Eco-labels inform consumers about the environmental aspects of a product or a service. Consumers who are concerned with environmental issues can use the information on eco-labels to learn the environmental aspects of the products that they buy. The aim of this study is to determine how often the students of higher education pay attention to eco-labels when they are purchasing and the levels of the five internal factors that may motivate the consumers to pay attention to eco-labels. These factors are pro-environmental attitude (willingness to pay higher prices for products with eco-label), perceived consumer effectiveness (how much they believe that individual actions can improve the environment), belief in environment-friendly buying, trust in eco-label and knowledge in eco-labels. This study provided an opportunity to learn if the students consider the environmental aspects when they are buying and what teachers and education professionals can do to encourage the students to pay attention to eco-labels. Three textbooks used for General Studies for Primary students, three textbooks used in Integrated Science for Secondary 1-3 students and six teaching materials published by publishers (there is no textbook for Liberal Studies that is standardized by Education Bureau) used in Science, Technology and the Environment in Liberal Studies for Secondary 4-6 students were reviewed to find if the topic of eco-labeling was mentioned in them. It was found that none of the textbooks used for General Studies for Primary students mentioned eco-labeling, all textbooks used in Integrated Science used for Secondary 1-3 mentioned the Energy Efficiency Label and all teaching material used in liberal studies also mentioned Energy Efficiency Label, among them, one book mentioned the European Union’s Eco-label. A survey was carried out to assess how often students pay attention to eco-labels and how much they agree to statements relating to the five internal factors that may motivate them to pay attention to eco-labels. A test was given to assess their knowledge in the Energy Efficiency Label Scheme (EELS) issued by the Electrical and Mechanical Service Department and eco-labels issued to food and wood products respectively. The mean was 2.8(on a scale of 6, in which 1 means strongly disagree and 6 means strongly agree), when asked if they agreed that they often pay attention to eco- label when they were buying 3.5 for pro-environmental attitude, 4.2 for perceived consumer effectiveness, 3.4 for belief in environmental buying, 3.6 for trust in eco-labels and 3.6 in perceived knowledge in eco-labels. 63.2% of the students correctly answered that there are five grades in EELS, 40% of students correctly chose that the lower the grading, the more efficient is the electrical appliance. 8.4% of students correctly chose all five kind of electrical applicants that are mandated to show EEL. 2.1% attempted to name any eco-labels issued to wood products and 3.1% attempted to name any eco-labels issued to food products. It was concluded that students do not often pay attention to eco-labels when they are buying and that the limited knowledge in eco-labels was the potential cause. / published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

Conventionally, efforts of combating climate change mainly focus on reducing emissions at production sources, such as factories, offices or other organizational-based entities. While this approach has served its purposes for years, the environmental impacts of consumer goods, which cause cross-border carbon emission are very difficult to be managed. This study investigated the feasibilities of an alternative solution to combat climate change using the concept of product carbon footprint (PCF) labelling in Hong Kong. PCF describes the total set of greenhouse gases caused by a product over its whole life cycle, from raw material extraction to disposal. The concept of PCF is prevalent in regions such as Europe, Japan and Taiwan, where PCF information is shown as labels on products’ packaging to help consumers distinguish more eco-friendly products. These PCF labels, based on overseas pioneer experience, have shown enormous market potential and environmental benefits. Hong Kong has yet to establish such labelling system despite these benefits. The aim of the study is to investigate the feasibilities of introducing PCF labelling in Hong Kong and identify the opportunities and difficulties lie ahead. Five main types of feasibilities, namely technical, economic, legal, operational and scheduling feasibilities were considered in the study and in-depth review was carried out on each one. Literature review, questionnaire for general public and interviews with stakeholders were undertaken to understand existing PCF labelling schemes and obtain first-hand information from stakeholders of different perspectives. By analyzing the questionnaire and interview results, the study revealed that short-term feasibilities of introducing PCF labelling in Hong Kong is medium. Recommendations were made in accordance to each type of feasibilities to promote the wider adoption of PCF labelling in the future. / published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management