2nd EcoTrek Double Treat: Twice the Adventure, Twice the Fun

ON ITS second year, the EcoTrek organized by Team Bundol Mountaineers, in cooperation with Madyaw Alabel Mountaineering Association, brought its participants to two potential tourist spots in the municipality of Alabel -- Atnayan and Basyawan Falls in Barangay Pag-asa.

Aside from bringing books for New Canaan Integrated School, as in the 1st EcoTrek, the mountaineers also signed an environment manifesto.

Here is the full text of the manifesto:

1. We, the participants of the 2nd EcoTrek, advocate Tourism, Education, and, most importantly, Environmental Protection.
2. We encourage the local government, the academic sector, the private sector, and the local community to work together for the protection of the natural resources.
3. We encourage the local government to enact ordinances that will lay out policies concerning the protection of valuable natural resources and potential tourist spots.
4. We push the declaration of Atanayan and Basyawan Falls as PROTECTED AREAS, thereby limiting the detrimental practices in and around these areas and enforcing actions that will preserve the natural state of these gifts from nature.
5. We encourage the local government to capitalize on equipping local farmers with knowledge and resources on sustainable farming, whereby they get to earn better profit from farming without causing much damage to the environment. Furthermore, better roads must be built that will enable farmers to easily transport their produce. With this, they will be encouraged to resort to sustainable farming practices.
6. We encourage local communities to support the national greening program of the government and put up their own nurseries, from which they will source out seedlings for their own tree-growing efforts.
7. We encourage schools around protected areas to strengthen the integration of environmental education into their lessons, and to play an active role in the implementation of greening projects.

Teachers and representatives of the local community also signed the manifesto.

Copies of which will be sent to concerned local government units and agencies for appropriate action.

Participants of the 2nd EcoTrek at Atnayan Falls

Mountaineers at Basyawan Falls

L-R: Ariel Lalisan (President, Team Bundol), Ricardo Pañares, Jr. (Supply Officer, New Canaan IS), Narciso Grafilo IV (President, MAMA), and Romeo Domato (V-Pres. PTA) show the books delivered by the mountaineers.

Children in the local community enjoy watching our slideshow.

Explaining the EcoTrek Manifesto

The 2nd EcoTrek would not have been a big success that it was if not for the people who supported us.

We would like to thank Mayor Corazon Grafilo, Vice Mayor Vic Paul Salarda, Councilors Marivic Flores and Irish Louie Arnado, Engr. Vicente dela Cruz, Brgy. Captain Lente Salway, the teachers at New Canaan Integrated School headed by Mr. Maximo Cabanlit, NCIS PTA President Pedro Salway and Vice-President Romeo Domato  for being instrumental to the success of the event.

A lot of thanks for Madyaw Alabel Mountaineering Association, which has always been our partner.

Our gratitude also goes to SABAYAN (Sarangani Bay Youth Action Network), of which Team Bundol Mountaineers is a member, for helping us promote the activity and to the participating mountaineering groups,Earth Island Outdoor and Environmental Club, Dadiangas Explorers, Calumpang Youth for Empowerment (CALYE), Katribu Botini, Wasalak, Hymnagsikan, PGP SakBu, and members of Kwerdas Band, for making the 2nd EcoTrek an event to remember.