one of the best days of 2015

 

THROWBACK:

14 March 2015

One of my favorite life events...

This is when we came together at the University of the Philippines Amphitheater and joined voices for the music video of a song composed by Gary Granada. While Manong Gary said “awiting mala-harana sa bayan”--- a serenade calling for solidarity in promoting nationalism and genuine change, I told my friends and fam that I'd be a part in the making of "Kundiman Para sa Bayan"

Over a hundred voices, young and old came from members of student organizations, cultural groups, choirs, bands, and music enthusiasts of various professions...

this photogrid is from the blogspot of naquem... that lady in maroon and white, that's me :) 

this official group pic is from Karl Ramirez... 
best day of my life. Thank you LAPIS 

POKING THE SCARS, ONCE MORE.

The Philippines, as several decades ago, aspires to be an upper middle-income country by 2022 as stated in the 2017–2022 Philippine Development Plan.  We have come past that, and it is 2023. We tried to commit to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), whose first goal is to eradicate extreme poverty by 2030. Okay, that is 7 years from now. 

Still, poverty is a main concern, both in rural and urban areas. Although poverty has declined worldwide, progress has still, always been uneven. Then, as extreme poverty, is mainly concentrated in rural areas, it cannot be emphasized any more than it is now that rural development and agricultural productivity growth is very crucial for poverty reduction. 

As it is, poverty cannot be eradicated without addressing the pervasive inequalities in incomes and economic opportunities between and within countries, between rural and urban areas, and between men and women. To be able to reduce inequalities, we need to know where we are in improving access for the poor, basic services, and social protection. And this is not like we are neither aware nor always informed about this. We can check on the following specific areas if we are to move faster in our otherwise almost-elusive dream of poverty alleviation: 

- Monitor the impacts of programs that were made to address the concerns of the most vulnerable households and that they are protected from lifestyle choices that could endanger their health, therefore productivity.

- During calamities or emergencies, responses must be on time, and actions must be proactive, especially requiring local areas with responses using real-time data, along with life-saving aid while supporting people to recover their livelihoods. Improving our resiliency to disasters by investing in mechanisms that reduce the risks is a must.

- While we do so, we should also put Gender-Justice a priority. It can be seen that a lot of women are at the heart of what we do as a country, and programs that aim to build women’s power both in households and firms, local and national must be considered. 

- There is nothing wrong with active citizenship, hence it should always be encouraged. For marginalized sectors - women and young people for example must be allowed and encouraged to exercise their political right to influence decisions that affect their lives and livelihoods.

- There must be constant and consistent presentation and assessment of the implementation of policies and even sharing of best practices to promote to empower the poorest and most vulnerable communities. 

We are dealing with concerns that are almost the same as decades ago--- deteriorating ecosystems, natural resource management that are not sustainable yet, and climate change. Unless these trends are dealt with, the goal of eradicating poverty will remain elusive. Whatever strategies we have that are based on growth and wealth-inequality reduction require both short and long-run horizons. These strategies should always be coupled with what was proven to be effective poverty alleviation programs. The primary struggle here would be a good database so agencies can carry out programs and monitor and evaluate them accordingly. 

How many papers have examined the performance of the country in poverty reduction?  Which of these gave a thorough assessment of the reasons for the recent figures for economic growth, the numerous shocks we experienced, and government policies and programs, both local and national? With the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, some of the gains in early 2013 were probably wiped out.  It is now, more than ever, that the rate of poverty reduction must be focused on, and/or accelerated.

in a time capsule [reentry 2008]

there are a lot of people and events that may come in someone's life but only a few will truly touch and etch a memory. high school without debate is one of them. here you will get to meet people from all walks of life, in several manners, mostly awkward since this is the stage when individuals are battling within--->

i am too young to be an adult, too old to be a child (read: adolescence). in this very stage, we tend to create personalities that we perceive to be pleasing to others. no one to blame: men are social beings- the more they behave the way society dictates them to be, the better it is for everybody. when i was thirteen i met this somewhat deviant classmate-dave. he is not like my bestfriend kristoffer (see him in blog entry BF-EVER), really! he was different!...

