DENR National Capital Region held the awarding ceremony for the winners of the Las Piñas-Parañaque Wetland Park (LPPWP) Mobile Photography Contest on Friday, 20 May 2022, at the Wave Activity Center in LPPWP.
Regional Executive Director Jacqueline A. Caancan led the opening ceremony and addressed its guests and participants. She said the activity was organized not only to recognize and award the participants of the mobile photography contest but to celebrate as well the International Day for Biodiversity (IDBD) and the Month of the Ocean (MOO).
MOO is celebrated every month of May by virtue of Pres. Proc. No. 57, issued in 1998. The IDBD, on the other hand, is celebrated every 22nd day of May in keeping with the UN General Assembly resolution commemorating the adoption of the text of Nairobi Final Act of the Conference for the Convention on Biological Diversity Convention on 22 May 1992.
In her message, Director Caancan explained the significance of both the MOO and IDBD. She said that the coastal and marine ecosystems of Manila Bay, as exemplified by the LPPWP, must be protected and restored as they form part of our heritage and environment.
“We need to protect and restore ecosystems and biodiversity as our lives and future depend on the delicate balance of nature”, Director Caancan said. Among the guests are representatives from the office of Senator Cynthia A. Villar; the respective City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENROs) of Las Piñas and Parañaque City; Society for the Conservation of Philippine Wetlands (SCPW); the Wild Bird Club of the Philippines (WBCP); the Toxic and Hazardous Wastes Research, Development, and Extension Center (THWRDEC) of DENR Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau; DENR Central Office; and, One Earth, One Ocean.
Of the fifteen mobile photography finalists, Emman Foronda bagged the top prize for his photo entitled “Invest for the Future”. Albert M. Gali, meanwhile, settled for the second prize with his photo “Planting a Tree is Creating Life”. The third prize was awarded to Froilan C. Robas for his entry entitled “Save our Species”. They received plaques and cash prizes from DENR National Capital Region.
Apart from the announcement of winners, a mini talk show on the history and development of LPPWP was also conducted, with Ms. Amy Lecciones of the SCPW and Mr. Mike Lu of the WBCP as guest speakers. Lecciones and Lu talked about how the LPPWP came to be the protected area that we now know.
The program's finale is the opening of the exhibit showcasing all the entries for the mobile photography contest. Director Caancan, Assistant Regional Director for Management Services Manuel Escasura, Lecciones, and Daniel Scheler of One Earth-One Ocean led the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the photo exhibit. Assistant Director Escasura thanked all those who attended and participated in the event. He hoped that more people will participate in the programs, projects, and activities of the DENR National Capital Region in the future. He also encouraged the youth to take on the topic of nature in their venture into mobile photography and help the regional office in its environmental advocacy.
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