Negros media men are now empowered to face crisis and disaster situations arising in their area.
This after a group of 28 print and broadcast journalists from Negros Oriental and Negros Occidental graduated from a recent Energy Camp for Negros Media, organized by the Energy Development Corp. on May 29-31 at the Southern Negros Geothermal Project site in Valencia town.
The camp was focused on providing experiential learning on disaster response, survival and environmental conservation to its participants.
For two-days, campers were engaged on various physical activities that equipped them with practical knowledge in facing disasters or emergencies.
Dr. Ted Esguerra, EDC’s Disaster and Crisis Team head, demonstrated to the campers some tips on emergency response and survival. He also gave them tips on how to prevent disasters or accidents or how to deal with them in case they happen.
Dr. Esguerra’s main advice to media men was to avoid being victims of disasters and to be always prepared. He said being prepared means knowing the possible hazards in the areas, having a plan for safety when disasters happen, and stocking of food and equipment for evacuation.
Esguerra said he hopes that through the activity, the media will become more active in influencing other people to prepare for crisis situations.
Esguerra also shared some basic defense skills to help journalists protect themselves.
Also part of the Energy Camp were lectures on geothermal energy, and EDC’s programs focused on community development.
An EDC representative discussed the Health, Education, Livelihood and Environment (HELEn) program that addresses the concerns of the host community and the environment.
The media campers also learned about EDC’s BINHI program which is centered on environmental conservation through tree planting activities.
The campers had a tree planting activity where they planted mabolo trees.
For 11 years, EDC has been conducting energy camps for its scholars and employee’s children every summer. This is the first time that the company organized a camp for media practitioners.
“Our aim is to provide the same experiential learning environment to the Negros media who have been covering EDC and the Energy Camp all these years,” said John Arnaldo, EDC vice president for Corporate Affairs. (mbcn/ral/PIA7-NegOr)
