In our 20 years, some amazing staff have worked with us here at Greenpeace Hong Kong for some equally amazing environmental campaigns. Some are still with us, others have moved on, but we all still feel like one family. We caught up with a few Greenpeacers – past and present– and asked them to share their fondest memories of working at Greenpeace and to name one object that conjures up that Greenpeace feeling in them.
Prentice Koo / Former Senior Campaigner
Greenpeace memento: flip flops
Prentice Koo vs Prentice Koo
Prentice was a bit unconventional; he used to slip into his flip flops in the Greenpeace office. For him, they symbolized freedom and the courage to experiment. He organized what turned out to be a really successful ‘Car-free day’ in Hong Kong; it wasn’t one of our normal protest actions — “not so Greenpeace” — but it really worked. Prentice believed in thinking outside the box: “Routine can really limit us.”
Mi Choi / Former Manager of Direct Marketing
Greenpeace memento: a pair of well-worn, wooden chopsticks
Mi Choi vs Mi Choi
Whether it’s a drinking mug or a pair of chopsticks, Mi has been carrying around her own utensils for more than a decade. Her family were a bit unhappy when she told them she was going to work for Greenpeace, but in the end she convinced them that direct action wasn’t really “radical”. In 2013, she set up an environmental group called Smiley Planet with two friends and last year she launched Go Cup, a project that encourages people to carry their own cup for buying drinks, continuing the spirit of the Greenpeace “I’m not disposable” chopsticks campaign: “I believe that had an influence on what I’m doing today.”
Lai Yun / Former Senior Campaigner
Greenpeace memento: Superman figure gift from colleagues
Lai Yun vs Lai Yun
When superman conquers evil he relies on his superpowers and his brain. Just like our first generation campaigner, Lai Yun. He has visited more than 100 factory sites along the Pearl River to test water samples. In his campaigning days he once escaped from the gnashing jaws of a Tibetan mastiff guard dog and has always had an uncanny ability to spot factories’ illegal discharge pipes. Yun now runs a nature conservation centre, encouraging people to feel that a good environment is necessary for a good life: “Get people to experience for themselves why environmental protection is so important.”
Howard Liu / Former Executive Director
Greenpeace memento: Article on water pollution in the Dong River
Howard Liu VS Howard Liu
Today we all know about cross-border pollution, but 10 years ago no one was talking about it. To raise public awareness, Howard really got to work — he researched scientific literature, tested water samples and wrote articles. In the end, the government had to listen and they took action. Howard has always believed environmental protection can only be achieved when it also addresses the needs of people: “We don’t have to go back and live a primitive life, but rather we should pursue a path that is simple, convenient and satisfying.”
Alice Yeung / Former Action Campaigner
Greenpeace memento: Photograph of anti-land reclamation protest.
Alice Yeung vs Alice Yeung
As the Hong Kong office’s first female action co-ordinator, Alice was right there on the frontlines. She’s been to Sierra Leone into the heart of an Ebola epidemic and even got arrested in India during a protest. Surprisingly, though, the toughest action for her was a campaign against land reclamation in Hong Kong’s Central District. It had been so dark the night before that they had real problems suspending the ropes to hang the giant protest banners. These days Alice is working for a humanitarian aid agency, she hopes Hong Kong remains free and open: “Speak out and fight for what you believe in”
Sze Pang Cheung (KT) / Executive Director at Greenpeace East Asia
Greenpeace memento: A scarf worn in the Amazon Rainforest
Sze Pang Cheung vs Sze Pang Cheung
Over the past 15 years, Sze Peng Cheung (or KT as we call him) went from Greenpeace volunteer to Greenpeace East Asia Executive Director, so naturally he has a whole treasure trove of mementos. But he’s chosen a seemingly pretty ordinary one – a scarf. This scarf was his loyal companion 15 years ago when he travelled as a Greenpeace volunteer to the Amazon forest to stand side by side with the local indigenous population to save their patch of the forest. That trip taught him to value simple things, a life more carefree: “No object is more precious than the relationship between people.”