To give awards and recognition to individuals and institutions that made significant contributions in Visayas and Mindanao, the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation, Inc. (RAFI) created the RAFI Triennial Awards.
These contributions should be shared to the public that’s why RAFI initiated the Triennial Public Exposure and post awards engagement program which was attended by the 10 active members of the Aboitiz Leaders of Excellence (ALEx) who were chosen as Triennial Xchange Delegates, the Triennials Laureates, the students and staff of Ateneo de Davao University and some important individuals.
This event was held in Davao City. Here are some pictures that we took during our stay in Davao.
aerial view of davao
green environment
wide and clean roads
Davao is very famous for its durian. :P
for the last five years, there has been a strict implementation of their Tobacco Regulation Act of 2003
strict implementation of garbage segregation
During the first day of our stay there in Davao, we were divided into three groups, each group had to focus on one area of engagement: Environment, Health, Women and Children. I happen to be part of the Environment group.
Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF)
Our group had the chance to visit the Philippine Eagle Center, the conservation breeding facility of the Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF). There we met Mr. Domingo “Domeng” Tadena, the former deputy director of PEF and a Triennial Laureate.
Mang Domeng is an advocate of education. Born from a poor family, he really did his best to find ways so that he could study: he applied for scholarships and worked until he finished schooling. He can remember back when he was in High School that he would bring his children to class because his wife has to work and no one would be left to look after their children.
With perseverance, determination and trust in God, he has graduated and was able to go to different countries abroad.
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| TheTriennial Delegates and Laureates |
Mang Domeng was the first person to introduce the cooperative artificial insemination, an artificial way of breeding eagles.
An eagle lays only one egg per year. The egg has to be incubated for 56 days and it needs to be turned upside down every 3 hours or else, the egg would be overheated and the fetus might die.
After 14 years of experimenting, an eagle was successfully born. They named it Pag-asa because it is a symbol of hope since for the duration of their experiment, the world did not believe that cooperative artificial insemination was possible. The birth of Pag-asa opened the eyes of certain individuals and organizations which lead them to support PEF. Adoption of eagles is also possible. You may want to read about it HERE.
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| Pag-asa: a symbol of Hope |
Brokenshire Integrated Health Ministries, Inc. (BIHMI)
We also had the chance to visit the hospital of Brokenshire Integrated Health Ministries, Inc. (BIHMI). According to some Davaoenos, it is the cleanest and best hospital in Davao. Not only do they treat poor patients and celebrities equally (as stated in their vision and fifth core value), they also treat all their patients as kings and queens, which makes their hospital not just a hospital but a hospital: a hospital and a hotel.
Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center (MBRLC)
After visiting BIHMI, we proceeded to the Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center (MBRLC) where we were taught about some ways of farming. There, we also interacted with some of the Triennial Laureates. You can read the interviews that we made HERE and HERE.
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| one farming technique |
Learnings and Insights
I have learned many things throughout the three-day event. And these are:
— Everything is connected to everything else
— The Philippine Eagle’s case: Forest degradation is worsening. If there are no more forests, there’ll be no more habitats for the eagles, people in the mountains will lose one source of their food, flooding will be more frequent which can affect the lives and businesses of the people. Everything is inextricably connected.
— Never give up; Stay focused on your goals; Let failures be a gauge for success
— Mang Domeng never gave up. He did not mind what other people said. He stayed focus on his goals and he did not let his failures affect him. Instead, he let these failures be a gauge for success.
— Innovate; do something new
— Pillars of Character and Leadership:
Respect
We have to respect every living thing here on earth, especially ourselves. It is when we respect ourselves that we start respecting others.
Responsibility
We have the responsibility to take good care of the things that God has given to us. If we do something wrong, we have the responsibility to make these things right.
Citizenship
As Filipinos, we should be proud that we are the center of the center of biodiversity in the world. We should also help our fellowmen before helping people from another land like what the workers in BIHMI are doing.
God centeredness
We should put God in our midst and trust him whenever we are in troubles or facing some obstacles like what Mang Domeng and the other Triennial Laureates did.
Humility
Mang Domeng stayed humble despite the awards and recognition that he has received. This tells us that we should stay grounded no matter what achievement we may get.
Fairness
BIHMI treats their patients equally. They do not prioritize celebrities or politicians. Perhaps we could start living this pillar too.
Being a Triennial delegate is really a great experience. I hope RAFI would still organize a program like this next year. :)))
Thanks for reading the post ;))))
