The 'Go Green Community—Jockey Club Carbon Reduction Partnership Scheme' of CUHK Jockey Club Initiative Gaia (Gaia), launched in 2012, is a timely initiative to reduce carbon emissions in Hong Kong through carbon auditing and environmental education at schools and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Following the successful completion of the pilot phase (2012–14), during which carbon audits for 33 schools and 8 NGOs were conducted, the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust made in April 2014 a further donation of $16 million in support of the Second Phase (2014–17) of the scheme.

To mark the conclusion of Go Green Community's work in the pilot phase, Gaia held a sharing workshop at CUHK Campus on 30 May. Prof. Fung Tung, Associate Vice-President of CUHK, and Ms. Shirley Fisher, Charities Manager of HKJC, presented certificates to the participating schools and NGOs for their effort and contribution made in the pilot phase.

At the workshop, Ms. Cherrie Lam, curriculum development officer, Education Bureau of the HKSAR Government, spoke on the best ways to incorporate environmental education in school curricula. Dr. Matthew Pang, programme consultant of Gaia, demonstrated how the 'Go Green Community Education Kit' might facilitate students' engagement in environment protection. The education kit is pitched at different learning levels for senior secondary, lower secondary and upper primary students, and links with the respective school curricula, including General Studies, Integrated Humanities, Civic Education and Liberal Studies. The kit is provided free for all schools in Hong Kong and can be downloaded from the website of Gaia.

Go Green Community school representatives, including Ms. Chan Shan-shan (Baptist (Sha Tin Wai) Lui Ming Choi Primary School), Mr. Li Lok-tsang (Buddhist Wing Yan School) and Mr. Sin Wai-yuen (Cheung Chau Government Secondary School), shared and exchanged experiences on making use of the available resources of the scheme to promote environmental education at their schools and local communities. They agreed that, as the scheme was designed in such a way that students were engaged in the course of carbon audit, many students had been motivated to take immediate actions in small but important ways to reduce their carbon footprints. They also acted as change agents and inspired members of their families and local communities to do the same.

The second phase of the Go Green Community—Jockey Club Carbon Reduction Partnership Scheme commences in June 2014. For details, please visit the website of Gaia.