Secondary School – Education Activity 2

Objectives

• Understand the idea of “Replace Works Reuse Works Better”
• Reflect about the public’s ideas and stereotypes about green alternatives
• Reflect about the environmental cost of disposable products
• Examine the influence of the throwaway culture on yourself

Resource and References

• Replace means everything? education video (Available at “Videos”)
• Debate Introduction and Conclusion (For Teacher)
  (Available at “Downloads”)
• Refer to Chapter 2.3 The Environmental Impact of Plastics, Chapter 2.5 Plastic Ban-Hong Kong, Mainland and the World and Chapter 4.2 Green Consumption

Content / Steps

Before the activity

1. Play Replace means everything? education video and discuss with students about the consequences of abuse of “Replace” which generates more waste to bring out the message of the video, “Replace Works Reuse Works Better”.
2. Refer to Chapter4.2 Green Consumption to explain “responsible consumption” to students.
3. Use Debate Introduction and Conclusion (For Teacher) to prime students for the debate

Debate

1. Divide students into four groups: two affirmative and two negative teams. Each team will choose three speakers for the debate and the rest of the group members will be responsible for organising debate materials.

2. Pick two opposing teams to start first. Rules as follows:

   • Each speaker is allowed one minute to speak. The first affirmative speaker takes the stage first and is followed by the first negative speaker. The second and third opposing pairs follow suit.
   • After the speakers finish their speech, the floor is open for rebuttal.  The affirmative and negative teams both have two opportunities to rebut and each speaker is allowed one minute for response.
   • After the rebuttal, the other two groups will then vote on the winning team.
3. The other two opposing teams take stage in turn.
4. Use Debate Introduction and Conclusion (For Teacher) to conclude the debate.

Teaching tips

• Divide the students into groups a week before the debate to allow time for research and preparation.
• The above debate process is simplified to allow participation of more students in class. Teacher may look up procedures of formal debates and hold a proper debate as an after-school activity.  

Introduction

In April 2024, the first phase of the bill for regulating disposable plastic tableware and other plastic products was implemented to prohibit the sale of expanded polystyrene (EPS) tableware, provision of plastic straws and single-use tableware for dine-in and take out orders, and the sale of various disposable plastic products including cotton buds, umbrella bags, glow sticks etc.
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The implementation of the bill has boosted the development of green products. A myriad of green products in different designs and materials thrived. Among them, alternatives for plastic straws have drawn heated debate.
At the moment, paper straw is the main substitute for plastic straw. The annoyances caused by a paper straw and reservation about the greenness of its material have stirred up a lot of controversy.  
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Plastic’s detrimental effect on the environment is without doubt and plastic ban has become a global consensus. However, replacement of plastic straw with paper straw is still a controversial issue.
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When preparing for debates, students may focus on several perspectives, including environmental impact, user experience with paper straws, global trends and so on.

Conclusion

A debate is adjudicated based on technical criteria such as speakers' rhetoric, presentation skills, organization, and the relevance of their arguments. Therefore, winning or losing does not necessarily reflect the triumph or failure of reason.  The subject of debate is not an issue of right or wrong but relative to one’s point of view.      
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Both paper and plastic straws have merits and flaws. The introduction of paper straw is to reduce the negative environmental impact of plastic straws. But the public has zoomed in on the pros and cons of paper straws (mirrored in this debate). We should focus on reduction of all sorts of waste regardless of the types of disposables and prioritise “reuse” over “dispose”.
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We should adopt responsible consumption pattern based on Green Consumption principles for sustainable development.