MEComposing

I came from a blogger event sponsored by Ipanema, which was launching its new Giselle Bundchen Colorful Sea Collection. Every new collection is tied up with a cause and this one was ocean life.

They had a speaker earlier on climate change and they showed that clip to us. Of course, I felt ashamed. It's true what the speaker said: climate change is not the future anymore, it is the here and now. And after Ondoy, what have people actually done to prevent another one?

Have we started bringing our own water bottles, or do we still buy mineral water every time we go out?

Have we started switching lights off when not in use?

Have people started carpooling or commuting more instead of bringing their own cars?

Are we throwing our garbage properly?

Are we reusing and recycling?

Are we grilling election cxandidates for specific plans and strategies to protect the environment?

Are we lobbying for our forests?

Are we saving water?


The speaker said (sorry I didn't catch his name) that Kamanava area has sunk 1.5 meters in the past two years. Malate has sunk .5 meters. There is already a water shortage in Cebu. Most of our ports, even our airports and roads are in danger areas because of poor planning and the effects of climate change. Half of the rain we get go out to sea, unutilized by us for power and consumption.

Ondoy affected all of us because our homes got flooded and some of our friends lost loved ones. But the most drastic change people did was to leave their lovely villages behind to start fresh somewhere else. Companies continue sponsoring tree-planting activities without making sure that the trees planted live. More and more beverages are coming out using plastic material. There is still a lack of recyling facilities and we have yet to make something of the rains that devastate our country more and more each year. We also continue using farming and forest lands to build villages and townhomes in (hello people voting for Villar).

We talk about El Niño and complain about the heat. But what have we done? Were we even changed by the Ondoy tragedy at all?

I was really ashamed to answer that my token efforts are good... but I can do more. I must do more if my child is to enjoy something of this country when he grows up.