There are countless opportunities to learn about and celebrate LGBTQ+ culture throughout the year. Some of these celebrations are planned by the LGBTQ+ community as a whole, while others are arranged by groups. And I am quite honored to have been asked by PROJECT DYESABEL to attend one of Davao's LGBTQ+ Community events on June 26, 2022, which highlighted the Sama Dilaut Bajao community residing in Matina Aplaya, Davao City.
Formerly known as Ateneo de Davao University Dyesebel, PROJECT DYESABEL has a new moniker. A social and civic club were created in 2018. As they continue to aid and serve our Bajao brothers and sisters, they have become one of the most active non-profit, Bajau- and youth-led organizations in Davao, collaborating with the Badjao community in Matina Aplaya on environmental projects.
Education and Training, Sustainable Livelihood, Research and Innovation, Good Governance, and Culture and Arts are DYESABEL Inc.'s five core advocacy areas. Since 2018, it has undergone three major changes:
- At #WorldEnvironmentDay last June 5, 2018, the founder spotted the Bajaus diving into plastic-filled waters, which inspired the campaign's first makeover on #BeatPlasticPollutionDay. "Project Dyesable" intends to provide the kids (Php 10 each) dyes in exchange for them picking up garbage at the sea so that they might be able to do their part to protect our environment. Symbolically, their gesture is similar to that of the Filipino mermaid "Dyesabel" from a well-known Philippine television series.
- During the second change, they learned that paying kids to pick up trashes is a band-aid approach to a systemic problem. Dysabel is a Bajau mermaid that took on human form in order to spread awareness about the degradation of our oceans. A storytelling session for children and a discussion with their parents/grandparents were used to enhance our educational initiatives in coastal areas.
- For this reason, they chose to co-create the organization as a Bajau and youth-led organization so that our marine indigenous peoples "Sama Dilaut," or Bajaus, as well as the young, could engage and lead efforts to mainstream inclusivity in conservation activities. Last April 2021, DYESABEL Inc. became an SEC-registered company.
𝗺𝘂𝗦𝗘𝗔𝗸𝗮𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟮: 𝗙𝗢𝗨𝗥 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗲𝘁
Last June 26, Project Dyesabel held an event called muSEAkahan 2022: FOUR the PEOPLE and the PLANET to commemorate their fourth anniversary of founding and to raise money for community members who have been forced to leave their homes due to coastal road construction, while also promoting the organization's core mission of assisting the Sama Dilaut Bajao Community.
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| Sama Dilaut Bajao Community together with the Project Dyesabel Organizer |
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| Some of the CULTURED PEARL for sale during the event |
A music concert was held in order to show support for the Bajao community. After two years of only holding the celebration online, they decided that they wanted this year's event to be more interactive and exciting than the previous two. To do this, they asked stars from Davao to perform in front of real audiences while holding an online live streaming event at the same time.
At the event, local businesses were given support, and Sama-Bajau goods and ways of making a living were displayed for the duration of the whole day. In the evening, as part of the socialization process, there are special concerts put on by local artists from Davao.
The following are some of the more memorable photos that I was able to photograph.
A Facebook Live Stream of the concert was also made available for those who were not able to attend the performance in person. But the outpouring of funds they receive from those who support their advocacy after the event is what really counts to them.
THE ADVOCACY
For a variety of reasons, it is critical to look for a cause that is meaningful to you and to contribute some of your time to that cause. Spending time in your community helping others is an excellent way to broaden your understanding of the world. You can gain a tremendous amount of knowledge about the workings of the world if you enlist the assistance of a community as well as a group of people who share your values. When you help other people, it gives you a sense of purpose that can frequently be carried over into other aspects of your life.
It is also very important for the general health of the neighborhood that you live in! Without the dedication of volunteers, many of the services and activities that are available in our communities, which we frequently take for granted, would not be feasible. It is a worthwhile attempt to give back to those in the community who are less fortunate by helping at local shelters or food banks. If you give something back to the community, you might be able to help bridge some of the social, economic, and political divisions that exist in your area.
Giving back to the community is a great way to get to know your neighbors and the other people that live in your area on a deeper level. When you volunteer, you get the opportunity to interact with a diverse range of people. By collaborating with other individuals who have the same interest as you do in enhancing the quality of the environment, you'll have the opportunity to broaden your social circle. It will also give you a better insight into the lives of the people who reside in your neighborhood, which is a nice bonus. To be a good citizen, you need to have a mind that is willing to be changed and a broad base of experience from which to draw.
There is a dizzying array of worthy endeavors that are looking for people to donate their time and energy to support them. No matter what your passions are, participating in volunteer work presents an excellent opportunity to contribute something back to the community. Community centers can be found in a variety of towns and cities across the country. These centers provide residents with opportunities to give back to the communities in which they live. You can also look for opportunities to help on the Facebook page that is dedicated to Project Dyesabel. It is possible to make a huge difference in the lives of others around you by volunteering as little as a few hours of your time each month.
To live in harmony with nature, Project Dyesabel promotes sustainable management of our natural resources as the top priority for a sustainable lifestyle.
