ANNAlysis

I once wanted to have a separate blog for my environmental advocacy. I began a Listen to the Eco Tumblr account and lost interest almost immediately. If I kept two separate sites, I’d have little content to post on BOTH this one and Listen to the Eco. Being an advocate is not my alter ego after all, it’s part of who I am, and it’s embedded in my lifestyle.

So today, I’d like to share with you volunteer opportunities for Save Philippine Seas. #segue We’ve been SO lucky to have a dedicated army of sea-tizens. 2013′s looking very busy already, so we’re going to need even more merfolk around the Philippines.

WWW.SAVEPHILIPPINESEAS.COM

The official website of Save Philippine Seas

Bloggers/writers – to cover and document marine-related events and issues

Graphic artists – to create infographics and publicity materials

MONTH OF THE OCEAN (MOO) – May 2013

MOO is an annual program of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources every May. SPS will be the partner organization for nationwide events and programs for MOO 2013.

Project/event assistants – to assist in logistics and volunteer mobilization

Photographers/writers – to document different events

Marketing assistants – to help SPS look for and secure partners and sponsors

PAWIKAN WATCHERS

Pawikan Watchers is a training program through which volunteers from different parts of the Philippines will be trained on the biology and ecology of sea turtles and Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau (PAWB)-approved guidelines for handling sea turtles.

This is exclusive to people who live in areas where sea turtles are known to nest or feed, such as Bataan, Naic, Davao, La Union, and Palawan.

Upon completion of the training course, the volunteers will be given a toolkit to monitor and evaluate marine turtle rehabilitation centers and programs. With the partner facilities, they will be submitting reports to PAWB regularly.

Artists For Nature will be holding an evening of arts and music to support Pawikan Watchers. Three of my favorite things: arts, music, and environment! We hope to see you in Conspiracy on January 19, 2012. I’m gonna get to watch Flying Ipis for the first time! Hi, Deng!

SeaNN (Sea News Network)

SeaNN is an independent reporting network focused on news about Philippine beaches and seas. The Facebook page-based “newscast” is from Monday-Friday at 9-10PM.

Reporters and respondents – preferably based in coastal communities outside of NCR

Becoming a diver/snorkeler has its good and bad sides. Some divers/snorkelers become “ambassadors” of the sea and try to protect it by, say, not throwing trash into the water and picking up wastes seen below. They volunteer for cleanups and other environmental activities. I know people who stopped eating shark’s fin soup after becoming licensed divers too.

But on the other hand, bad divers and snorkelers behavior brings A LOT of destruction. For instance:

Photos taken in Monad Shoal, from ScubaBoard.

I don’t know why an instructor/guide would teach their students/guests that it’s OKAY to kneel, lie down, and trample on corals. The corals quickly turn into sand! Or that it’s OKAY to throw cigarettes into the water. Or that it’s OKAY to feed whale sharks. Or that…

But ah, enough global whining.

As part of Save Philippine Seas’ Blue Tourism campaign, we teamed up with Green Fins Philippines to give some of their publicity materials a makeover. Green Fins is a comprehensive program that encourages dive centers and snorkel operators to work together to reduce their environmental impacts on coral reefs.

We’ve revised some of the text to localize the materials and used images familiar to the Filipino mind. Green Fins is being implemented in several areas around the country, such as El Nido, Puerto Galera, Anilao, and Mactan. I am pleased to inform you that one of the team’s next stops is my current hometown, Malapascua :)

View the complete materials here. Please feel free to use, share, print, and of course, apply!

SPS is always on the lookout for artists. Tweet me @annaoposa or @SavePHSeas if you’re interested to lend us your time and talent!

On October 15, LUSH Handmade Cosmetics will launch the limited edition Anti-Shark Fin Soap for the benefit of Save Philippine Seas (SPS), an independent movement that aims to establish a shark sanctuary in the Visayan Seas.

The Anti-Shark Fin Soap is made of seaweed and sea salt. It is marked with a paper fin on top to highlight the animal’s most distinct feature.

Approximately 70-100 million sharks are killed each year for their meat, oil, cartilage, and fins. Shark fishing is a lucrative industry, fueled by the high demand for shark’s fin soup in many countries. Populations of many shark species have fallen by over 90%.

