It has been a while since I started investing my time to become a catalyst for a greener future for my children and the rest of the children in the whole planet. After the death of my father (2008), I started running and, almost every day, I saw the environment outside and the litter, especially the plastics. I keep on asking myself why such materials are with us along the road, canals, rivers, and ocean. From that time, I did not see any improvement and most of the people just do not care about what they are doing with the plastic litter.
As a runner and organizer, with some followers, I started the “Basura (garbage) Run” in July 2013 in Minglanilla Cebu. We started with few fellow runners: my wife, children and 3 of my fellow runners who are in the same town. We ran around the public oval of Minglanilla Cebu and collected 4 sacks of plastic trash.
“We tried to propose our ideas and the intention to make this advocacy supported by the local government”
As I can see it as a potential community effort that needs to be expanded to different barangays in the town of Minglanilla and even beyond to the different towns/cities around the Philippines. However, the meeting was not successful and we just continued the idea as our own. Fast forward year 2020, the Basura Run reached its peak and has already 67 chapters around the Philippines, featured in TV programs.
January 1st, 2015, I started researching about plastic, how it started, how it is produced and its effects on our environments and on the future.Then I started the advocacy called “5 pieces daily habit”, picking up 5 pieces of plastics every day and posting my action on my Facebook wall and my other social media account, Instagram, and Twitter. This is my personal journey as an anti-plastic advocate. As of this writing, I already picked up almost 14,000 pieces of plastic litters
Exposure to daily routine on the road as a runner and seeing people getting drinking water in thin plastics from the ATM (Automatic Tubig (water) made me think of an idea how to go around this good innovation into a sustainable and environmentally friendly action. Adult people are known for being hardheaded due to the ego and the children being the future, I created in January 1, 2019, “Tumbler of Hope”. The concept is to provide a short education for each child I meet along the road after letting him/her pick up 5 pieces of plastic litter in exchange of a gifts:
A tumbler for 5 plastic litters collected.
It is also a yearly event, in Christmas season, when we climb to mountain barangays (villages) and distribute tumblers with foodstuff to the children we meet along the way with the same concept of educating and picking up plastic litter. These ideas were supported by different people on social media especially our friends in running community even up to one of my friend in America.
Since January 27, 2018 (My first talk about environment), I am called to different schools, universities, companies, and organizations to share a talk for saving mother earth thru my advocacy.
With the desire to be efficient both with my time for advocacy and my family, I was thinking to have a bicycle for me to go and talk and come back home as fast as possible. I posted my plan on my wall and got a message from my follower in Singapore who offered me to sponsor the bicycle. Then another friend gave his mountain bike for only the amount of money I had. It was not on the plan to use this bicycle for another extraordinary event except for short distances in sharing my talks…
The advocacy of Si. Puk or Sikad Pukaw is linked with the 5pcs Daily Habit core group. I am pursuing to send the message that we need to do something for a better future for our children thru avoidance and education about Single-Use Plastic.
Overnight camping was for my wife and I our way of weekly bonding. We explored many mountain peaks inside and outside of Cebu. Most of the people, who are living in the mountain community, do not have any toilets and only depend on the bushes when nature’s call arrives. The absence of toilets is very risky for children and women, during those times when it is already dark, those times when it is raining, and those times of typhoons.
We started talking to a small community in the Barangay about how their trash is anywhere and the need to do some action for them to be tidy and healthy, plus the fact that Barangay services on solid waste cannot reach them. We made a deal together to use the toilet as an exchange for their effort to be educated about plastics, always tidy their places, bring some of their plastic trash to Barangay hall when they are going to towns or for work, and last but not the least to educate their children about the use of plastics. Thus, “Project Toilet” was born.
We started our first project in Minglanilla town. A small community, Sitio Paginpinon, Barangay Mandauang, composed of 13 houses was our first beneficiaries. Four toilets were shared between 3 or 4 families. The next month, we started the 6 toilets in Sitio Butong, Barangay Balirong in the City of Naga, Cebu.
Right now, we have 10 project toilets and we initially have a discussion with a community in Bato, Toledo City before the typhoons Odette came in. We expect to continue this project soon. This project is assisted mainly by Inday’s Kitchen and some of the few people I know online.
I may not be the best person to say that I save Mother-Earth, but at least I am doing something for her…
I invest in caring for our planet thru this journey until now. Seeing people imitating my action in saving Mother Earth has a big impact on me. The journey just started and evolved into other applications like the Basura (garbage) Run, Tumbler of Hope, Sikad.Pukaw (Si.Puk), means Pedaling Awakening and Project Toilet. Cycling became my passion. Now, I am in touch with more groups and helping people through the different advocacies I founded.
Tony Galon is an environmentalist advocate. He is our resource speaker in giving formation to our scholars and parents. His passion to care for Mother Earth and his advocacies for environment continue to inspire and reached out many people not only in the Philippines but also across the globe.
Sister Malou Santos, DW
