\nPreschoolers from My First Skool explore the lush greenery at The Carbon Gallery, which introduces young learners to biodiversity.<\/p>\n
PHOTO: FAIRPRICE GROUP<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Through the gallery, Asia\u2019s first carbon-focused experiential hub, FairPrice Foundation hopes to make carbon literacy, awareness and education fun and relatable for all ages. It does this with immersive and interactive elements that revolve around easy-to-understand concepts like shopping, eating and commuting.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The gallery complements the Singapore secondary school geography curriculum and supports primary school sustainability and environmental learning, bridging classroom knowledge on the complex relationship between human and environmental systems with interactive, real-world experiences and examples.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\nMulti-sensorial exhibits turn abstract sustainability concepts into hands-on lessons for all ages.<\/p>\n
PHOTO: FAIRPRICE GROUP<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Ying Hua\u2019s favourite activity is The Carbon Cart, where she uses \u201ccarbon coins\u201d to shop for daily essentials. This supermarket-inspired concept challenges what you know about grocery shopping. At a typical supermarket, you may pay for your favourite cereals, shampoo and fresh vegetables with cash or a tap of your phone or card. But at The Carbon Cart, you get to \u201cshop\u201d for these with no more than 60 carbon coins.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For instance, a head of broccoli costs two coins, a packet of cheese goes for 31\u00a0 coins and a slab of beef sets you back 60 coins. What are carbon coins? Think of them as mock money that illustrates the carbon cost of each item, which is correlated to its estimated carbon emission. Locally grown greens generally have the lowest carbon footprint and imported beef scores the highest. So, the more conscious you are of how you spend, the better it is for the planet.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\nThe Carbon Cart exhibit challenges visitors to \u201cshop\u201d using carbon coins, revealing the hidden carbon cost behind everyday essentials.<\/p>\n
PHOTO: FAIRPRICE GROUP<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Mr Danny Wong, a school teacher at My First Skool, says that the hands-on activities that mirror real-life experiences made his preschoolers curious about sustainable living and think about how they can take care of the environment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThey learnt about not wasting food and many of them became more mindful of their daily actions, and some even reminded adults to turn off the lights and air-conditioning when leaving the room,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
It is not just kindergarteners who find the gallery interesting. Upper secondary geography teacher Sarifah Tamsir also recalls how intrigued her students were to see abstract concepts like carbon footprints and net-zero targets that they had learnt about in class come to life.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
After their field trip, she noticed many of them becoming more conscious of their daily habits, with some even starting their own recycling drives.<\/p>\n\n\nVisitors answer questions at checkpoints throughout The Carbon Gallery and later discover which \u201cPower for Change\u201d character best represents their sustainability persona.<\/p>\n
PHOTO: FAIRPRICE GROUP<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\u201cThe visit sparked meaningful conversations about personal responsibility and environmental action. When students see real-world applications of what they learn, they feel a stronger sense of agency to contribute to sustainability efforts,\u201d says Ms Sarifah.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Open to the public for free, The Carbon Gallery was initiated and developed by sustainability social enterprise Terra SG and supported by the FairPrice Foundation, the philanthropic arm of FairPrice Group and the gallery\u2019s founding partner.<\/p>\n
The gallery\u2019s learning environment reflects the history of its premises, which previously housed the former Loyang Primary School, now known as Vidacity. <\/p>\n\n\nThe Microforest, part of The Carbon Gallery\u2019s outdoor learning spaces, features native plants that naturally cool and purify the air by absorbing carbon.<\/p>\n
PHOTO: FAIRPRICE GROUP<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
By end 2025, it expects to welcome 28,000 visitors, mostly students from primary and secondary schools. It is part of a series of initiatives (see box) by FairPrice Group and FairPrice Foundation to foster community engagement in Singapore\u2019s heartlands and encourage habits that are kinder to the environment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to make carbon literacy fun, engaging and most importantly, easy for all in Singapore to understand \u2013 that\u2019s our vision for The Carbon Gallery. If there\u2019s one thing I hope visitors take away, it\u2019s that anyone, no matter how old or young, can take small everyday steps that ladder up to make things easier on the planet for the next generation,\u201d shares Ms Jean Khong, general manager of FairPrice Foundation.<\/p>\n
Mr Kelvin Wong, co-founder of Terra SG, shares that after running sustainability programmes in schools and communities for years, his team found that many know about climate change but not how their daily actions are linked to carbon.<\/p>\n
The Carbon Gallery is a chance to show them the link between carbon emissions, climate change and daily lifestyles. \u201cVisitors can see, touch and make choices that show how everyday actions impact the planet,\u201d says Mr Wong.<\/p>\n\n\nThe Respite Garden offers a tranquil space for the public to reflect on their role in protecting the planet.<\/p>\n
PHOTO: FAIRPRICE GROUP<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Kendra Moo, a secondary two student, likes how The Carbon Gallery takes her out of the classroom.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIn school, we mostly learn through textbooks and discussions. At the gallery, the experience was more hands-on and visual. I could see how my choices affect the planet, and this made the topic more real and personal, not just something to study for exams,\u201d she shares.\u00a0<\/p>\n
An exhibit that left the greatest impression on her was \u2018Every Day, A Little Better\u2019 in Zone 2, where visitors can scan RFID discs on a sensor to watch and learn how everyday waste like glass bottles and even egg shells can be upcycled into quirky lamps and floor tiles. <\/p>\n\n\nVisitors can learn about waste and recycling at an interactive exhibit that highlights how everyday items can be given a second life.<\/p>\n
PHOTO: FAIRPRICE GROUP<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
There are also interesting facts displayed all over this zone, engaging visitors to rethink their commuting habits and make their homes more sustainable by doing things as simple as setting one\u2019s air-conditioner at 25 deg C and also using fans to circulate the air more efficiently.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kendra says she is taking a more conscious effort to turn off lights and fans when she leaves a room and to use reusable shopping bags. \u201cWe are the generation that will live with the long-term effects of climate change, so it\u2019s up to us to act now,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n