The winners of a photography competition successfully captured environmental problems on film and demonstrated a high degree of awareness and concern. The Little Green Journalist contest was part of the Eco-spotter Campaign, organised by Friends of the Earth (FoE) and sponsored by the H S Chau Foundation. It aimed to encourage youths to pay attention to the environment and raise public awareness of the importance of environmental protection. The competition was divided into primary and secondary categories. Twenty-four primary and 22 secondary schools submitted more than 100 photographs. Each school was allowed to submit a maximum of three en tries, with each entry comprising a photograph of a beautiful site and one of an ugly site in Hong Kong. At the prize presentation ceremony, FoE director Mei Ng Fong Siu-mei said the photographs were the voices of young people. 'They are the future leaders and their voices are powerful. They know how serious the situa tion is but just don't know what to do,' she said. Mrs Ng urged the Government to pay attention to young people's voices. For the well-being of the Earth, people should change their attitude and behaviour, she said. 'There is a lot of work ahead us. The very first thing - awareness - has already been raised. Now we face the most difficult problem: how to help people develop a green way of living,' Mrs Ng said. 'Everyone knows the Earth is heavily polluted. But it's hard to ask them to change their lifestyle overnight. That's why we always emphasise education, which should start at an early age.' The champion and first runner-up in the secondary section went to Kwun Tong Government Secondary School. The winning photographs depicted Statue Square before and after rubbish had been cleared on a Sunday evening. The first runner-up entry comprised photographs of a littered beach on Lamma Island and a clean beach in Sai Kung. All were taken by 20-year-old Au Wing-kui, who said he hoped the pictures would help raise environmental awareness. 'I go hiking almost every weekend and I've found that the environment is getting worse,' the seventh former said. 'When I was young, there were birds and trees everywhere. Nowadays, the streets and beaches are littered with rubbish.' The second runner-up went to Queen Elizabeth School Old Students' Association Secondary School. Taken by Yiu Suen-chu, 15, the photographs were of a rubbish-dumping area and a park in Yuen Long. The third former, a green ambassador, said the two places were only a 15-minute walk from each other, but the contrast was like heaven and hell. 'I hope the photos will draw the Government's attention to environmental problems,' she said.
