A decade ago, if you were to walk along one of the trails on Hong Kong Island, you would be unlikely to see wild boars . Even if you did, they were far too shy to approach people. Now, despite interventions, such as the sterilisation of boars and the imposition of fines on people who feed them, the wild boar population appears to have increased massively. More worryingly, the animals have begun to freely roam around urban areas, knocking over trash cans and straying onto the roads. Truly, they have become a source of chaos and trouble. Given how serious the problem has become, the notion of euthanising a small number of boars no longer seems entirely unwarranted. However, the matter requires deeper reflection. Although the boars roam in groups, they are not aggressive unless they are provoked. The auxiliary policeman who was recently attacked by a boar had been trying to corner the animal along with two other officers, and it is possible the boar felt threatened. For the sake of protecting people, putting down boars is, to some extent, understandable. But the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department is seemingly too fired up about the matter to only target those troublemaking pigs that are actually disturbing the peace. Instead, it has opted for an on-the-spot “capture and kill” strategy. Hong Kong is still a civilised society with many kindhearted people, otherwise the boars wouldn’t seek out humans for food in the first place. Organisations like the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals exist solely to protect animals. The policymakers at the AFCD must therefore think more deeply before persisting with the current strategy. That means not killing boars indiscriminately in broad daylight. Randy Lee, Ma On Shan Tweak carbon calculator to increase its effectiveness Referring to the letter , “Is the city’s carbon footprint calculator cost-effective?” (November 19) about Hong Kong’s carbon footprint calculator, I think the government should be applauded for developing this tool for city residents to estimate their carbon footprint. It features a resource centre offering tips on low-carbon lifestyles regarding living, food, travel and clothing. One noteworthy lesson from these tips is that emissions come from more than burning fossil fuels; embodied carbon such as from meat consumption should also be counted. Nevertheless, the carbon calculator needs to be featured more prominently on the official websites of the Environment Bureau and the Environmental Protection Department. Currently, the calculator is at the bottom of both websites among numerous projects. In addition, it requires users to retrieve data from their utility bills, which is inconvenient. It should let users create an account and link it to the utility company databases, allowing data integration. This way, users can track their carbon footprint regularly based on updates of their utility bills. The low-carbon tips provided at the end of the questionnaire seem to vary according to users’ answers, but it is not clear on what basis these tips are customised. To encourage more Hongkongers to adopt a green lifestyle , the carbon calculator should tell users how their emissions compare with others in various areas through carbon benchmarking. Keyu Huang, Kowloon Tong Michelle Wu as Boston mayor is a win for diversity When Michelle Wu defeated Annissa Essaibi George in Boston’s mayoral election last month, she ended a 199-year streak of white male mayors, becoming the first woman, first person of colour and first Asian-American to be elected leader of the city. Her win is a political victory for people of colour, who account for more than half of Boston’s population. How did Wu do it? Her upbringing, progressive politics and Boston’s changing dynamics probably all helped. A descendant of a Taiwanese immigrant family, Wu was born on Chicago’s South Side, an area known for its high levels of crime. She first moved to Boston to study and later, to work, but her mother’s worsening mental health meant Wu had to return to Chicago to take care of her mother and younger sisters. She became increasingly frustrated with both the city’s mental health care system and its high levels of bureaucracy as she attempted to launch her own small business. Having experienced hardship, Wu came to understand first-hand the barriers that families and communities in America face. The flaws in public service that she encountered led her to politics, and she devoted herself to improving the system. In her campaign, Wu put forward many meaningful policies that focused on welfare. For example, she made providing stable and affordable housing for families a top priority, pointing out that only a third of Bostonians own their homes, and renters are overburdened. This issue has been compounded by the impact of the coronavirus pandemic , and now tens of thousands of Boston families are living in fear of an imminent eviction crisis. Wu has said she will seek resources to create truly affordable housing and end chronic homelessness. Boston’s increasingly diverse environment also provided favourable conditions for Wu’s electoral success. With more than 100 colleges and universities, Boston has always attracted people of different races, classes and genders. Moreover, women are gradually rising in the political arena in the United States. The number of women and members of ethnic minority groups already sitting on Boston’s City Council made for a large pool of female candidates for the position of mayor. Wu’s victory marks the next stage of the city’s evolution. Jing Liu, master’s student, and Dr Yuehai Xiao, professor, department of English, Hunan Normal University, Changsha