at such a young age, he seemed to be unmindful of what others may think of him, of his acts, of his words. don't get me wrong, he was seldom unpleasant but always always surprising. his surge of emotions will bring turmoil to a tamed conforming person. his laughter is contagious but so is his anger. his chivalry will make you smile but his apathy will make you cry too. i have tried to look at dave from a different perspective. (at 13, i thought i was a philosopher, a psychologist, or maybe just another lost soul waiting to be found again).

i saw him persevere as much as i saw him get wasted with foolishness. i saw his leadership, and his hardheadedness as well. i saw him falling in and out of love, hear him shouting and whisper at different times. he was a friend to me (or maybe i was a friend to him) ...i had time with him in a capsule. why dave? coz he reminds me that life is too short to be wasted on hiding and pretending to be so-oh-good when you can taste every detail of badness and somehow learn from it.

but years passed i lost track of my subject--- too many thoughts, too many people, too little time i guess. as we entered the university, i see little and little of him. once i saw him laughing with a group of thug-looking students in a kiosk-they all seem to be enjoying their chat, laughing boisterously at times. once i saw him all alone in a path from one building to another, i tried to catch up on him and ask how he was, he halted, stared at me confusingly, and just smiled. i dismissed it as a call to accept that the dave i knew, though nothing has changed physically somehow isn't exactly the same (who doesn't change anyway?).

i saw him a couple of times in a telecoverage of a campus demonstration (that made me smile and reminded me of my foolishness years before). and then nothing, just news that he graduated and somehow tried to conform in his own way. now...(fast forward) dave has popped out of nowhere and is keeping in touch (truly challenges my thoughts, and philosophies in more ways than one). my time in a capsule with him is opened and remembered but a new capsule is to be made (and so is a new blog entry?). he is a family man, a trusted employee, and a fun friend (though he always refutes coz he has different perspective of the word 'friend').

he still is the dave who helped me cope with culture-shock by making me more shocked (ready, set-laugh!), the dave who helped me bring the trash to the pit (and irritatingly threw the trashcan too when i jokingly suggested so---grrr!), the dave who shouts at her girl in the school campus, the dave who loves to tease --- he is the dave who fought with goliath (read: goliath=the need to conform) and won. there are a lot of people and events that may come in someone's life but only a few will truly touch and etch a memory. dave without debate is one of them.

December 2021 Article: NOTHING FAKE about “FAKE NEWS”

Fake news is rampant and is a growing threat.  High technological advances and high-end gadgets or applications have made it harder to spot. Students and teachers alike speak of “fake news” as a problem but both have become victims of such one way or another. 

"Fake news” is an umbrella term for both misinformation and disinformation. Misinformation is false information that is spread, but not necessarily on purpose (ie. misleading headlines) Disinformation is purposely created to mislead and deceive like deep fakes (videos created with sophisticated artificial intelligence) and shallow fakes (videos that are real but misrepresented). There’s also this new term: malinformation — it is information that was intended to harm others  (revenge porn, doxing). 

As of late, media is no longer passively consumed. It is created, shared, commented on, attacked, and defended in all ways by millions of netizens. The algorithms are also brilliantly designed so that when we go online or log in to a social network we are generally presented with articles and content based on our own searches online. This content, seen by most, tends to reflect our own views, likes, reactions, and beliefs and therefore isolates us from differing views and opinions (the filter bubble).

As far back as the late 1800s, fake news has existed. The difference is how fast information goes around because of digital media. This makes it more dangerous. Remember the “Repetition Theory”? The more a lie is repeated, the more likely people are to believe it? Once we buy the lie, changing our minds is a challenge. This is why it pays, to be skeptical at times. Much more if we are in an academic environment like the university. You can’t just take everything at its face value. It also pays to be well-read and well-informed because if you are not, chances are, you’re not going to question anything you read. 

