USP student Woo Qiyun (Environmental Geography + USP, Class of 2020) was recognised at the HSBC/NYAA Youth Environmental Awards 2018 ceremony on 21 September for her outstanding leadership and contributions to the environment. Qiyun received a citation plaque, $500 worth of book vouchers and the opportunity to participate in a fully sponsored study trip to Switzerland to gain exposure in environmental projects and activities.

Qiyun has a strong track record in leadership, environmentalism and social entrepreneurship, and her key interests lie in corporate sustainability, social and eco-entrepreneurship, conservation and sustainable consumerism. She has participated in numerous sustainability related competitions such as the Singapore Frontier Challenge held by NUS, the SembCorp Green Wave 2018 competition, and the CDL E-generation Competition 2018. Read more about her green efforts here.

She shared, “Having only transferred to Environmental Studies in Year 2, I constantly doubted my decision to transfer courses. However, this award reaffirmed my decision and served as huge motivation for me to continue on the path of sustainability. I hope that with the small initiatives I push out, I can engage in more conversations and collaborations with people of various fields to see how sustainability can be approached more holistically. A huge benefit of USP is being able to discuss topics you're interested in and gain perspectives about that topic from different angles. I am particularly interested in sustainable event management and this award has certainly given me the push I needed to try new things and work for the change I want to see.”

In USP, she was part of the team that organised the UTown Eco-Fair that took place this semester at Cinnamon College (USP). She expressed, “I hope to push out more initiatives in the next few semesters in USP to make sustainability accessible and interesting!”

Great work, Qiyun! We are inspired to see our students contributing towards a more sustainable Singapore.