Most of us have heard of the 3Rs: reduce, reuse and recycle. It is the core principle of a sustainable (可持续的) life, but few of us can apply it in our own lives. Now, there’s a “lab” you can explore and discover a way toward living sustainably.
3R Lab is located in Xuhui district, Shanghai. It offers exhibitions, activities and goods that showcase the 3R principle. The key to a sustainable life, according to Vincent T. M. Fong, the 32-year-old from Hong Kong who created the lab, is to make it a long-term promise. “A sustainable life should be sustainable itself in the first place. You can’t lead a sustainable life on a whim. Small and comfortable changes are exactly what you need,” Fong said.
The lab regularly hosts ugly fruit markets, offering these strange fruits which are often thrown away by traditional markets and consumers at a quite attractive price. “They’re thrown away simply because of their appearance. Buying fruit regardless of how they look reduces food waste significantly in our daily life,” Fong commented.
A water tank with two types of straws is another equipment in the lab. “One type is made from normal plastics widely used in our daily life while the other is from PHA, a new replacement for plastics, and the water is sourced from the Suzhou River,” explained Ni Li, an employee of the lab. Visitors can see how the PHA straws degrade (降解) into a thin layer in just one month, while the others remain unchanged.
“Leading a sustainable life does not necessarily mean sacrifice,” said Fong. Consuming ugly fruit and using degradable plastics are small changes that are good for the environment and easy to stick to. Only in this way can the 3R principle become part of our lives, he added.
After working there for six months, Ni, who wasn’t mindful of the 3R principle before arriving at the lab, now uses her cup every time she buys a coffee. “The job has reshaped my life,” Ni said.
8. What does the-underlined phrase “
on a whim” in the second paragraph probably mean?
A.In a rush. | B.On a regular basis. |
C.Without any reason. | D.As a common practice. |
9. What is the purpose of the ugly fruit market at 3R Lab?
A.To reduce food waste. | B.To promote healthy eating. |
C.To sell new kinds of fruit. | D.To provide more affordable fruit, |
10. What can the water tank at 3R Lab show to its visitors?
A.The water pollution caused by plastics. | B.The degradation of PHA straws. |
C.The interaction between two types of straws. | D.The disappearance of normal plastic straws. |
11. What can we infer from the last paragraph about Ni?
A.She avoids going to traditional markets. | B.She has devoted less time to her hobbies. |
C.She has got rid of a few bad habits. | D.She is leading a low carbon life now. |