It is best for teachers and students to have a healthy level of skepticism. In our minds, before reacting and most especially before sharing, it would be good to verify the information first: Triangulation (confirming a story in at least three news sources) and Lateral Reading (opening up new tabs in your browser to investigate sites or claims as you encounter them).

THIS MEANS everyone must learn to hold off on sharing posts until it is verified. Teachers must teach students news literacy skills. Students must arm themselves with those skills to be able to spot fake news. This is more important now that social media are being weaponized to suppress dissent and to spread such misinformation and disinformation. Social media has become our public plaza where we get updates, and facts, discuss ideas and share our informed opinions and views. By being very careful and spending extra time on triangulation and lateral reading, we can make informed decisions in the end and be better consumers (or producers) of information.

October 2009: das ist die Frage!

THIS WAS THROWNBACK AS I AM AGAIN IN A VERY DARK PLACE...
FELY IS DEAD, SHE'S KEEPING HER SECRETS TO HER GRAVE.

am i really the alfie girl that you were looking for? what do we need to do to prove this? do we need to prove this? are the words of a dying man enough? what do you think? what do you feel? ...in my conversation with you, i can't help but want to hug you for being so strong and for acting detached the way you knew how. the talk was heavy and i was crying a river...

i have to let you know why i couldn't push this matter any longer. i have to make you see how i feel and how would she feel if i keep on bringing the matter that she has easily dismissed...what more can we do? what more can we talk of? will it be so bad for me, for you, for all of us to just let this river take its own course?

sad thing is, there were sadness, pains and regrets accompanying these questions. there are memories touched that brushed the big scars that i once thought was totally healed...i keep reminding myself that memories are monsters and that the mind should always be stronger than those memories...why do i allow myself to feel this way again?

 what's it all about alfie? is this just for one moment we live? what's it all about when you sort it out alfie? are we meant to take more than we give? are we meant to be kind? what is this all about alfie? that is the question.

June 2022 Article: NOT THE TIME FOR OFF-SCRIPTS. On Climate Change and Leadership

Do you still need more proof? Climate change must become a personal reality, for each and every one of us on this planet.  Scientists reported that the Arctic ice cap is melting faster and by their calculations, 40 % percent of the summer ice covering the Arctic sea will be gone by 2050.  This is the time to convert all political calls to action, a time for all countries to have the moral imperative to discuss climate change with a new urgency. 

Do you not know “value”? Creating value for society is one of the key deciders of success. Today’s leaders must also deliver value in terms of sustainability and societal impact as well as growth. Sustainability and equitability must be placed at the heart of every organization. Climate change is not something that lies outside of business or governance. It operates within the boundaries of its natural environment and can only be sustained in a healthy environment and flourishing society. The earth is more fragile now and the ecosystems that support millions of lives now face significant disruption. Peoples—not only animals—are at risk of being extinct. The effects are being felt by everyone, especially those least able to cope and least responsible for the problem. This is, as always a moral issue. Any response must be guided by the principles of the common good and shared responsibility.

Climate change events including sea-level rise, the increased frequency of extreme weather events, rising temperatures, and heavy rainfall all pose threats to countries like the Philippines. This is due to our vulnerability to natural dangers. Warmer waters damage coral reefs, which can lead to a drop in fish populations, making it a concern related to food security. Rains will result in more flooding, which could lead to landslides in upland areas. The concept of Climate change is very complex but very urgent and will take good and competent leaders to reach out to others to bring each other’s expertise, technologies, and other capabilities together in order to achieve meaningful change.  This is only possible when actions are driven by a purpose. Leadership foremost is about choices and setting new directions. It is about vision and political will—the ability to see ahead, know what we must do, and inspire a force for genuine change. The generation now and those to come will judge us. 

What can we possibly do besides hope for ethical leadership and good governance? Well, perhaps it is to educate ourselves on how best to face the climate change challenges. While it does seem at times that we can do only little as individuals if we arm ourselves with knowledge of the science behind it,  and its effects, we can start taking steps (no matter how little) toward positive change. Much better is to influence others to do the same. But besides asking for urgent action, we can also reflect on our own personal moves. What have we done so far? What are our lessons for? Why are we here?

