A Reflection by Cyrus Parallag
The main goal of the PBL produced by the CLE, Science, Math and Computer Department is to have a safe, strong and sustainable San Juan City. Students first have to perform a field study and research on San Juan to measure and observe the biodiversity of the chosen barangay and be able to find out the obstacles of the city in reaching a strong, safe and sustainable environment. The students will then have to create their own advocacy campaign in order to break down the obstacle and attain the goal. In achieving the goal of a strong, safe, and sustainable San Juan City, I had a first-hand experience to go to a barangay in San Juan City and discover their biodiversity to be able to construct an advocacy campaign.
I had insufficient knowledge of how to promote a safe, strong, and sustainable city. When we were given the task to go to a barangay and do some research, I was quite anxious because I had little idea on what we should do. I felt like we were briefed on the PBL for a short time only so I had to clarify with the teachers on what to do. Fortunately, I understood what we were supposed to do after the discussions of each subject and through the explanations of teachers. I became aware of myself and how I felt, therefore, I had a better understanding of the different situations in my life. I prepared myself through researching before the task. I also felt excited because we get to do a field study which is a memorable experience for me. We were able to talk to a barangay official in Sta. Lucia and did our quadrat sampling which I experienced for the first time. I experienced a sense of consolation because I became thankful to God for leading me to partake in a fruitful activity and to understand the environmental problems of others to solve them with the PBL.
I was assigned to Barangay Sta. Lucia together with my group mates for this PBL. When we went to the Barangay, we noticed the city was really clumped because of the passageway going to the barangay hall was really narrow. I believe this was not a prudent decision made by the members of the Government. Prudence is when we apply moral principles to concrete situations. In layman’s terms, it is when we are judging which is the more virtuous decision or choice to take in a given situation. In the Barangay, they did not have the foresight in their prudential judgment. With foresight, we should be able to “look ahead” for us to see the possible consequences. They did not have the foresight because the consequence is happening now and it could have been avoided if they had a city planning before. They are also taking up too much space for plants to grow therefore less air is being regulated.
Another observation we found as a group is that the streets are clean because there are not many liters found on the floor. I think that the goods they were trying to weigh in are allowing street sweepers to clean up the streets and have a garbage truck collectors to make it more efficient. I believe that these goods have affected the present condition of the Barangay because having street sweepers and garbage truck collectors because they clean up litters and prevent polluting the environment which can help the Barangay to be strong, safe and sustainable.
During the field study, I experienced a dominant feeling of being somewhat frustrated because for a moment we realized that we were running out of time and we were unsure any other pieces of information we would need. I felt like we were not prepared well, therefore, I was frustrated for a short time. We were quite impulsive and so we were not able to collect some data. I should have recognized my feelings so that I will not be impulsive with my actions and decisions.
In making a strong, safe, and sustainable San Juan City, my advocacy campaign is SustainUPble San Juan. This advocacy is all about vertical gardening because the problem we encountered is the presence of buildings. In the I-Tree Canopy data of the group, more than 50% of the land in Sta. Lucia consists of buildings. The buildings lessen the space available for the plants to grow healthily and creates a carrying capacity due to the decrease of land. Due to the decline in green spaces within the ecosystem, the air is polluted because the plants are the main regulators of air in the environment. Vertical gardening is a great solution to this problem and will impact the lives of everyone in the barangay because it will add more plant species instead of needing more land area for green spaces. It will enable the barangay to have plants for less space. The materials used are also recyclable and easy-to-find.
The goods that I was trying to consider while deciding on my advocacy campaign is if I should promote the use of solar panels instead of a non-renewable energy source such as fossil fuel and oil, using vertical gardening, or promoting city planning. It was a tough decision to choose from but through discernment, I was able to align God’s will with my will for the people living in San Juan City. Prudence was also manifested here because it follows the three parts of prudential act especially judgment. Through judgment, I was able to find the most needed solution to the situation and weighed the goods fairly to figure out the best action for the people. The advocacy is then a fruit of prudential judgment for the community of San Juan City.
In conclusion, I experienced a lot of challenges to be able to find a purposeful advocacy but was aided with the right prudence and discernment in my decision-making process for a strong, safe and sustainable San Juan City. In the process of the PBL, my group faced different challenges especially finishing the Science PT. It became difficult for us because we had sleepless days just to finish it. We also had some lacking piece of information thus it became the most challenging moment I had. I helped my group mates a lot during the process especially when my group mates will ask me questions, I will answer right away. I also encouraged them to finish the tasks as soon as possible and update them the things we finished though our Messenger group chat. I think that the most powerful learning moment in my PBL journey is most likely when we went to the barangay and discovered that San Juan is not that biodiverse. It showed me the reality of our environment that is slowly diminishing every moment. I really think that what I learned can still be applied in the future because I can use the PBL as an example of an innovation to help minimize the ecological problem we are experiencing today. I can create more innovations so that everyone living today and the future generations will have a safe, strong, and sustainable place to live in.
KalikaSAN JUAN 