New Children’s Book The Green Dragon Looks to Empower Youth About Hong Kong Environmental Issues

Looking to empower our youth about the environment, a Hong Kong resident has penned a children’s book with the hope to educate the younger generation to the massive plastic pollution problem across the SAR. The Green Dragon, written by Suzanne Younan and illustrated by Caroline Lewington, follows the journey of Willy the Green Dragon as he soars over the islands and beaches of Hong Kong looking for his friends Pearl, Myrtle and Eddie, only to find they are all in need of help.

Weaving a tale of four friends and Leo, the brave boy who is compelled to take action against the perils of plastic waste, the 32-page picture book encourages a positive understanding of how plastics affects the environment and the daily actions on how they can make changes to reduce consumption and single-use packaging.

“A beautifully illustrated book that tells a heart-breaking story which affects us all: young and old, regardless of where we live,” Dana Winograd, Director of Operations at Plastic Free Seas said in a statement. “The Green Dragon is a fantastic tool for use in classrooms or at home and will be an asset to any library.”

After tropical cyclone Typhoon Hato struck South China in August 2017, the devastation left the British-native at a loss with the sheer volume of plastic debris littered in its aftermath. An avid dragon boater, Suzanne founded Green Dragons HK, a community of dragon boat teams on a mission to reduce plastic-free paddling and plastic at race events. Recognizing that educating young activists can lead us out of this climate catastrophe, the Hong Kong mom was inspired to create Willy and the lovable characters as a guide for 4 – 10 year-olds to show children how they can fight plastic waste.

Released by Draco Virindi, the engaging fantasy novel comes at a pressing time in Hong Kong’s urgent environmental state. Generating about 2,000 tons of plastic waste daily, it is the third-largest solid waste disposal according to the Environmental Protection Department. Though the government lacks a recycling management system, three companies have formed together build a comprehensive facility capable of handling common forms of household plastic waste.

Want to break up with single-use plastics? Here’s our complete Green Queen Guide.

Image courtesy of Suzanne Younan