8 December 2017

No Straw University

Help us in building a no disposable straw society and saving animals and the environment! The majority of disposable straws enter the oceans and may be mistakenly ingested by marine animals, causing them to develop respiratory and digestive problems. While other disposable straws end up in the landfills; with their long lifespan, they will sit there for ten or hundred of years. Disposable straw therefore is menacing the environment and animals.

You might not notice but a small change in habit will make a huge impact! During the second semester of last academic year (2016/17), we saved 14,000 straws during the "No Straw Movement". Those straws could have ended up in the landfills or the oceans, polluting the environment and harming the animals. If placed end-to-end, they could circle a 400-meter running track for 7.5 times. To further our dedication in reducing waste at source, the University would like to leverage a long-term behaviour change towards not using disposable straws at all.

The change will commence gradually. Starting from November 6, 2017, a dollar will be charged for every piece of straw requested and by 2018, free disposable straws will no longer be provided to customers and guests for free at all catering outlets, shops and on-campus events. We welcome everyone to drink from cup/can/bottle or bring your own reusable straw! The extra cost incurred will be received by the catering outlets as a subsidy for their efforts in supporting various sustainability policy, such as discounts to customers ordering less rice and bringing their own food and beverages containers.

We are proud to announce that about 90% reduction in straw consumption has been recorded since the implementation of the No Straw University campaign. It shows that the campaign is well-received by the University community and at the same time the actual revenue from straw requests collected by the caterers are in fact minimal (the average revenue from straw requests is less than $20 per day for each catering outlet).

Join us to build a No straw and sustainable campus and society!