Youth urged to play role for containing use of plastic goods

Islamabad Besides reduce, reuse and recycle, it is equally important to 'refuse' the use of plastic from our lives in order to save the planet and it's species, said speakers at an awareness raising session on waste managment and award - giving ceremony organised by Pakistan Science Foundation on Thursday. Addressing at the prize and award-giving ceremony, chief guest Additional Secretary Ministry of Science and Technology (S&T) Syed Attaur Rehman stressed the need of discouraging use of plastic products to minimize hazardous impact of plastic waste on environment. He said that plastic products had brought a lot of ease to our lives but its negative impact on environment were far more devastating. UNESCO Country Director Patricia McPhillips, guest of honour, UNDP representatives, Chairman Pakistan Science Foundation Shahid Baig, Principal of the college Iftikhar Shahbaz and other dignitaries were present on the occasion. Syed Attaur Rehman said that youth could play a very effective role in sensitizing their parents on plastic waste adding that just imposing ban on plastic use could not work and only awareness about its negative impact could bring marked change. He further said that the plastic waste should be reused as in this way it would be properly disposed of as well as save the environment from its negative impact. Syed Attaur Rehman said that Pakistan Science Foundation would continue its quest for coming up with scientific answers to such challenges and hoped that UNESCO, UNDP, GWC, Coco-Cola Foundation and other partners would continue their support to PSF in its endeavours. UNESCO Country Director Patricia McPhillips stressed the need of bringing change in mind-set to control and contain the use of plastic goods and asked youth to play their role toward this end. “Stop using plastic products and the production of plastic goods will automatically go down,” she said adding it was simply a demand and supply mechanism when demand will went down the production would also go down. She said that the plastic bottles and shopping bags produced now, would be present even in the days of your grandchildren adding that this could only be prevented to educate people on the devastating effects of plastic waste. Chairman Pakistan Science Foundation Dr. Shahid Baig termed the plastic waste a global problem and said that if corrective measures were not taken to put the house in order the future generations would suffer. The PSF Chairman said that they were amazed to see the work of the students who participated in these events and it had become difficult for them to finalise the winners. He said that they were constrained to give prizes to winners but they would be giving commendation certificates to all the students as in his view all of them were winners in their own capacity. Climate activist Hania Imran urged students to spread the message among their friends and family members while also raising the voice against multi nationals that are causing the plastic crisis. Meanwhile, representatives from the environment and climate change unit of UNDP attended the event and interacted with the students to learn more about the innovative plastic waste recycling solutions on display. UNDP is also engaging youth in developing low-cost innovative technologies to recycle plastic waste, minimize its leakage in the environment thereby promoting the concept of circular economy. Later, prizes were distributed among the winners. The winner of waste model competition Asia Ismail presented his award winning model to Patricia Mc Phillips.