Sad picture that tells something about us as a people

We take great pride  as Filipinos in achieving world class feats like winning international titles for beauty or brawn. Some of us proudly note that we are among the cleanest people in the world with the habit of frequently taking baths even in the coldest weather. Yet we mindlessly throw away our trash right where we stand as if we take our whole country as nothing more than a big garbage dump.
There must be something wrong with us if we have to put up a sign like this.

 But who will take responsibility for addressing the problem?

Terracing the mountains

Although the rice terraces are supposed to be an ancient achievement of early settlers in the Philippines, the process of terracing the mountains have not really stopped. This I realized when I visited a vegetable farm along the mountain trail in Atok, Benguet.

It is not rice that is being grown here however but vegetables like potatoes and cabbage . What I found troublesome however is the reliance of modern terrace builders on chemicals such as weedicide to help them clean up land faster.

This is one reason why even though vegetables are aplenty in this place, I am wary about consuming a lot of them. Someone even said that at times, you can even taste the pesticide in the vegetables even if they are thoroughly washed.

Hopefully, farmers here can go organic one day.

The Incredible Anti Dengue Invention

Am I the only one who suspect that this vaunted invention of the Department of Science and Technology is a hoax? Even President Aquino was made to claim its success twice in his State of the Nation Address yet the problem of dengue remains.

I tried to talk with some people who had a chance to utilize this contraption and asked them if they found it effective. However the answer I got was that they have no sufficient data to make a conclusion. A barangay chairperson even told me that it was useless.

In any invention, there is supposed to be a key technology that is at the heart of the such an invention. This ovitrap/larvaecide contraption has no such thing. True the idea behind it is that it will attract mosquitoes to lay egg on its larvicide laden container thereby killing the mosquito eggs but this method does not seem to be better than swatting a mosquito with an electric swatter.

Yet someone is now selling this "invention". I hope someone can get to have a closer look at this affair. Something smells fishy here.

Saying thanks thru Lantern of Nations

The Philippines has a unique Christmas symbol in the parols, so this Christmas, in the wake of the catastrophic visit of typhoon Yolanda/Haian, I just thought that it would be a good and decent gesture to say thank you to the countries that came to our aid by putting up parols in grateful recognition of their help. These parols can be called Parol ng Pasasalamat or Lantern of Nations and can even be the start of an annual tradition as a celebration of gratitude to our intenational friends.

Sablan silk farmer

(In photo, Ms Ambes tending to her silk worms)

My interest was to find out how government is helping people in their livelihood to raise their income and improve their quality of life. So when I was invited by Ms. Fe Donato, field extension officer of the Fiber Industry Development Authority (FIDA) Reg I to visit a silk farmer she assists, I immediately grabbed the chance.

The farm we visited is located in Sablan, Benguet and as in most farms in the province, it is located on the slope of a mountain. Fortunately it was not hard to reach.

The farm is owned by the Ambes couple. It turned out that they are the only ones now continuing with silk farming in Sablan after most of those who tried it gave up. They were initially formed as a cooperative but because there were many problems encountered by the members, mostly sourcing mulberry leaves to feed the worms, all of them gave up. The Ambes were fortunate that they have a piece of land to grow their own mulberry trees and could also source from some nearby places. Their farm being situated on a steep slope, they also did not have much choice and so it was also by force that they had  to make a go of it.

(Photo: Mulberry trees just harvested for its leaves)

With a potentially big market for silk and its many derivative products, silk farming can be a lucrative activity. However, its promise has yet to be made a reality. Although the Ambeses are able to make a living out of silk rearing, they are far from living a comfortable life. There are many problems to be solved before the industry can take off. In fact, despite the resources spent to support the silk fiber industry, the province has not even been able to reach a production level that will sustain silk cloth production.

 

(In photo: mulberry with red edible fruit)

Where lies the problem? On one hand, I have seen the Ambes couple working hard to do well in their enterprise. I have also seen the dedication of Ms. Donato as field extension officer in supporting the farmers. What can the farmers do to improve their productivity further? What other help can the government do beyond what it does now?

I just visited this farm for a day so I will not dare give an answer. 

