Emily Lam-Ho has always taken a practical approach towards environmental protection and plastic reduction, dipping into her experience at University of Southern California and Columbia University to inform her practices. Even before establishing EcoDrive, Emily was already doing her part for the environment, in what little ways she could. “I would always separate garbage into recycling and non-recycling, and when I was a teenager, I set up an environmental-focussed group with my friends. Once I started college, my commitment to the environment gradually began to increase, and I would consciously make efforts to combat environmental issues.”

In 2018, Emily and 10 other impassioned women established EcoDrive, a non-profit environmental protection group. As parents, the women were collectively concerned about the future of the planet and how that would impact their children, with the imminent ecological crisis already underway. Since then, EcoDrive has organised screenings, lectures and question-and-answer sessions for schools, companies, and organisations, arranged beach cleaning events and hosted seminars in their quest to promote environmental awareness and educate the masses, encouraging everyone to make subtle lifestyles shifts for a big environmental difference. EcoDrive collaborated with New Youth Energy HK in 2019 to launch the #EnoughPlastic education campaign to encourage a reduction in plastic products, whilst employing the help of celebrities to promote this message to as vast an audience as possible.

While there are a myriad of environmental issues that need tackling, Emily chose to direct her efforts towards plastic waste. “Compared to other problems such as air pollution, which requires specific tools and equipment to understand its effects, the problem of plastic waste is easier to quantify and understand. Especially for Hong Kong, the overwhelming use of plastic is especially noticeable—when we go to the beach, we see a lot of plastic waste, which is a problem that can be felt by the naked eye.” Emily admits that, early on, she herself didn’t realise how many single-use plastics are used in day-to-day life. “I never noticed before. There is even plastic in the middle of a cotton swab, so now I will look for bamboo, wood or reusable silicone styles.”

When asked about the most shocking fact she’d learnt regarding plastic pollution, Emily recalled when she and the EcoDrive team visited a factory that processed plastic waste, and were struck by the sheer magnitude of it all. But she’s also particularly concerned with the impact of plastic on wildlife and marine ecology. “The plastic ring on canned foods can harm seagulls, and sea turtles, while the ear straps in the masks worn during the pandemic can also be harmful to animals.”