Live Earth and my "Rock" Idol

Even if the Philippines is not one of official Live Earth venues, I am still so psyched for the event! 22 days to go and the world will be rocking, not to gloom-and-doom scenarios of climate change impacts but to hopeful climate change solutions! (Hmmm I wonder how much "carbon" the event will be generating) but, hey, it's worth a shot. Just imagine the billions of people this event will be reaching and all in a day! Never mind the timezone differences, the very important thing this concert will bring is solidarity of the whole world for an issue that transcends all gender, all colors, all cultures, all lifestyles and all ages!

Lifestyle eh? Yes. I just found out from the Live Earth site that my first-ever rock idol is not just an ultra-great climber but a green sports star as well. She's Lynn Hill and as the Live Earth webby says, "Rock-star climber Hill wants to climb every mountain and shout about protecting the great outdoors. At her Boulder, Colo., home, she's installed solar panels on her roof, and when she goes out on speaking events, she helps raise money for a local environmental group, Global Green Grants." I really love rockclimbing and the outdoors and finding out that one of my (rock) heroes are interested in the same stuff that I am interested in just makes me fall in love with both the advocacy and rockclimbing all over again!


Now I can really say, "When I grow up, I want to be like Lynn Hill."

By the way, the following is LiveEarth's 7-point pledge:

1. To demand that my country join an international treaty within the next 2 years that cuts global warming pollution by 90 percent in developed countries and by more than half worldwide in time for the next generation to inherit a healthy Earth;
2. To take personal action to help solve the climate crisis by reducing my own CO2 pollution as much as I can and offsetting the rest to become "carbon neutral;"
3. To fight for a moratorium on the construction of any new generating facility that burns coal without the capacity to safely trap and store the CO2;
4. To work for a dramatic increase in the energy efficiency of my home, workplace, school, place of worship, and means of transportation;
5. To fight for laws and policies that expand the use of renewable energy sources and reduce dependence on oil and coal;
6. To plant new trees and to join with others in preserving and protecting forests; and,
7. To buy from businesses and support leaders who share my commitment to solving the climate crisis and building a sustainable, just, and prosperous world for the 21st century.

What's your pledge?

N.B. Photo taken from the Live Earth website

-oOo-

(Happy?) International Biodiversity Day

May 22 was the International Day for Biological Diversity, this year focusing on Biodiversity and Climate Change. This is an acknowledgement of the fact that it's not just humans who are dealing with the issue of climate change. Animals and plants around the world have had to adapt to the rapidly changing climate as well, particularly in the polar regions, forests, coral reefs, and so on. Scientists fear that around 1/3 of all the species could die out by 2050.

A Forum on Biodiversity and Climate Change organized by the Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau was held on May 23 at the National Institute of Geological Sciences in UP Diliman, which Precious, KT and I attended. Speakers from different fields were at the forum to talk about various issues like the vulnerability of agriculture to climate change, landscape management, and the conservation of biodiversity.

People from academic institutions, the media, and organizations like WWF-Philippines were also at the forum. The presence of people coming from various sectors emphasized just how big of an issue climate change is, and the fact that it knows no borders, locally and globally.

A lot of people were concerned about the action plan of the government, although no concrete answers were given with respect to this. In summary, in responding to climate change, the following points were mentioned: 1) change in lifestyle, 2) programs by local government units, 3) implementation of national policies by national government agencies, and 4) development of a national action plan.

Well, we've heard it all before. I mean, anyone from SolarGeneration could've told them that, hehe. But I think the relevance of the forum is that we got to see just how concerned different people are about the issue, and their willingness to establish common ground -- they'll be having further discussions on climate change issues of concern everyone shares within the Philippine setting, and subsequently formulating recommendations and concrete steps to take.

Of course, we don't have to be satisfied with just sitting back while everyone else makes plans. That's why we're SolarGeneration, right? :)

Youth and Climate Change

Today, I presented in class a summary of SolarGen activities (i.e. skillshare and IPCC WG3 meeting activities) from April 27 to May 3 in Bangkok, Thailand. I had to be away from school for a week to be there and, naturally, my Environmental Science (ES) classmates and teachers were curious about what exactly I had been up to. Needless to say, it was a great opportunity to talk about both the issue of climate change and what young people (specifically SolarGen) are doing about it.

