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THEY
declined to use plastic straws, barely sipped soft
drinks-in-can and had two to three bites of the famed
healthy Pan de Pidro bread.
“We
don’t use straws. They’re not environment-friendly,”
said Jeanne Angeles Harn, this year’s Miss
Philippines-Earth, the more vocal among the group of
beauty titlists who’d won in the Miss Earth Foundation
Inc. They visited BusinessMirror on Monday to spread the
good news on the environment.
In
agreement were 2006 Miss Earth, the 23-year-old Chilean
model Hil Hernandez Escobar, and this year’s winners—Joycie
Nocumura (Miss Philippines-Water), Sarah Katrina Minoza
(Miss Philippines-Fire), and Anna Katrina Bautista (Miss
Philippines Eco-Tourism).
Since
July they’ve been giving lectures on saving the
environment in select public elementary schools
nationwide, for the “I Love My Planet Earth” school tour
under the Miss Earth Foundation Inc. and supported by
the Department of Education (DepEd).
“Once a
week, we visit different schools. We target Grade 2
pupils or those aged eight to 10 years old; those are
the crucial ages for learning,” said Harn.
She
added the lectures they give are not the typical
blackboard-and-chalk thing. They do role-playing,
singing, dancing and even acting. DepEd is responsible
in choosing the schools.
“We have
lots of visual aids. It’s fun and never boring,” said
Hernandez, who arrived in the
Philippines
on September 7. She joined the group in their visits to
126 schools covering Cainta, Rizal, Manila, Pateros,
Makati and Taguig. On Monday they were in P. Zamora
Elementary School in Pasay.
“It’s an
exciting experience. The Filipino school children are
very attentive. When you tell them to keep quiet, they
do,” said Hernandez. In Chile, she’s pursuing a second
college degree, major in commercial engineering.
She
recounted how she campaigned for the preservation of the
environment by making an appeal to businessmen in Chile.
She said, “They are the powerful sector. They control
the economy. The businessmen, the tycoons, they should
start the move in their own backyard. They should reduce
the use of toxic materials.”
The
local beauties agreed and promised to do the same.
“So
we’re appealing to the readers of BusinessMirror. Please
help us in preserving our environment,” said Harn.
They are
scheduled to visit
Parañaque
Elementary School on October 23, Lakeview Elementary
School in Muntinlupa and Moonwalk Elementary School in
Las Piñas City on November 6, and Ma.
Guerrero Fernando
School
in Paco, Manila, on November 20.
The
foundation has also launched a beauty contest titled
Little Earth Angel, which is also in line with the
awareness and education campaign. The search for Miss
Earth 2007 will take place at the UP Diliman Theater on
November 11.
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