63: Juan for Nature, Philippines

Challenger Profile at a Glance

Meet the Juan for Nature team from the Philippines, challengers in the 2020 International Climate Action Challenge! Find out how they are making a difference in their community with everything from Zumba classes and cleanups, to helping create a local materials recovery facility and providing typhoon relief.

Team

#63 – Juan for Nature
90-Day Challenge Goal: Create a community eco-club
Location: Baybay City, Leyte, Philippines
Registered Challenger: Reina Baroto
90-Day Challenge Period: September 1 – November 30, 2020

Impact

Here are some impact highlights from the Juan for Nature team during the 90-day challenge period:

Came together as a new team and grew to 22 members
Held 9 community events with 102 community attendees, including Zumba Fitness outdoor classes, coastal cleanup, cemetery cleanup, MRF construction days, typhoon relief donation drives, and seminars
Built a Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) by collecting unused coconut lumber and bamboo trunks, and purchasing a tin roof from a junk shop
Generated income by selling recyclables to a junk shop: 30 kg of plastic bottles, 8 kg of cartons, 12 kg of cans, and 12 kls of papers from the cleanup drive and MRF
Collected food, clothes, hygiene kits, and other essentials for victims of typhoons and flooding in Luzon
Developed 5 partnerships with Zone 23 Barangay Council, the Zone 23 Sangguniang KabataanZone Youth Council, Youth of Unity, and Tau Gamma Phi/Sigma Triskelion Grand Fraternity, and the International Waste Platform Less Plastic campaign
Increased general awareness of solid waste management in the community
Created a logo and Facebook page

Challenge Experience

Reina had just completed the eco boot camp with SEED4COM and other partners in the Philippines. She learned the importance of developing green mind, green heart, green voice, and green hands. Hearing about the challenge, she decided that creating an eco-club as part of the 2020 International Climate Action Challenge would be the perfect next step.

During the 90-day challenge, the team came together and accomplished a lot. They also encountered many problems and obstacles along the way. “But, the most fulfilling part was in every obstacle,” said Reina, “there was always a way or someone who served as an instrument to make our activities possible.”

Next Steps

Moving forward, the team is planning to continue the initiatives they’ve started. They will continue to look for more partnerships, sponsorship, and volunteers to advocate for the planet with their programs:

Solid Waste Management Program
Clean and Green Program
Educational Program
Organizational Empowerment, Sports and Livelihood Program

Advice

We asked Reina, what is your advice for someone who wants to make an impact? Here’s what she said:

“Trust yourself. You have to be goal-oriented and look for a team. I believe that a few, yet, committed individuals is more than enough to make a change.

“We are Juan for Nature and we are one with nature.”