Dana Isabelle A.

Alfaro
1BSA BLOCK 7 Reflection Paper About the Symposium of Ecological and Environmental Awareness
“We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children.”
- Chief Seattle

We are running out of time. The glaciers are melting and in contrast the temperature in various
countries are constantly rising, the number of endangered species are increasing, and we are experiencing
shortage in acquisition of essential resources. To sum it all up, every single thing that has been happening have
resulted to a sick and deteriorating world, the Earth that was once so pure, perfect, and beautiful had been
neglected and taken for granted, by us humans whom instead of being responsible stewards of the
environment have become the destroyers of it as well.
The Symposium which was held last Saturday, on September 22, 2018 at the WU-P Gymnasium and
was led by an immensely honorable speaker, Dr. Michael Fronda revealed a lot about certain truths, tackled
relevant and timely issues about the environment, and opened a lot of possibilities on how we can all help
hand in hand, even in small but significant ways, in terms of restoring and rediscovering the beauty of our
Mother Earth.
Frankly, I am actually lost for words. I do not know exactly how I should properly express my guilt, rage,
longing and sadness at the same time because admit it or not, human-beings have played and is still playing a
notable role in the gradual ruination of our planet. I have realized that while we are too busy living and coping
up with our lives, we forgot to notice that our environment needs attention too, and that it is seeking for our
help and action for the longest time. Despite of that, I would like to still look at the brighter side and think
positively, while it is true that our time is ticking, there is still hope remaining that as long as we have faith, as
long as we believe that through repentance, commitment, and sincere actions, it is still possible to bring back
the glamour of our mother nature.
Through the open-forum during the symposium, a lot of ideas and brilliant plans have come to light
due to my fellow students, their willingness and urge to help the environment have resulted to a movement
that will soon create a big impact not just in our University but most importantly, in the world as well. But then
a realization had hit me during the discussion and it made me reflect about the fact that no matter how hard
we try to come up with various projects, plans, and steps that concerns the restoration of our surroundings,
we can never achieve our desired end goal if we are not going to start from ourselves. Our plans will be
meaningless and pointless if we still cannot learn the eminence of self-awareness, discipline, responsibility,
and selflessness.
As I have mentioned, The Earth is seeking for help, it is asking us humans that at this critical point of
time, It is our turn to give back from what our world had given and sacrificed for us, it is the time to wake up
and realize that we have a duty and commitment of taking good care of what our Lord God have provided us
with. Moreover, unity and harmony are what we need to implement first, I strongly believe that in this global
crisis, it is only right and just for us to come and unite together as a solid team who is much willing and is brave
enough to fight for what’s left and to enrich and nurture what can still be saved. For now, let us forget about
our personal intentions, let us stop blaming one another for a problem that we are all responsible for, and let
us relinquish our personal greed because through that, there is already a glint of hope peeking for our future
generation.
To end my reflection, I sincerely hope and wish that instead of just reflecting about what each and
everyone of us have learned through the symposium, let us all apply it in our daily lives as well. And as for me,
I will always live by the quote “The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.” By
Robert Swan. And I will forever uphold and remember what Neil Armstrong have said, “That’s one small step
for a man, one giant leap for mankind.”. In order to help the environment, the greatest change should begin
with ourselves first, people.
Dana Isabelle A. Alfaro
1BSA BLOCK 7 Reflection Paper About the Symposium of Ecological and Environmental Awareness
“We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children.”
- Chief Seattle

We are running out of time. The glaciers are melting and in contrast the temperature in various
countries are constantly rising, the number of endangered species are increasing, and we are experiencing
shortage in acquisition of essential resources. To sum it all up, every single thing that has been happening have
resulted to a sick and deteriorating world, the Earth that was once so pure, perfect, and beautiful had been
neglected and taken for granted, by us humans whom instead of being responsible stewards of the
environment have become the destroyers of it as well.
The Symposium which was held last Saturday, on September 22, 2018 at the WU-P Gymnasium and
was led by an immensely honorable speaker, Dr. Michael Fronda revealed a lot about certain truths, tackled
relevant and timely issues about the environment, and opened a lot of possibilities on how we can all help
hand in hand, even in small but significant ways, in terms of restoring and rediscovering the beauty of our
Mother Earth.
Frankly, I am actually lost for words. I do not know exactly how I should properly express my guilt, rage,
longing and sadness at the same time because admit it or not, human-beings have played and is still playing a
notable role in the gradual ruination of our planet. I have realized that while we are too busy living and coping
up with our lives, we forgot to notice that our environment needs attention too, and that it is seeking for our
help and action for the longest time. Despite of that, I would like to still look at the brighter side and think
positively, while it is true that our time is ticking, there is still hope remaining that as long as we have faith, as
long as we believe that through repentance, commitment, and sincere actions, it is still possible to bring back
the glamour of our mother nature.
Through the open-forum during the symposium, a lot of ideas and brilliant plans have come to light
due to my fellow students, their willingness and urge to help the environment have resulted to a movement
that will soon create a big impact not just in our University but most importantly, in the world as well. But then
a realization had hit me during the discussion and it made me reflect about the fact that no matter how hard
we try to come up with various projects, plans, and steps that concerns the restoration of our surroundings,
we can never achieve our desired end goal if we are not going to start from ourselves.
As I have mentioned, The Earth is seeking for help, it is asking us humans that at this critical point of
time, It is our turn to give back from what our world had given and sacrificed for us, it is the time to wake up
and realize that we have a duty and commitment of taking good care of what our Lord God have provided us
with. Moreover, unity and harmony are what we need to implement first, I strongly believe that in this global
crisis, it is only right and just for us to come and unite together as a solid team who is much willing and is brave
enough to fight for what’s left and to enrich and nurture what can still be saved.
To end my reflection, I sincerely hope and wish that instead of just reflecting about what each and
everyone of us have learned through the symposium, let us all apply it in our daily lives as well. And as for me,
I will always live by the quote “The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.” By
Robert Swan. And I will forever uphold and remember what Neil Armstrong have said, “That’s one small step
for a man, one giant leap for mankind.”. In order to help the environment, the greatest change should begin
with ourselves first, people.