Hopefully though, in the future, people involved in this activity can  manage to have a truly thriving silk industry.

  (In photo: Ms. Fe Donato of FIDA Reg I, Ms. Agustina Ambes and Mr. Ed Ambes in front of their silk rearing house)

Toilet talk

Government has at least a responsibility to guarantee the essentials of life like clean air, safe water, food, shelter and even the facilities for answering the call of nature.

In the last instance however, most of the time, our government has been remiss in this duty and left this task to private initiative. Thus pay toilets have sprouted in many public places.

But what if there are people who can not pay to use these facilities? And is it really necessary to spell out what use people will get into the toilet for?

This places make me strangely sad as I feel it does not speak well about the kind of our society.

 

Adivay find

At the 2013 Adivay Trade Fair, one of the interesting things I found was this yellow pepper locally known as "Sapuki" featured in the Kibungan booth. Apart from its attention getting name especially for tagalog speakers, the fruits are deceptively beautiful as they are fiery hot.

But I think they have a good commercial potential if only they can be grown widely. They can be used by high end restaurants and can be processed into salsas, sauces and even just as pepper flakes.

Ipo-ipong Dagat

 

(photo taken from internet search)

Although PAGASA warned about the possibility of a storm surge in areas along the path of Typhoon Yolanda, still many people were caught in it because according to some survivors, they did not fully understand what a storm surge is. No less than the mayor of Tacloban City admitted to this ignorance.

In case PAGASA is looking for a local translation for "storm surge" I would suggest "ipo-ipong dagat".

Many people are already familiar with what an ipo-ipo is and its destructive capacity. In effect, a storm surge is actually like an ipo-ipo of water whipped up by the winds of a typhoon. Thus, the term "ipo-ipong" dagat will not just be a term but also a description and people will have no more excuse to say that did nothing or prepared inadequately because they did not fully understand the warning.

Next time PAGASA issues a storm warning, I would also like them to end with the slogan:

"Sa panahon ng climate change, bawal ang tatanga tanga."

The wrath of Yolanda

(photo from internet image search)

It is ironic that typhoon "Yolanda" brought home the reality of climate change to many people by mercilessly destroying their homes. Her message however was not about her fearsome ferocity but that after she left, we can never be the same again.

 Typhoon Yolanda was not just a disruption of our lives. She is the start of a new chapter of living in the time of climate change.

After "Yolanda" we can not go back to the way we were before. We can not do things as we did before. Although the government and the people prepared for her coming, "Yolanda" simply exposed all these preparations as superficial and inadequate.

At the very least Yolanda should jolt us out of our complacency.and force us to rethink the way we deal with nature's wrath. We need a new disaster and post disaster response protocol to guide every one of us from citizens to President.

We need to discard old thinking like the mentality of disaster response as merely a matter of doling out relief goods and disaster victims as being totally helpless. We should consider the potential of disaster survivors not as victims but as first responders who can help the worst affected. What is needed though is a strong ladder of leadership to prevent anarchy and to direct the people's energy. And the leader must have a human face. not a composite of coordinating agencies.When a rung of the ladder is broken, the next higher rung should be ready to immediately take over. Survivors can be mobilized to help clear roads, find and bury the dead, even commandeer available food and material resources around them for orderly distribution. It is unacceptable that looting and anarchy are allowed to happen.

 The military should not just be called to prevent criminality but it should also be tapped to create emergency evacuation camps for disaster refugees where the basic necessities can be found - food, shelter, medical care, communication etc. In the aftermath of a devastating calamity, people need a beacon of authority and order where they can go and regroup when all around them have simply collapsed.

 There are so many other things about the way we think and do things to reconsider, but this can be done maybe at a later time.

Yolanda has shown that climate change is real and it is here. Yet it can not be that only the climate will change. We too should change or perish.

Ang presyo ng pangarap

Sabi nila libre daw ang mangaarap. Pero kung minsan may halaga din ito.P20.

Sa halagang ito, maaari kang umasa at mangarap sa kung ano ang gagawin mo sakaling dumating sa iyo ang limpak limpak na salapi.

Hanggang sa magka bolahan...at bumitaw ka ulit sa panibagong beinte pesos, para muling mangarap.