Student winners in environmental sustainability contests announced

THE WINNING poster

Daisy Din Villanueva and Jeff Cordero of Colegio de la Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe won the top prize in the poster-making contest for elementary students to promote environmental sustainability awareness.

The winner in the on-the-spot essay writing contest for high school students was Francine Anne Belen of South Mansfield College.

The winners were announced during the Live Green Conference. The competitions were organized by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), Muntinlupa chapter, with the city government of Muntinlupa, in line with its commitment to promote a “culture of continuous learning” and global innovation and competitiveness.

They were also part of preparations for the coming Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Integration meeting to be held in Manila.

A total of 27 campus journalists and artists from both private and public schools in Muntinlupa joined the contests.

PCCI Muntinlupa president Elvie Sanchez-Quiazon stressed the organization’s commitment “to stir the intellectual creativity of the youth, build their confidence and [make them] strive [for] self-improvement…for global competitiveness.”

She said the youth had the vision and potential to ensure that future generations would continue to have water, materials and other resources needed to protect human health and the environment.

Carla Gabriel, head of the Muntinlupa Scholarship Program in the office of

Mayor Jaime Fresnedi, encouraged participants to empower themselves to contribute to the improvement of air, land and water quality. She outlined the city government’s environmental programs.

At the awards ceremony, resource speakers talked about their experiences in promoting best practices and initiatives to “build green and live green.”

Anna Meloto-Wilk is president of Gandang Kalikasan Inc., maker of the popular and proenvironment brand Human Nature. Emma Imperial, who also discussed solar energy for ecofriendly communities, is chief executive officer of Imperial Homes.

The conference stressed the need to create a greater awareness of sustainable measures to maintain the conditions that would allow humans and nature to coexist in productive harmony.

Environmental protection, it was pointed out, could be achieved by drawing on advances in science and technology to protect human health and the environment. The promotion of innovative green business practices was also underscored.

Initiatives like the Live Green Conference were expected to help achieve the goal of preserving ecosystems, with clean air, safe water, fertile soil and a stable climate, which were critically important to the survival of people, plants and animals.