Earth UST, acronym for Environmental Advocates Reaching Towards Humanity, is the environmental student organization in the University of Santo Tomas. It was formerly known as Haribon UST, a university chapter of The Haribon Foundation, recognized to be one of the oldest environmental NGO in the country.
I was an active member of this organization back in my college days at UST and I owe a huge chunk of who I am today to the ideals and principles advocated by this group. The people I’ve met and the experiences I went through as I was in that organization will always occupy a special place in my heart. So saying NO was a tough place, especially seeing how they exhausted all their good ideas by actually asking me to be their guest speaker, hehehe.
The organization was able to draw a considerable number of new recruits this year and I was actually very glad to see a lot of new faces.
I was asked to do sort of a motivational speech for the new blood in the team. The first part actually went pretty well. But about a few minutes into the speech, Frances who was with me that day decided to walk towards the stage and insist that she be by my side as I talked. It got a lot of awws and chuckles from the group, but I sincerely doubt if I was able to effectively get my message across. There was a point where while I was talking, Frances was just playfully circling around me. What a scene-stealer!
Anyway, I tried to simplify what I wanted to say into five bulleted points. So if you were there and you were as distracted as I am by the cute two year old fussing about in front, here’s the summary of what I was actually trying to say:
To the officers and members of Earth UST, thanks for having me (and for being patient with my can't stay put in one place daughter!) Seeing our work perpetually in motion is really inspiring! I hope to see you all soon! Padayon!When I got the text message from your very own president to be the guest speaker for this year’s Earth UST General Assembly I asked her what sort of speech do I need to prepare. Her reply was “motivational”, something that would inspire the new blood joining in the organization.
I have spent my best years in college in this very same organization that you are now part of, so it would be really hard to squeeze in all the great stories and inspiring memories I’d had in just one short speech.
I realize that organizations are very dynamic and I don’t know to what extent this organization has changed, but I do know that the basic issues are still there along with the values and principles of environmentalism that will always be our common denominator.
So rather than just tell you stories of people and places that most of you might not yet be able to relate to at this stage, I’ll share with you instead the gems I’ve collected over the years I have been with this organization. We’ll keep it short and simple. So here we go, 5 gems from your Uncle Tek:
Gem number one: YOUR MEMBERSHIP IN THIS ORGANIZATION IS A LIFETIME MEMBERSHIP. How much did you guys pay this year for your membership fee? How much were you all sucked in this time? Believe me, that is such a small price to pay for the valuable life lessons that you will take with you long after you have graduated.
With most university or college wide organizations your membership ends where your first day of being a graduate begins. If you’re a member, you stop attending the activities. If you happen to be an officer, your responsibility is finished. That is not the case with this organization. Consider your stay here as the “orientation period” for the actual membership activity that really starts when you are on your own outside into the real world, either alone or with fellow environmentalists.
If you remember your group dynamics, there are three main reasons why people join organizations or groups: it could be because of the people in the group, the benefits of the groups or the goals of the group.
If you are here because of the people, I have to tell you now that the members of this organization (past and present) are just some of the coolest people I know. The heart they have for what we do is just overwhelming and you will definitely learn a lot from them. If you are here for the benefits, the organization offers an inexhaustible amount of opportunities to learn and gain experiences that will arm you with as you mature in our cause. If you are here for the goals of the group, I can personally assure you that this organization has remained steadfast in the things we believe in. The organization has an extremely proud history and it’s roots run deep. The people and the benefits may change, but the goals will always be the same, reason why our work is really never finished.
Gem number two: LET PEOPLE KNOW YOUR PRINCIPLES. I’ll show you how and why.
First, the “how” part. I heard Danny Ocampo, one of the founding pillars of this organization once say how “action is the celebration of knowledge”. Environmentalism is not a set of rules, a list of do’s and don’ts, it’s a way of life. It’s aligning your lifestyles to the values this organization will share with you. The best way to let people know the things you believe in is to be living examples.
Second is the “why” part. Why am I encouraging you to let people know that you are environmentalist? A few reasons. One, it’s contagious. When people find out who you are they want to find out more about what you believe in. And sooner or later they either adapt what you are doing or become conscious of their own actions. What is the opposite of love? It’s not hate, it’s indifference, and sometimes indifference is caused by ignorance.
