground. The
programme was from 8 am until 3 pm. The aim of the Go Green Day was to help those living in the area
to learn about the environment.

We all know that human and natural activities have led to quite a lot of damage to the environment.
Deforestation, open burning, erosion, emission of harmful gases, waste dumping and so on have all caused
or contributed to climate change and damage to land, water, air and the atmosphere, affecting human
beings as well as flora and fauna or plant and animals. Living and survival conditions have changed and
become badly affected in some countries.

A small exhibition was put up at the basketball court with booths set up by the Local Council, Majlis
Bandaran Seberang Perai and the State Veterinary, Agricultural and Environmental Departments. Posters,
pictures and reading materials on topics such as the importance of protecting animals, learning about
plants and dealing with rubbish were displayed at the booths. People could be seen looking at the posters
and pictures displayed and reading the pamphlets and brochures at the booths. Some officers at the
booths were seen interacting with the residents, explaining things to them and answering questions from
those who were curious to know more.

Besides the above, there were four other activities. Professor Kamaruzaman, an environmental expert
gave a talk on pollution and climate change at the Residents’ Association Building, using colourful
PowerPoint slides accompanied by captivating sounds and music that kept his audience fully attentive
throughout. The Chairman of our Residents’ Association, Mr Chia Kam Choon, took the residents to a small
plot of land beside the children’s playground and gave them tips on making a garden. Mr Chia can be seen
daily attending to the vegetable, herbal and flowering plants he and a few other residents had planted
recently. A local council officer was seen assisting some members of the Organising Committee who were
in charge of collecting recyclable items brought in by the residents. The residents had been informed
earlier through flyers about the Recycling Campaign on the Go Green Day. They brought old newspapers,
plastic, metal and glass items and were shown how to drop them into the correct coloured bins that will
soon be placed in the just completed Recycling Centre beside the Residents’ Association. The council
officer was also explaining the importance and practical application of the 3Rs of Reuse, Reduce and
Recycle to reduce waste and rubbish while at the same time saving the environment.

A Go Green Run was the highlight of the day that saw residents of all ages, from seven to seventy
completing the full 4km run that started and ended at the children’s playground. All the 59 participants
received the Go Green Run Certificate for successfully completing the run in an hour. The idea of having
the run was to promote a healthy lifestyle.

My best memory of the Go Green Day was visiting the booth on protecting animals set up by the State
Veterinary Department. I learnt quite a bit about wildlife and also on how to take care of domestic pets
such as dogs, cats, birds, rabbits and hamsters. The problem of stray animals was also addressed and we
were told that local council alone cannot tackle the problem. The solution lies in the government,
residents, responsible pet owners, animal activists and NGOs running shelters working closely together to
bring about a Zero Stray situation in Seberang Prai.

Lastly, I really feel that students should go to the Go Green Day next year in order to learn about ways on
how they can protect and save the environment. They will get to learn a lot. By listening to talks, watching
videos and looking at pictures and posters they will see for themselves the extent of damage that has
been done to the environment and realise how important it is for them to do whatever they can to prevent
the situation from getting worse. This Earth is the only planet that we can now live on and we have no
choice but to keep it clean, safe and habitable.