I launched into a narration of all the planning, painting (of banners), picture-taking (seriously, being in the presence of so many people from the media is an experience like no other, hehe), fruit-shake-blending (with the aid of solar power), and dancing (to the song It's Getting Hot in Here) we did in Bangkok. I would like to think all our hard work paid off in the sense that we were able to communicate the kind of future we wanted to the people we encountered (Dr. Pachauri who heads the IPCC, the Ministers of Energy and the Environment, and the Thai public in general).

So after talking about SG activities, considering that my audience included ES majors, I also talked about the different energy technologies, from solar and wind (go renewable!) to nuclear energy and carbon capture and storage (boo dirty energy and untried technologies!). I also discussed the key principles of the Energy [R]evolution (the Energy [R]evolution report is a really useful resource, by the way -- you can download it here). To close the presentation, I mentioned the key outcomes of the assessment report produced by the IPCC after meeting in Bangkok, and asked the question, "What now?"

For governments, one of the next steps later this year is meeting in Bali, Indonesia to discuss the next phase of the Kyoto Protocol (post-first commitment period from 2008 to 2012).

For us, as young people, we should step up to our role as major stakeholders. As young people today, we are the ones with the most at stake. Ten, twenty years down the road, we're the ones who will be dealing with the issue of climate change, and not the decision-makers today. It's us who will be facing the consequences of whatever they do or don't do. So we should stand up and act for the kind of future we want, one with clean, renewable energy powering sustainable growth. :)

(Offtopic: The glory of having written the first ever entry on the SG Manila blog belongs to me, heehee!)

What Does it Mean to Give? by Erika Sales, GP Supporter-Volunteer

I am involved with various people from different non-profits, with different causes and we assist them on fund raising or how to teach others "The Joy of Giving." When you do this practically everyday as part of your profession, you see and feel that people do not give to causes but to people who live for causes.

And that's why I Continue to Give to Greenpeace.

When I was invited to join the 4th Annual Trail Run in Baguio as volunteer, I called up Abi Jabines immediately and said yes to this opportunity. It was the perfect time to immerse myself with Greenpeace (GP) -- to give not just my PhP150 every month through my account, but to actually give my time, talent and trust to the organization.

This will never be possible without my friends who are committed to this cause.

I saw them in action in Baguio and was impressed. From their looks of persistence (considering they were tired and hungry) as they were setting up their exhibit and their level of enthusiasm as they talk to walking strangers. Their Direct Dialogue Campaign in SM Baguio was embraced by locals, gathering 33 sign-ups, exceeding their target of 20 sign-ups that day.

Yup, Greenpeace's greatest assets are its People.

I am more than proud that I am one of its Supporter-Volunteer.

Wake Up and Smell the (Solar-Made) Coffee by Pau Tapay

A little past 6 in the morning in a small booth in the Tiendesitas shopping area, the heavenly smell of coffee began to waft in the morning air. A few more seconds, and a large crowd of people had already gathered around the Solar Café eagerly awaiting their cup of coffee. And it wasn’t ordinary coffee, mind you. It was coffee made using solar-powered coffee makers, which explained why there were solar panels to the side of the booth.

Serving coffee seemed pretty simple at first. (Or at least way easier than biking until you’re dead tired, especially for someone like me, who doesn’t know the first thing about riding a bike.) Precious, KT and I were pretty confident we could handle everything. After all, how hard could pouring and brewing coffee be? Pretty hard, it turns out. What we weren’t expecting was the size of the crowd. As we served coffee to bikers of all ages, police officers, journalists, and so on, we realized that the crowd was in no way thinning out. Of course, while it got somewhat crazy (imagine lots of people deprived of their much-needed caffeine), it was also nice to see that the people weren’t just after the coffee. They were also asking questions about the solar panels, which conveniently gave us the perfect opening for talking about climate change and clean energy. And I would like to think that they left with more than just a cup of coffee.

The Tour of the Fireflies Experience by Bernice Ejercito

For the first time in years, I actually did something to celebrate Earth Day. I joined the Tour of the Fireflies: a 50km bike ride to promote clean air and as a member of SolarGeneration, clean energy as well. A newbie of SolarGeneration, that was the first activity I took part of, I was even so excited I couldn’t sleep the night before. Nonetheless, I woke up early the next day to make it to the event on time. When I arrived at Tiendesitas, hundreds of people were already there for registration and, of course, SolarGeneration and Greenpeace groups were early too, to set up the Solar Café. On that day, hundreds of cups of coffee and stickers were given away thanks to volunteers, including me, who patiently distributed and brewed coffee using the solar powered coffee brewer.

