Every human differs from one another. All are unique, special, or one of a kind.

That is
the beauty of human and cultural variation in society. But there are still questions we need to
answer: Why human are individually different when we are the same species? And in the
civilization that we live in, what are the reasons we have variations in physical appearance,
behavior, and culture?
There are a variety of reasons for human cultural variations. These reasons are divided into
two different categories: environmental factors and genetic factors. Firstly, the influence of the
environment, such as climate, diseases in the area, availability of nutrients and resources, and
other geographical factors, has influenced the way they live, their culture, social, physical
characteristics, and their behavior. For instance, the Bahay-Kubo, or Nipa hut, is a well-known
indigenous house in the Philippines. Based on the available resources, climate, and geographical
features that Filipinos have, they built houses that are suitable for the environment. Also, another
factor in the variation in our society is the genetic factor. That includes natural selection, genetic
drift, and gene flow. Genes play a huge part in what phenotype or variation of species will
survive or what new variant will exist. One example could be the pre-colonial period in the
Philippines, there was a tribe named Aeta, Ita, or Ati. Early Filipino people from the tribe are
known for their black skin, black hair, and having relatively little height. But nowadays,
Filipinos are well-known for being morena or moreno, and the dark-skinned Aetas are now fewer
than the morena or moreno skin of Filipinos.
In a nutshell, humans vary because of environmental and genetic factors. We differ from
each other, but we should not discriminate against people because they are different from our
perspective. We should work holistically and harmoniously for the betterment of our society.