[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/reusables-make-a-systemic-comeback-at-nus\/#NewsArticle","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/reusables-make-a-systemic-comeback-at-nus\/","headline":"Reusables make a systemic comeback at NUS","name":"Reusables make a systemic comeback at NUS","description":"On 10 January, Starbucks on campus announced the launch of its Borrow A Cup Programme.\u00a0 Its customers at all three outlets across the National University of Singapore (NUS) can borrow reusable plastic cups and return them later. \u00a0 Those who buy a drink with reusable cups, whether their own or borrowed, will enjoy 50 cents […]","datePublished":"2022-01-31","dateModified":"2022-06-29","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/rachel-teng\/#Person","name":"Rachel Teng","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/rachel-teng\/","identifier":367,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/Rachel_Teng-100x100.jpg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/Rachel_Teng-100x100.jpg","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"TheHomeGround Asia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","width":640,"height":640}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/S3-Feature-1920-x-1080-px-V1-19.jpg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/S3-Feature-1920-x-1080-px-V1-19.jpg","height":900,"width":1600},"url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/reusables-make-a-systemic-comeback-at-nus\/","about":["Community","Environment","Local","Short Read","Singapore"],"wordCount":586,"keywords":["disposables","national university of singapore","nus","nus save","reusables","single-use"],"articleBody":"On 10 January, Starbucks on campus announced the launch of its Borrow A Cup Programme.\u00a0Its customers at all three outlets across the National University of Singapore (NUS) can borrow reusable plastic cups and return them later. \u00a0Those who buy a drink with reusable cups, whether their own or borrowed, will enjoy 50 cents off from their cuppa. This project runs till May 2022.This program is launched in collaboration with Singapore-based startup Muuse, which works with F&B outlets to create well-integrated systems for reusables islandwide.\u00a0Muuse professionally cleans and sanitises reusable cups that have been deposited into the return stations positioned outside each of the outlets.\u00a0The NUS Students Against Violation of the Earth (SAVE) had previously launched the similar\u00a0Project Box & Project Tumbler (PBPT), which allowed students to gain discounts after participating in the Bring-Your-Own (BYO) campaign five times in a row.\u00a0Such initiatives came to a standstill when the Covid-19 virus hit the country in January 2020 and concerns over hygiene and logistics rose.\u00a0 Takeaways and food deliveries were strongly encouraged in light of safe distancing measures, and the Office of Campus Amenities (OCA) waived previously instated charges for takeaway orders indefinitely.\u00a0  Takeaways and food deliveries were strongly encouraged in light of safe distancing measures, and the Office of Campus Amenities (OCA) waived previously instated charges for takeaway orders indefinitely. (Photo source: NUS Students’ Newsletter, 27 March 2020.)BYO containers were still encouraged on paper, but a number of vendors had rejected them out of fear that reusable containers were carriers of the virus.\u00a0These concerns were brought to the attention of both NUS SAVE and the institution and they acknowledged them. (Photo source: NUS Students\u2019 Newsletter, 12 April 2020)Similarly, Starbucks \u2014 one of the biggest producers of single-use cups in the world \u2014\u00a0also banned the use of personal reusable cups in March 2020 worldwide.\u00a0While these sentiments were understandable, environmentalists voiced their concerns over the increased use of disposables and plastic waste during this time. Ms Woo Qiyun, who runs the environmental communications Instagram page @theweirdandwild, addressed some key concerns during the peak.\u00a0\u201cAccording to the LA Times, medical experts believe that reusable projects pose no additional risks as long as they are routinely sanitised,\u201d she wrote in an older post.\u00a0Associate Professor Hassan Vally told the Conversation, a network of not-for-profit media outlets publishing news stories and research reports online, with accompanying expert opinion and analysis, that \u201cthis isn\u2019t to say surface transmission isn\u2019t possible and it doesn’t pose a risk in certain situations, or that we should disregard it completely. But, we should acknowledge the threat surface transmission poses is relatively small\u201d.\u00a0Small, that is \u2014\u00a0especially in light of another crisis on hand: the climate crisis. In 2020, Singapore\u2019s domestic recycling rate decreased from 17 percent to 13 percent \u2014 with the halt in the community recycling programmes cited as the main reason.\u00a0Programmes such as the cash-for-trash scheme and collection drives led by schools and Residents\u2019 Committee centres were also halted, resulting in less paper and plastic recyclables collected, reported mothership.\u00a0When sustainability is viewed as an elective during times of immediate crisis, it\u2019s equivalent to turning off a burning stove but missing a candle flame slowly engulfing a curtain in the very next room.\u00a0Two years into the Covid-19 pandemic, with a vaccination rate of 88 percent as of 29 January 2022, reusables are finally making a systemic comeback \u2014 and that is a win worth celebrating.\u00a0Join the conversations on TheHomeGround Asia’s Facebook and Instagram, and get the latest updates via Telegram."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Destinations","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Singapore","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/\/singapore\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Reusables make a systemic comeback at NUS","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/reusables-make-a-systemic-comeback-at-nus\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]