Plastics make up the majority of the garbage and marine debris that is found in our oceans and along our shores. This problem occurs on an annual basis and results in tons of waste and damage. Plastics pose a significant threat to marine life, and they are responsible for the deaths of birds, turtles, whales, and an incredible number of fish in our ocean. This debris in the ocean is a major contributor to pollution, which has a negative impact not only on human health but also on the health of marine life and the economies of coastal communities. By collecting trash that has washed up on shore and that has been left by visitors, this coastal clean-up program encourages everyone to come to our beaches and help limit this problem.
The fact that CLIMATE CHANGE has emerged as a topic of intense interest in modern times, particularly across all forms of social media, my mind jumped to the question of whether or not the programs and campaigns to clean up the coast were successful. After a long pause, I started by saying that the ocean is an important part of our lives and that water covers about 70% of the earth's surface.
The ocean is a very important factor in the fight against climate change. Almost half of the carbon dioxide (CO2) that is made when fossil fuels are burned is taken up by the ocean. This is because the ocean is one of the best natural places to store carbon. The contamination of the ocean is a significant contributor to the problems facing it today. It is not a myth. Wastes such as plastics, chemical runoffs, crude oil, and other potentially harmful substances are dumped, pumped, spilt, and leaked into bodies of water. Some of them are even removed when we do the laundry.
Plastic pollution is prevalent in areas where the local waste management techniques are ineffective and where there is a considerable quantity of improperly managed waste that has the potential to infiltrate rivers and the ocean. Both of these things may be seen in the biggest cities in our country.
For this reason, Project Dyesabel has come up with this advocacy to help aid in the cleansing of our coastal areas and plant trees for the improvement of the environment. The first step in taking action to create a cleaner and more sustainable world is realizing that marine pollution is a problem that has to be addressed. The next stage is to actually put anything into motion. We need to immediately start cleaning up our coastlines and we have to stop putting rubbish into the water. These are two essential steps that need to be taken. One of the many things that can be done to preserve the ocean is to participate in pollution prevention and reduction efforts by cleaning up coastal areas.
It is a wonderful opportunity for everyone to participate. A coastal cleanup is an outdoor activity that welcomes participants of all ages, including schoolchildren, teenagers, adults working in government or the commercial sector, and concerned individuals. To put it more succinctly, it is a community-based action that can be done on a regular basis to clear rubbish and debris with the purpose of making the planet better and healthier. Trash is removed and collected by our team in order to make coastal areas a more pleasant location for everyone. Cleaning up the beaches is good for the environment because it makes sure that none of the trash there is harmful to the marine life.
GIVING BACK TO THE COMMUNITY
Volunteering for a good cause that you believe in is the kind of thing you will never look back on with regret. By taking part in this program, not only will you have the opportunity to enrich your life, but you will also gain knowledge about the people and ideas in your community, which will forever alter the way you look at things. By helping the people in your community, you can gain a better understanding of who you are and where you fit in the world.
For a variety of reasons, it is critical to look for a cause that is meaningful to you and to contribute some of your time to that cause. Spending time in your community helping others is an excellent way to broaden your understanding of the world. You can gain a tremendous amount of knowledge about the workings of the world if you enlist the assistance of a community as well as a group of people who share your values. When you help other people, it gives you a sense of purpose that can frequently be carried over into other aspects of your life.
It is also very important for the general health of the neighborhood that you live in! Without the dedication of volunteers, many of the services and activities that are available in our communities, which we frequently take for granted, would not be feasible. It is a worthwhile attempt to give back to those in the community who are less fortunate by helping at local shelters or food banks. If you give something back to the community, you might be able to help bridge some of the social, economic, and political divisions that exist in your area.
It's a win-win situation for everyone concerned when you give back to the community you live in. It has been established that regular volunteers enjoy better health on both a physical and mental level than those who don't volunteer as often. People who participate in regular volunteer work have a greater likelihood of living longer and enjoying better mental health throughout the course of their lives. In addition to the positive effects on one's health, volunteering can also give one a feeling of purpose. When it comes to the feeling of fulfillment you get from helping others and making a difference in the world, there is nothing else that can compare.
Giving back to the community is a great way to get to know your neighbors and the other people that live in your area on a deeper level. When you volunteer, you get the opportunity to interact with a diverse range of people. By collaborating with other individuals who have the same interest as you do in enhancing the quality of the environment, you'll have the opportunity to broaden your social circle. It will also give you a better insight into the lives of the people who reside in your neighborhood, which is a nice bonus. To be a good citizen, you need to have a mind that is willing to be changed and a broad base of experience from which to draw.
The lessons you pick up from volunteer work go much beyond simple people skills. Helping other people will teach you patience, kindness, and resiliency all at the same time. In addition, you will be presented with a myriad of experiences, such as working with a varied team, that might be of assistance to you in the process of navigating your career path in the foreseeable future. There is a chance that doing volunteer work will help you find a new hobby or interest for yourself.
There is a dizzying array of worthy endeavors that are looking for people to donate their time and energy to support them. No matter what your passions are, participating in volunteer work presents an excellent opportunity to contribute something back to the community. Community centers can be found in a variety of towns and cities across the country. These centers provide residents with opportunities to give back to the communities in which they live. You can also look for opportunities to help on the Facebook page that is dedicated to Project Dyesabel. It is possible to make a huge difference in the lives of others around you by volunteering as little as a few hours of your time each month.
Congratulations to Project Dyesabel! Magsukol!
