CIC moves into marine conservation
Local churches and referees join hands to plant mangroves at Baseco Beach
As part of a long-term rehabilitation project with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Christians in Conservation (CIC) was recently involved in planting mangroves at Baseco Beach, around Manila Bay.
The DENR – an executive department of the Philippine government – is committed to a multi-phase project to rehabilitate Manila Bay, a natural harbor and an important part of the coastline around the largest city in the country. For many years, Manila Bay was notorious for heavily polluted waters due to dumping of toxic waste, trash and sewage.
This rehabilitation project is aiming to rectify shoreline damage and ensure coastal protection for both marine life and coastal communities. After the first phase of trash removal from the Bay, the project is now in its second phase with the planting of native mangrove species.
The Philippines is home to 39 species of mangroves. On Sept 5, 2022, CIC participants helped to plant close to 150 api-api seedlings (Avicennia marina in Latin), which is a species endemic to the Philippines. These seedlings will take about five years to establish on the shorelines of Baseco Beach.
CIC’s involvement in mangrove planting has a two-fold purpose. First, we are aiming to raise awareness about the importance of coastal marine ecosystems and the role of healthy mangroves in stabilizing shorelines, reducing the impact of storms, and providing habitat for marine species.
Mangrove reforestation is also an opportunity for CIC to build a connection between our usual work in terrestrial forests to also include marine forests. We recognize that with one of the longest coastlines in the world, the Philippines is an important place for marine conservation.
Second, CIC is seeking to mobilize Christians from Manila and beyond to engage in hands-on creation care. We aim to see more followers of Jesus taking active steps in caring for the world around them.
It was not coincidental that our opportunity to partner with DENR came through Justin de Ramos, who is not only the officer-in-charge of Coastal Resources and Foreshore Management at DENR-NCR, but also a member of Capitol City Baptist Church where his father is the pastor.
We were thrilled to have representatives from this church as well as seven other local churches at our Sept 5th event. We also had four referees from GOAL — a Christian sports referee association founded by PBA referee, Jimmy Mariano – joining in our mangrove planting.
Jhay-Ar Torres, GOAL president, shared that in addition to refereeing basketball games around Manila, GOAL does outreach in the community, such as supporting those affected by typhoons and fires. How wonderful that their outreach now includes both people and the natural world.
We look forward to bringing more Christians together to care for God’s creation.
Our next mangrove planting event is on Saturday, October 22, 2022 in Navotas. More details to follow on social media!
Note:
NCR = National Capitol Region
GOAL = Game Officials Association of the Land
PBA = Philippine Basketball Association
Learn more about past CIC Events.