Your Voice: Hong Kong government must rethink waste charging scheme; protect red pandas

Against the backdrop of much controversy and ambiguity, Hong Kong’s municipal solid waste charging scheme, scheduled to take effect in April, has been postponed until August.

Municipal charging schemes are not new; many cities have implemented such initiatives with variable impact. However, having faced numerous delays over the years, it is evident that the postponement highlights the shortcomings of the Hong Kong government’s pre-emptive planning in policy implementation. There is also no comprehensive assessment of the impact on different stakeholders done by the government. It is unlikely that the policy will succeed in its aim if authorities do not address its pitfalls.

The scheme involves multiple charging modes, such as different bag sizes or charging by labels. Citizens will have to dispose of their garbage at designated refuse points and comply with different disposal methods for different types of waste. This policy requires active participation from all households; yet, with such complexity, it is foreseeable that people who find it difficult to follow will seek their own ways of waste disposal.

The government has overlooked the feasibility of policy enforcement. It is difficult to monitor waste disposal, especially with the diverse forms of households in the city. Ultimately, the responsibility of monitoring is likely to fall on housing estate management, leading to disputes with residents as they are not law enforcers.

Should Hong Kong’s waste-charging scheme have a grace period?

While the driving force behind the scheme is environmental protection, it poses new threats to the environment. Increased illegal disposal of waste or flushing waste down the toilet could contribute to environmental pollution. The scheme will also use many plastic trash bags, which are harmful as they are not biodegradable. In fact, this will contradict another bill that will be implemented in April, the ban on single-use plastic. To address long-standing environmental issues, the government should consider using reusable rubbish bins for each household instead of designated rubbish bags.

The cost for households to comply with the scheme could significantly burden those living in poverty. Their ability to reduce waste may be limited, given that most goods they purchase from supermarkets come with wrappings or bags. Yet, the scheme wouldn’t deter well-off households who can pay for more trash bags. Moreover, the scheme will increase operation costs for many commercial stakeholders, such as elderly homes and restaurants, adding to their financial burden when many are already struggling to survive.

To make the scheme successful, the government should use these extra few months to reconsider ways to implement the plan without the chaos and backlash currently expected.

Jonathan Su, German Swiss International School

Would we act differently if we knew our “expiry date”? This question has emerged as a result of a research project named Life2vec from the Technical University of Denmark, the University of Copenhagen, IT University of Copenhagen and Northeastern University. It looks into data that predicts what will happen in a person’s life and says we may eventually be able to determine when a person will die.

The research, outlined in the article “Using Sequences of Life – events to Predict Human Lives,” harnesses the power of transformer models. These models specialise in tracking relationships in sequential data and were inspired by BERT, a language model introduced by Google in 2018. BERT encodes words into mathematical vectors, allowing it to “understand” language and seemingly fill in the missing words in a sentence.

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Life2vec has proven to be remarkably accurate at forecasting results after training with health and labour market data from six million people. It can produce the dates of specific life events, with the most notable prediction being a person’s death. The team tested Life2vec in a group of people aged 35 to 65, half of whom died between 2016 and 2020. The model, now known as “the AI death calculator,” predicted their death within four years with an accuracy rate of 78 per cent. It is important to note that it is still being developed and refined.

To forecast personality traits, Life2vec leveraged information from a self-reported survey comprising five factors: openness, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness and neuroticism. By analysing life events data, Life2vec successfully predicted the levels of these traits and identified intriguing connections between personality and life events.

For instance, Life2vec revealed that individuals with higher levels of openness and conscientiousness were more likely to attain higher education and higher income. Conversely, those with higher neuroticism scores exhibited a heightened likelihood of experiencing mental health challenges and going through a divorce.

Despite its valuable insight, Life2vec has limitations, and its predictions should be taken with a grain of salt. Researchers also noted that the data it uses is derived from Denmark, making it potentially unrepresentative of other nations or cultures. Additionally, the data set fails to encompass all aspects relevant to an individual’s life that would influence the predictions.

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In addition, behind every ingenious discovery, there are always drawbacks. Concerns include safeguarding sensitive data and potential biases. Since the uses for the model pertain to life and death matters, researchers emphasised the need for a deeper understanding of these pitfalls, allowing for mitigation or even total elimination of the risks before the model can be applied.

The incorporation of artificial intelligence into the realm of forecasting forthcoming life events unveils a plethora of prospects and complexities. As the Life2vec system progresses, addressing ethical considerations is at the heart of preserving the equilibrium between technological progress and safeguarding individual rights. Sune Lehmann, one author of the study, encapsulated it perfectly: “We can start talking about it, and we can start deciding how we want to use it: what’s possible, what’s right, and what we should leave alone.”

Aron Joshua Diaz Santigo, Concordia Lutheran School (North Point)

The red panda, scientifically known as Ailurus fulgens, is an enchanting creature that captivates hearts with its unique appearance and endearing behaviour.

Red pandas are native to the Himalayan region and are primarily found in countries such as Nepal, India, Bhutan and China. Their habitat spans diverse ecosystems, including deciduous forests, coniferous forests, and bamboo forests. These pandas have adapted to mountainous environments, with their dense fur and bushy tails providing insulation against cold temperatures.

Red pandas are highly influenced by their habitats. They are primarily arboreal, spending most of their time in trees to forage for food and avoid predators. They are solitary animals, with each individual occupying its territory, which it marks with scent secretions.

Red pandas possess several unique characteristics that make them intriguing creatures. Though they share some similarities with giant pandas, they are more closely related to raccoons. The creatures have a bamboo-dominated diet, with bamboo shoots constituting up to 90 per cent of their meals. Their wrists also have a unique adaptation, with a pseudo thumblike wrist bone that helps them grip bamboo shoots. This feature is similar to an opposable thumb, allowing them to manipulate objects more effectively.

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Despite their captivating nature, red pandas face numerous threats to their survival. Deforestation, driven by human activities, is one of the most significant challenges they face. As forests are cleared for agriculture, logging, and infrastructure development, red pandas lose their habitat, leading to fragmentation and isolation.

Another threat to red pandas is illegal hunting. Their striking fur and perceived medicinal value in some traditional Asian cultures have led to poaching. Additionally, their endangered status often makes them targets for the illegal pet trade.

Various conservation efforts have been initiated by organisations and individuals worldwide. Conservation programmes focus on protecting and restoring red panda habitats, implementing anti-poaching measures, and raising awareness about the importance of red panda conservation. Collaborative initiatives between governments, local communities, and conservation organisations have yielded positive results, especially in Nepal and India, where community-led conservation has been successful.

Ongoing efforts must be sustained and strengthened to ensure the long-term survival of red pandas. Research on their genetics, behaviour, and habitat connectivity is vital for effective conservation planning. Additionally, targeted education and awareness campaigns can significantly influence public attitudes towards red pandas and promote responsible tourism practices to minimise disturbances.