It is unknown to many that sharks, as the apex of the marine ecosystem, have among the highest levels of toxic mercury found in fish. This can cause male sterility and extensive damage to the nervous system and fetuses.

In addition to its potential health hazards, the high consumption of shark’s fin soup and shark meat has alarming implications to the environment. As the top predators of the sea, sharks play an important role in regulating all the species in the marine ecosystem. The loss of sharks can cause the entire marine ecosystem and biodiversity to collapse.

Shark fishing is being done in coastal areas in the Philippines. The only shark species protected by national law is the whale shark, or butanding.

SPS is gathering an ideal set of champions to make a stand for marine conservation and against the shark finning and fishing industry. SPS invites public participation in this campaign by holding a photo shoot on the day of the launch, October 15, 2012 from 10AM-7PM at the Shangri-La branch of LUSH.

The pictorial will be conducted by SPS. All photos will be digitally edited to have a unifying design. The tagline for this campaign is, “Sharks are friends, not food.”

Supporters are also encouraged to write letters to leaders using the “Sharks are friends, not food” postcards.

Proceeds of LUSH Anti-Shark Fin Soap will go to a shark sanctuary in Cebu, spearheaded by yours truly. SPS has been at the forefront of shark conservation in the Philippines through information and education activities and lobbying for bills that prohibit the fishing of shark and ray species, and sale of their by-products and derivatives.

This campaign is part of LUSH’s global campaign to end shark trade. The Shark Fin Soap has been launched in England, North America, and Hong Kong for the benefit of groups like Shark Savers and Sea Shepherd, non-profit organizations that focus on shark conservation.

I’d like to introduce you to the newest “baby” of Save Philippine Seas and PhilippineBeaches.org: SeaNN (Sea News Network).

Our first collaboration took place a few months back with #LeaveNothingButFootprints. We’ve joined passions once again for an independent reporting network focused on news about Philippine beaches and seas. Our Facebook page-based “newscast” is from Monday-Friday at 9-10PM.

Anyone and everyone who loves the Philippine seas and coasts can actively participate in information dissemination via social media. You’re invited to contribute news, photos, videos, blog posts, etc. via PM. It doesn’t have to be all tragic ha. Baka naman we’ll just keep receiving news about dead sharks and turtles :)) Good news is MOST WELCOME!!!! :)

One topic I’m particularly excited about is the “Heroes of the Sea.” This was inspired by SPS volunteers who are doing extraordinary things in their communities. Every month, SeaNN will feature 1 or 2 individuals who have done something exemplary for the preservation or protection of our seas. They could be of any age, civil status, from anywhere in the Philippines, Pinoy or non-Pinoy, and the ~heroic act~ should have occurred inside the Philippines.

To submit: just send us via private message a short write-up about your hero and what s/he has done, as well as a nice photo of your hero.

Keep the contributions coming!

There is a growing movement to ban plastic bags in the Philippines. Local ordinances have been passed and implemented in cities like Los Baños and Muntinlupa, and soon, Manila. In my alma mater, the UP Shopping Center Center Co-op (a.k.a. supermarket) now charges P2 for every plastic bag, and offers reusable bags for only P12.

We at Save Philippine Seas (SPS) are thrilled about this campaign. A lot of our plastic ends up in the sea, where sea creatures and birds mistake them as food.

Ad from MEDASSET

It’s not just animals that are affected.

Ad from SurfRider.org

In most stores, paper bags have replaced plastic bags, which isn’t necessarily the better option. One ton of paper bags is equivalent to 17 trees and generates five times as much solid waste as plastic because they don’t always end up in good landfills. Paper is also heavier than plastic, so it takes more energy to transport orders.

#segue The most crucial campaign under this plastic-free movement is the BYOB (Bring Your Own Bag/Bayong) habit. To be part of the change we seek, Human Nature and SPS worked closely to design this reusable bag for you when you go shopping. We made sure to include images that are familiar to the Filipino, like the whale shark, turtle, and corals. My personal request was a smiling thresher shark. Hihihi.

This SPSxHN eco tote is a loving reminder that, in Pocahontas’s words, “we are all connected to each other/in a circle/in a hoop that never ends.”

It’s large enough for your weekly trips to the grocery, and light and thin enough to fold and slip in your bag.

I’m getting a few when I drop by the Human Nature headquarters on Commonwealth on Wednesday. Order yours here :)