Fulfilling a campaign promise to contribute to Negros Oriental’s development efforts, presidential candidate and environmentalist Nicanor Perlas has returned to Dumaguete to organize a group that would be a tool for the development of Dumaguete City and Negros Oriental.
The group is called Mission, which is an acronym for Movement of Imaginals for a Sustainable Society thru Implementation, Organization and Networking. While most of the group’s members were backers of Perlas in the 2010 presidential campaign, today’s Mission has expanded its membership base to non-campaign supporters.
“Mission includes all those who have a passion to create a better country and it has an open and inclusive nature,” Perlas said during the organizational meeting last Sept. 4-5 at the MAT building of St. Paul University in Dumaguete.
The more than 40 participants in the organizational meeting were teachers, students, environmentalists, government employees, businessmen, engineers and members of the religious sector.
The workshop was organized by Esther Windler, Arlene Ramas-Uypitching and Leo Mamicpic, Gilbert Uymatiao, Sr. Joseline Lasala and St. Paul University Dumaguete. Mr. Perlas was accompanied here by a social entrepreneur of Mission, Ms. Grace Calleja from Baguio City.
The Dumaguete Mission workshop, which was similar to what Perlas had conducted in Manila, Cebu, Iloilo and Davao, drew on the thoughts, aspirations, experiences and insights of the participants, which provided the impetus to reinforce the Philippine Agenda 21 model for integral sustainable development.
The PA 21 is the country’s blueprint for a sustainable development, which Perlas helped to craft.
To realize this blueprint, Perlas emphasized on the need to relive the positive values and emphasize on key Christian values such as love, peace and respect of the diversity of cultural and religious beliefs. (Gilbert Paul Uymatiao)
- Advertisement -