Hello and welcome to my blog!
I’m Yee Qi and I am currently a Year 1 Environmental Studies student at the National University of Singapore (NUS).
On a normal day, you’ll probably find me in my room studying or drafting posts for this blog. When the weekend hits, I’ll most likely be outside with my bubble tea tumbler, cup holder and metal straw, always prepared to grab a cup of bubble tea wherever I go.
You could probably hear me coming from a distance, with all the noise generated from my metal straw clanging against my bubble tea tumbler.
Oh well, the things we do for our environment.
“What harm could one cup of bubble tea possibly do to the environment?”
Just like many other avid bubble tea fans, I used to consume my bubble tea without ever thinking about its environmental impacts. However, this changed when I started learning about how our waste was polluting our planet.
I’m sure many of us have seen at least one photo or video that showcases the reality of where our trash ends up – in our oceans, suffocating and killing marine animals! One that struck me especially hard was the video of a turtle with a plastic straw stuck in its nostril.
I love marine wildlife and visiting the various shores and islands of Singapore has helped me to see that plastic pollution isn’t that far away from us; it’s happening right in our backyards! Every time I chance upon a fascinating new marine species in my intertidal trips, it’s hard to miss the rubbish that’s surrounding them in these beautiful habitats.
It was these experiences that spurred me to (finally) harden my resolve to do more for the environment as a consumer, starting first in the way I was consuming my bubble tea.
To encourage you to do the same, I will be sharing my discoveries of the shocking revelations on the environmental impacts of consuming bubble tea. In my subsequent posts, I will also be evaluating the effectiveness of “environmentally-friendlier” consumption behaviours as to whether they truly are better for our environment. Lastly, I’ll dive deeper into the Singapore context to find out more about what Singaporeans have been doing about this bubble tea issue.
If you’re up for it, join me over the next few months in this journey of learning and reflection. May this blog mark the start of YOUR environmental journey as you harden your resolve and commit to taking better care of this Earth, be it through being an environmental advocate or switching to a more eco-friendly lifestyle!
See you in my next post!
(Header image from Lianhe Zaobao)
Hey Yee Qi! Just reading your blog brings out my bubble tea cravings XD!! To be honest I’ve never really considered the environmental impacts of this particular beverage (probably because I’m distracted by the sweetness hahaha!). Looking forward to reading your blog!
Hello Joseph, glad to know that you share the same love for bubble tea as I do! I think that bubble tea is super charismatic with its wide range of drinks and toppings available so it is definitely is quite distracting! I hope my next few blog posts will give you some insight on bubble tea’s environmental impacts, see you around!
Hi Yee Qi!
Ah a fellow bubble tea enthusiast haha, really interesting topic by the way! Looking forward to learning more in your coming blog posts about how the bubble tea industry could affect the environment. With regards to the “environmentally-friendlier” consumption behaviours that you pointed out, this makes me wonder, are things like reuseable bubble tea carriers really helping the environment or are they more of just a fad?
Hello Tricia! I’m so glad you brought that question up of whether these reusable bubble tea carriers are really helping the environment or not! I think consumers (myself included!) are very quick to jump on the bandwagon and pick up new “trendy” environmental-friendly products without thinking much on how it really helps the environment (or if it even does in the first place). I’ll definitely be sharing more about this in the upcoming posts and I hope you’ll be able to gain new insight on these products!