Overview
The Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups is committed to promoting sustainable development. Through youth decarbonisation, from the three dimensions of “environmental education”, “action implementation” and “leading change”, with youth taking the lead and mobilizing youth power, it aims to cultivate and inspire them to become sustainable development leaders, jointly participating in Hong Kong’s journey towards carbon neutrality and building a better living environment.
To respond to “World Earth Day” on April 22nd, and to encourage everyone to protect the environment at the same time. This year’s action will be themed “Hand in Hand, Walk the Entire MacLehose Trail”, mobilizing youth and the public to walk the entire ten sections of the MacLehose Trail. While enjoying the hiking challenge, they will clean up the discarded items along the way and conduct a “Waste Audit”. Through the action, we aim to protect the environment while recognizing the importance of “source reduction”. The goal is to start from the youth to change their mindset and ecological behavior. The public is invited to join the youth in enjoying the hiking fun and working together to achieve the carbon neutrality goal.
The “Hand in Hand, Walk the Entire MacLehose Trail” plan has selected the MacLehose Trail, which was once rated by National Geographic magazine as one of the top ten must-visit hiking trails in the world, with a total length of 100 kilometers, as the activity venue. It spans multiple districts in Hong Kong, including Sai Kung, passing through Ma On Shan, Lion Rock, Kam Shan to Shing Mun Reservoir, Hong Kong’s highest peak Tai Mo Shan, and ending at Tuen Mun Ho Fuk Tong College. Each section has different scenery and difficulty levels, and participants can choose different paths according to their abilities. As the MacLehose Trail is one of the most popular hiking routes in Hong Kong, it is inevitable that there will be more discarded items left behind by the large number of hikers, which really needs everyone’s action to protect the natural environment.
Content
The programme will last for two months, encouraging participants to clean up the discarded items along the way while enjoying the hiking fun, and to conduct a “Waste Audit”. The Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups will collect the relevant data and conduct analysis after the plan, to understand the situation of discarded items on the trail, in order to continue the environmental education work.
Date
April 21, 2024 to June 30, 2024
Target Participants
12 years old or above (those under 18 years old must be accompanied by at least one adult)
How to Participate
Participate in teams of 3 or more, select one section of the MacLehose Trail as the target, and obtain the cleaning tools and “Waste Audit Form” from the designated service unit before departure. After completion, record the information and upload it to the online form: https://forms.office.com/r/ZqjPKAsnaT. Participants will receive an electronic certificate of completion and a commemorative strap.
Programme Highlights
Different from general trail cleaning activities, the biggest difference here is that while cleaning up the discarded items on the trail, participants will also record the content and quantity of the discarded items. After consolidation, the results will present the situation of discarded items on the trail, thereby reflecting on the relationship between living habits and “source reduction”. While protecting the environment, the action also aims to reduce the carbon emissions generated from waste handling, truly working hand in hand with the youth to achieve carbon neutrality.