About an hour later the actual bike ride began. I think almost a million people participated in this event and roads were actually packed full of them [bikers]. The tour itself was exhausting and the heat was deadly but thanks to my bike buddies Mac and Maricar [GPSEA Philippines volunteers], I eventually made it to the finish line.

Back in Tiendesitas, members of SolarGeneration [Manila] were continuously having petitions signed to promote clean energy [for ADB to stop funding coal projects]. What’s amazing about this is that people from all ages actually get together to fight for a common goal like RG [fellow SG Manila member] who is only 15 and what’s great about it is that the youth seem to be getting more and more aware and involved with issues regarding the environment. Tired and exhausted, I sat down to lunch with my fellow SolarGeneration and Greenpeace volunteers and realized that despite the heat, the exhausting bike ride, and all the hard work put into the coffee and petitions, it was worth it because I got to meet new people, had so much fun and was even able to help save the earth in my own little way.

ADB Annual General Meeting 2006

It's around 2am now and everybody has just went to sleep. It has been a very busy day but I just had to write about the exciting things that happened today! Before narrating today's (or yesterday's) events, let me introduce myself. I am Denise, a SolarGeneration member from the Philippines who has gone all the way here, in India, to bear witness to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)'s shortcomings when it comes to combatting climate change.

Today is the first day of the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of ADB and everyone was really swamped with tons of responsibilities. I was supposed to join fellow SolarGeneration members in drafting our declaration and in practicing for our public presentation but I had to go with some of the Greenpeace representatives to Hyderabad International Convention Centre (HICC) to help out with the Impacts Exhibition. It was quite a challenge because Samir (one of two GP India Actions Coordinators) and I had to go back to the hotel to get some additional materials. Well, I was able to get through with that and put up the exhibit with the help of Sri (GP India Energy Campaigner) and Red (GPSEA Energy Campaigner). And, yes, the exhibit really had an impact. I had the ADB NGO Coordinator Bart Edes suggesting that I put up greener pictures instead, those that could probably show ADB's good green projects. I just managed to give a smile then went on to finish putting up the exhibit.

After the exhibit, I luckily spotted Fa (SolarGen coordinator in Thailand) and we went on to meet with other SolarGen members Cheng from China and Harshini from India. Earlier in the day, Fa, together with community leaders in Thailand and other Greenpeace campaigners, went to meet with the ADB President and gave the bank president a bowl of coal to bring to him the message that coal power plants in Thailand are doing no good to the people and there is no way to go but to stop funding coal projects and put the dough into renewables instead.

At around 430pm, we went to listen to Red's speech at the Regional Integration and Natural Resource Impacts Seminar and witnessed how one of ADB's top officials easily dismissed Greenpeace's demands to ADB to re-direct funds to renewable energy projects. He said that renewables is not as least cost-effective as it is thought to be and that there will always be losers and winners. It's a food for thought, really. How a man of influence could easily say that just completely baffles me.

But what could be more baffling (or surprising) than Greenpeace's sudden beaming of climate change messages to the people of Andhra Pradesh and to the ADB delegates? After Red's talk, we went to the ADB's hosted dinner to give the people a reminder that climate change is happening now and that there should be no time wasted in fighting it. Jasper (GP Southeast Asia Philippines Energy Campaigner), Maia (GP International Campaign Assistant), Inaki and Samir took care of projecting the images on the white wall of a hotel near the hosted dinner's venue while the rest of us went to the dinner to get people to look at the beamed messages. The beaming was right on cue! When the cultural presentation finished, there was a pause and suddenly you find people turning their heads to look at beamed messages such as "CLIMATE CHANGE: THE PARTY IS OVER" and "ADB: STOP FUNDING COAL NOW!"

Cheng initially didn't plan on going (because she had to do last-minute shopping for the next day's events) but admitted on the way home that she was glad she went to the beaming instead. The experience was inspiring and rejuvenating and it suddenly had Cheng, Marc, and I plan more activities to have our presence felt and our message reach across to the higher ups of ADB. At the end of the day, I couldn't help but say to myself, "This is good weariness, one that gives you more energy to look forward to the days to come."

And I sure hope that all of you will also look forward to the days to come because we have planned great activities that'll surely blow "coal ashes" away.