renjie's posterous

Efren Peñaflorida named CNN Hero of the Year

Efren Peñaflorida of the Philippines was named CNN Hero of the Year 2009 last night, at a gala event taped before an audience of 3,000 people at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood.

In his acceptance speech, Peñaflorida acknowledged the work that his co-volunteers put into the Dynamic Teen Company, an organization that provides Filipino youth in slum areas an alternative to gang membership, through education programs. Peñaflorida will receive a $100,000 grant to continue his work with the Dynamic Teen Company.

"Serve, serve well, serve others above yourself and be happy to serve. As I always tell to my co-volunteers ... you are the change that you dream, as I am the change that I dream, and collectively we are the change that this world needs to be. Mabuhay."

Sincere congratulations to Peñaflorida, as well as to everyone who made it to the CNN Heroes top 10 from an initial pool of more than 9,000 viewer nominations.

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A Return to the Philippines

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(The above photos are courtesy of my friend Dyan Pascual, Boston: The Big Picture, Flickr, BBC and the Definitely Filipino group on Facebook)

I came across the first picture in the above photo gallery a couple of weeks ago when my friend Dyan Pascual in the Philippines posted it on Facebook in the direct aftermath of Typhoon Ketsana (also known as Ondoy in the Philippines). And since then, I have not been able to stop thinking about what happened to the little boy attempting to float in a bucket in the flooded waters.

In case you missed it, the Philippines was hit by Typhoon Ketsana towards the end of September, and no sooner had the rains cleared leaving a warpath of large flooded areas, destroyed homes, thousands stranded, hundreds dead and millions of dollars worth of damage, did Typhoon Parma make its way to the Philippines shortly thereafter. Entire villages were flooded triggering deadly landslides, the worst it has ever been in the Philippines in over forty years. In total, over 600 people have been killed and according to government officials, an estimated 300,000 people remain displaced or in shelters. It seems that in the weeks following the floods, fears of water-borne diseases are growing due to the stagnant, rancid and infested water left behind.

The use of social media tools such as Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and Youtube played a big role in keeping communication lines open, as communication by telephone was rendered impossible due to the floods. Google has set up a resource page for the victims of Typhoon Ketsana, and students from Ateneo de Manila University have set up a Wiki allowing people to post information on missing persons as well. Suffice to say, social media has played a critical role in documenting the impact and extent of the floods and landslides, as well as helping to rally people together to help their fellow countrymen affected by Mother Nature's fury.

It seems that parts of Asia and the South Pacific were not spared either, as an earthquake rocked Indonesia around the same time period, a tsunami devastated American Samoa, and southern India saw the worst rain and floods in more than a century.

A return to the Philippines. But what would it take?

There is a reason why I decided to write a blog post on the state of calamity in the Philippines. A part of it has to do with the sympathy vote. Of course, if you are moved and are able, please feel free to donate both online as well as in-kind using the resources page listed on Google.

However, a larger part of it has to do with my wrestling with the notion of returning to the Philippines. With the advent of Typhoons Ketsana and Parma in recent weeks, I am beginning to seriously consider taking the leap and moving to the Philippines within the next year or so. And yet, the sticking point always revolves around the notion of impact, and what "good" can I really do for the Philippines when I am there?

I have friends who upon graduating from university in Canada as recently as this past year, decided to move to Hong Kong or mainland China to live and work, as a result of lower costs of living, a surging economy and to pursue opportunities that were simply not found in North America. And many of them were of Chinese descent as well.

Given all of this, the one question that comes to mind when put into context is,

"What would it take for young Filipino graduates/professionals who grew up and studied abroad, to go back to the Philippines to contribute to ensuring a robust economy and a resilient society?"

It certainly may be a lack of perceived opportunities in the country. However, there is the example of Filipino social entrepreneur, Efren Penaflorida, recently recognized by CNN Heroes for his work with Dynamic Teen Company in providing Filipino youth in slum areas an alternative to gang membership through education programs, that has convinced me that there is no shortage of opportunities in the country to make a difference.

On a side note, please take a moment to vote for Efren Penaflorida for the 2009 CNN Hero of the Year

But is making a difference enough? What about the practical and financial aspects of moving to the Philippines?

Sadly, I don't have the answers to the questions posed above just yet. However, I have always imagined what it would be like if my fellow (young) Filipino peers, who lived, grew up and studied abroad as a result of the Filipino Diaspora, and are now young professionals in a wide range of sectors and industries, returned in massive numbers to the country of our parents' homeland.

I know that this is not as simple as it may seem, given the economics of the situation as outlined by Bong Amora in his brilliant blog post on the Filipino Diaspora (the blog post is a bit dated, but still brilliant nonetheless)

I know that there has to be a solution.

Returning to the Philippines.

What would it take? Hmm...

My thoughts and prayers go out to all the victims affected by the natural disasters, not only in the Philippines, but across Asia and the south pacific as well.

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Meeting former Philippine President Fidel Ramos

My family and I were at a closed fundraiser for Gawad Kalinga in Calgary, Alberta last night, where former Philippine President Fidel V. Ramos was the guest of honor. It was organized by Couples for Christ Calgary in association with ANCOP International Canada.

Former President Ramos is currently in Calgary for the next couple of days to raise money and showcase his support for Gawad Kalinga, representing his foundation, the Ramos Peace and Development Foundation. From their website:

The Ramos Peace and Development Foundation, Inc. (RPDEV) serves as a catalyst of constructive change, a medium for fostering unity, stability and progress and a force for mutual understanding.

Our aim is to contribute in bringing about the “good life” for democratic societies through a culture of excellence and global competitiveness.

I am so glad to see that President Ramos has been active in his post-presidency years, and for a person who is currently 81 years old, he still retains, a great spirit of youth and energy, even mentioning at one point in the evening that it is not about how old you are, but how young you feel.

In any case, the political junkie in me was really excited to meet him. Ramos was president of the Philippines as I was growing up (I was too young to remember the people power revolution that overthrew the Marcos regime, and saw President Cory Aquino as the first woman president of the Philippines). For those of you who don't know, the current president of the Philippines is also a woman, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Ramos' keynote speech at dinner was one that focused on Pinoy pride. Speaking mainly in Tagalog, he talked a lot about being proud of who you are, whether you are Filipino, Canadian or even Filipino-Canadian. I never knew this, but Ramos also highlighted the meaning of the Filipino word "Mabuhay", with its significance stemming from "may buhay" or in English, "there is life".

Ramos also acknowledged and extended warm wishes to Canadians on the occasion of Canada Day. Speaking on this topic, Ramos talked about Philippine Independence Day as well, asking the audience when Philippine Independence Day was - with the answer being June 12, 1898 (though not without relevance to Philippine history as noted in this Wikipedia article). Unlike Canada or the United States where independence day celebrations always take place on July 1 and July 4 respectively, Ramos mentioned that lately, Malacañang Palace has misplaced priorities (and has taken them to task) where instead of keeping to tradition and declaring June 12 as a national holiday every year, they declare a national holiday for independence day the Friday on, or around June 12. In other words, independence day in the Philippines is technically on June 12, but if it happens to fall on a Thursday, then the following Friday is declared a national holiday in order to make way for the long weekend.

Ramos' point is that you can play with dates with regards to other Philippine national holidays, but when it comes to Philippine Independence Day, it should always be on June 12 to uphold respect for the country, the flag and for those who died in its name.

I am so proud to be Filipino AND Canadian.