When I was "Converted"

There were hints as a child that I will grow up to have a certain respect for the environment. As early as in Primary School, I would wrap my gifts with magazines and cut out pictures from birthday/chirstmas cards to make my own cards. I would reused wrapping paper from my own christmas/birthday gifts for others. I would also concientiously use both sides of the paper when printing/writing, switching off lights/electricity when not requried, etc
I cannot remember specifically when I started my interests with the environment.
Perhaps it was the influence from my parents and the many travels which they brought me with them. They enjoyed travelling in rural areas to enjoy beautiful sceneries, rather than in big cities. As a child, I remembered being fascinated by a frozen waterfall in Jiu Zhai Gou (China), and awed by the snow-capped mountains in New Zealand. There was also a period of time when trekking Bukit Timah Hill was a weekly affair for the whole family (including my cousins, uncles/aunties & grandma)!

I was definitely also inspired by my secondary Geography teacher, Ms Mary Chua. Although we did not have technologies such as powerpoints/videos/internet, she still managed to make geography come alive. We learnt about river processes through models and role play. We composed songs about the Earth, and discussed about human impacts on the environment.


During my university days, my course mates and I conducted geographical fieldtrips and experiments. We went tracking around MacRitchie Reservior in search of natural streams, hang around in Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve for a day to study tides changes, and digged around for soil analysis etc.


While I enjoyed nature, I was actually more interested in community work (i.e. with people) due to my social work background rather than the environment. The first major turning point was when I started teaching. As a geography teacher, I got to read up more on environmental issues, and a part of me feel the need to set a good example and a role model in what I teach, e.g. taking more active measures to conserve & protect the environment. The second major turning point was when I did my 5-week work attachment at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve (as part of my teacher work attachment programme). It was such an amazing experience that I signed on as a volunteer. Since then, I had more opportunities to interact with the environment, and to play a more active role in protecting it.