2014 Article: Reluctant Leaders. They Are. Everywhere.

A leader is best when people barely know he exists

when his work is done, and his aim is fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.

—Lao Tzu

My all-time favorite book is Richard Bach's 'Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah'. It details the relationship between a teacher and a reluctant student. Donald W. Shimoda is a retired Messiah and sees himself in Richard and believes they are fellow messiahs. Richard hasn't and wouldn’t come to terms with this idea. Over time, Shimoda teaches Richard how to be a messiah since he has grown weary of performing miracles and has decided to retire from the art. He explains to Richard that the miracles he performs are in fact miracles; instead, they are just illusions of reality. By the end of the book, Richard graduates with the knowledge of what it means to be a messiah receive his calling, and begin.

Reading Illusions once more made me think and reflect on what I have observed lately. At these times, we see many reluctant leaders in the workplace like Richard- people who may have been promoted on the strength of their technical or operational abilities, not on the perceived leadership capabilities. Most of the time, they struggle to be the leader that they believe their colleagues expect, to be the best mediator, the approachable manager who can motivate teammates to where they need to be. I come to conclude that perhaps, there is a little of the “reluctant leader” in all of us.

Leaders come and go. They also come in different packages. There are those who like to go about their leadership in an open manner. There are those who go about their work with quiet dignity. They are the leaders who coach, mentor, and support their team, almost always in the background. They are the ones who hold their team jointly accountable for results – good or bad and aren’t driven by ego but by service. Most of the time, they are the “reluctant leaders”. Forced by circumstance, they lead.

Ralph Nader, named by Time Magazine as one of the 100 Most Influential Americans in the Twentieth Century, says that the function of leadership is to create more leaders – not more followers. A Reluctant Leader, while reluctant, may see this as both an obligation and an opportunity. His motivation is advancing the goals of the team. He has his eyes set on the sincere appreciation of the people he works with. He can lead up, across, and down and encourage the team to do the same.

Checking on the scripture, it says we need far more laborers to go out and do the Father's work. We need leaders to help make that happen. But, leaders are in short supply because many are reluctant to lead. For what it is worth, it can be said that these reluctant leaders are in good company. Gideon felt that he lacked the qualifications of a good leader. Moses always doubted his leadership potential. Saul even tried to hide. The story of Moses, among others, is inspiring. When God called on him to lead the Israelites, Moses tried voicing out that he cannot be the leader, saying: I’m a nobody; I don’t speak well; I’m not brave. But the job was given anyway. He became the ultimate model for reluctant leadership. It is clear then that leadership is unpredictable. Circumstances thrust certain responsibilities upon these leaders, and they have no choice but to take up their assignments.

One defining characteristic of this leader is that he himself is self-divided. He feels pressured to do things he’d rather not do. On the one hand, if the reluctant leader is passionless, his actions will be halfhearted which may lead to failure. The successful reluctant leader, on the other hand, is motivated by his conscience. He makes himself believe that he has to accept the fact that while it is not his choice, it is his duty and he will follow it to the end.

Hence, the reluctant leader can be more realistic, and even more skeptical. At times when he is engaged in an unpleasant task, he just keeps doing it. He doesn’t have to worry about coming down because he never felt good about it in the first place. And yes, at times, that’s what the organization needs. The reluctant leader can be more collaborative too. Since he didn’t want his task, he was eager to share it. Most often than not, this is best for the organization. The reluctant leader, though less confident must see this as a task fulfilled, a mission accomplished.

As seen in Exodus 3:12: “And God said, ‘I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain." It is like God is saying – I am sending you and I am going with you. All authority belongs to God and He who calls you is in total control. This message may as well be for all the reluctant leaders… as they are… everywhere.

[This article first appeared in PAGE Professional Digest in 2014]