The other good thing about letting people know what you believe in is it keeps you consistent, you maintain discipline. People often look up to you, and you strive to become a positive example for the people around you. If we really want to change the world, we have to first change ourselves and let people know how it's possible.
Gem number three: DON’T LOSE HOPE. Environmentalism is hard work, and it’s extremely hard to package most of the times. It’s hard to convince people to roll up their sleeves and get their hands dirty. Plenty are called but few are really chosen, membership is often a sifting process. People will sometimes ridicule you, they’ll taunt you by deliberately littering in front of you just to see how you would react. They’ll debate with you with how cloning is the solution to world hunger and extinction. They’ll call you names like “tree huggers”, “activist freaks”, “green minded”, etc. That’s the reality, it’s been that way even way back when this group was first founded.
Way back when I was president of this org, there were times when I was the one armed bandit for activities. I’ll be the organizer, the logistics point of contact, the planner and the executor. It was tiring and sometimes you just start to question if it’s all worth it. But then after the activity is finished you get that sense of relief, the unexplainable sense of fulfillment and you start to see that flickering fire of hope in the eyes of the people you just had discussions with.
Now, I know you guys came here to UST to learn and become a student first. But I do encourage you, if you have spare time, support this organization in every which way you can. There are lots of committees I am sure, pick one you feel you can be best utilized in and be part of it. This organization is run by people, and the only way to set celebrate our knowledge is through “action”.
Gem number four: LEARN AS MUCH AS YOU CAN. Action is the celebration of knowledge, but if there is no knowledge there is nothing to celebrate now is there. The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference, and the cause of indifference is often times “ignorance”. When I first came to this organization I was already a member of a different environmental group, and I was arrogantly proud to have a good amount of weight under my belt, experience and knowledge wise. I was one of the founding members of the Ecology Club of Muntinlupa and I used to preach environmentalism in slum areas and was tapped by the municipality of Muntinlupa to be a resource person in school symposiums on basic topics like global warming and the greenhouse effect.
But after I hung out with Gigi and Danny and the rest of the people in the group, it was humbling to know how little I actually knew. As it turned out there were a lot of things I was doing that wasn’t exactly aligned to what environmentalism really is.
Join the basic and advanced environmental discussions, know the basic principles of the environment by heart, these are your foundations and basis for every decision you will soon make.
Join the exposure trips as much you can. See the problem first hand, talk to fishermen, farmers, workers, government officials, children and parents of the people you come in contact with during these trips. Don’t be passive. Sponge up as much experience and knowledge, it will give you more perspective and even a better understanding of the issues we are focusing on.
Never be contented with what you know. Know the issue, take a stand, and share what you know. Hang out with older members of this group. This organization has an extremely strong root. Your alumni and your officers, and people like Gigi, Teban, Danny, Paeng, Rey, Anne, Bitay, Ting, Ken... these people have been through a lot and have dedicated a significant amount of time and effort to our cause. Their passion is unquestionable, and as I’ve said, you will learn a lot from them.
Allow this organization to positively change you. I tell you in all honesty, I will not be the person I am today if not for this organization. There are people who joined this organization empty and came out overflowing and spilling with knowledge, passion and commitment.
And lastly, gem number five. HAVE FUN! Environmentalism is indeed hard work, but it’s also fun! The best times of my college life were spent in this organization. One of the regrets I had when I was still here in UST was not having applied for membership during my freshmen years. I lost one year’s worth of fun and experiences that I can never bring back. So I am encouraging you, while the opportunity is still there, make the most out of your stay. Try to have as much fun as you can while making the times you’ve spent in this organization count. The people who’ve been with this organization all have their own fun and memorable stories to tell, it’s now your turn to build on yours.
In closing, I want you all to realize how noble our cause is. When this organization was still with the foundation, we had a saying that we do not inherit the Earth from our fathers, we borrow it from our children. The goals we have are unselfish and the work is never truly finished. We may not live to see the environment as we envision it to be in our lifetime, but we are constantly working towards it.