A long lost video.

Not sure why I didn't post this a long time ago.  Easily one of the coolest experiences that I have had the pleasure of taking part.  Thank you to all that helped make this happen!  More about this, later.  It's tri-season, and there is training to be done.

Matt

Getting it all together.

And here I go...

  One day at a time, for the rest of time.  Listening to Baléro, and moving, forward... Baléro has nothing to do with it, except for that it is merely a distraction, that is at best motivating.  

  This is an attempt to get out of a, 'funk'.  I don't know what else to call it.  I've been less than a procrastinator.  Enough self loathing.  

  The music is there because a friend requested to use my computer at a late hour to write an assigned paper, for class.  Nonetheless, it provides me some pseudo motivation reconciliation in this moment, but is certainly not the source of my new found inspiration.  

  Clarity, found.  More to come.  

Matt

Community-based Eco-tourism

  The bottom-up approach, as is applies to ecotourism, can keep the local community involved, and thriving.

  Having wished we had the opportunity sooner, to meet with Gerry Ortega, of Puerto Princesa, Palawan, was our first lament.  None would follow.

  Gerry is a resident of Puerto Princesa City, has been a previous politician in the Philippines and now works with a national broadcasting company in the Philippines, ABS-CBN.  Gerry has successfully developed and implemented five community-based, bottom-up approach ecotourism projects, here in Palawan.

  Before the attached video interview was produced, Gerry sat with myself and colleagues, to discuss how his projects have been successful, and graciously doled out advice for developing our own road map to success.

  Gerry explained that most efficient way to implement an eco-tourism project, in his experience, is to use a bottom-up approach.  An approach that starts at the base level, the community members.  Using local community advisors to keep tabs on the projects and the directly involved, site members, management and success of the projects, comes naturally.

  Gerry's community advisors help to educate, motivate, and delegate.  They don't have a set 9-5 schedule, and many weeks, work overtime... without pay.  They get pride from the sense of community they instill, and joy from the faces of satisfied visitors.  These projects begin at the hearts, and endure because of the passion of many.

  It was inspiring to see the community members, at Ugong Rock, working without pay and with smiles, because they knew the work they were doing would pay off in the end.  They believed in their hard work, paying off.  No bosses, no time cards, no schedule.  Just compelled work ethic.


Enjoy,

MJ

Promo/preview of the Palawan doc...

  Hi everyone.  Yeah, it seems time has gotten away once again!  Sorry.  Well, I'm here and am once again posting.  Hope you all got the message I sent out, pleading you check out the video.

(Also, apologies to those who I told this would be here when I did.... Net conx is weak here... Priorities don't entail 4-hours sitting and waiting....)

  The video is just a promo/preview of the doc-film, that has been officially in the works for the last month, or so.  We are showing this to the stake holders, here on the island (Palawan), in hopes that they will jump on board to see it through, after we leave.  Fingers are crossed.

  I'm hoping the video answers any questions you have all been thinking or wondering about this internship turned job/life-long side project.  That's right, I plan to see this through till the end.  I finally found a niche within my niche, to hold on to tight.

  We're the driving force behind the project right now, the motivators as we see it.  But, we've been extremely fortunate to have met some incredibly motivated and most wonderful people that we are trusting to take the reigns and run, as our departure from paradise looms closer, later this year.

  Wish us luck!  More updates will surely come your way.....

MJ

You can also check it out Here on my FaceBook page, or Here on YouTube. 

Palawan: First Encounter

  I turned thirty a week and a half ago, and I still cannot type the number.  The word is more comforting and aesthetically pleasing, I feel.  I spent the birthday weekend on the island of Palawan in the Philippines.  It's a long strip of an island surrounded for the most part by pristine seas, small outlying islands and the pristine reefs that accompany them.

  We snorkeled, ate good food, played with crocodiles, met political officials, toured the town and nightlife, and most importantly, slept in air con.

  I took the trip to the island, a quick one hour island hop on Cebu-Pacific airlines, with couple of my friends, Ginelle, Justin and Stephanie.  We accompanied my DevCom 140 classmates who could afford the trip and my professor, Sir Ed.  It was photo field trip and birthday adventure smashed into one exciting weekend.  

  I still am unable to process that I am fortunate enough to live there for two months, in less than 4 weeks!  Much less film a documentary there!  Unreal. 

  While we were there, we (Justin and I), were able to meet up with our internship coordinator, Bart.  He brought us up to speed on our missions and we brainstormed over a delectable breakfast, our last morning there.  Needless to say, we are even more stoked than before to be interning with 'Poor No More.'  

  One of many fantastic experiences of the group included dining with and meeting the Mayor of Puerta Princesa, the city we stayed in, and the same one I'll be living in.  He gave off a sense of calm, control, confidence and cunning on first impression.  He related stories of how he's 'made things happen' in Puerta Princesa.  He told us how he has effectively dealt with corruption on a national level, and made it work on his own local level.  

  

  He exuded ideals of progressivism.  I'm interested to see how the mayor operates on a daily basis, outside a first impressions environment.  I hope he maintains the hype he made for himself at dinner.

  I'm excited to share the few photographs I have here.  There will be many more to come.  

There's a few too many images to post up here with the text, and the connection here in the Philippines requires that I spend far too many precious hours of the my 30-year-old (hey!, I did it) body waiting for the upload, so visit this site!!!!

Love ya'll,

MJ

shape U.P.... My first filmed, edited, directed and produced....

  This is the first of many to come.  A warm-up if you will.  I think I've found my niche/calling, what have you.  No, I have.  I loved every moment of this.

  This is a project for my humanities course (HUM 2) at the University of the Philippines, Los Banos (UPLB).  The project was to show a human artistic performance by our class section.

  We completed the filming on a Monday morning over about 2 hours.  The editing took about 3 days.  I realized at one point during the process, that this is the kind of stuff I had better get used to for the rest of my life.  And, I liked that feeling.

  Thank you to all that have thus far supported me and given me the encouragement to get out and do it.

MJ

My independent experience.

Currently, I reside in the island nation of the Philippines.  I have an address in the city of Los Banos, but my travels have taken me coast to coast on the island of Luzon, and Mindoro.  These are two of the larger of the 7,107 islands that make up the country.

Fact: Traveling outside Los Banos, even if just 20 km, is further than most Filipinos will travel outside of the city in their entire lifetime.  A sad fact indeed, but becoming more understandable as I engage with the Filipino culture and people. 

From what I have gathered, Spanish Rule from centuries back, is still deeply engrained in the lives of Filipinos.  As an American, I have come to realize that there are certain cultural liberties and freedoms that I have taken for granted, for most of my life.  Personal independence is one such.  

In the Philippines, family ties stronger than a noose are most common.  It would odd and possibly wrong to not leave the family home before the age of 25, even if married, male or female.  Some Filipinos live with nuclear family members for their entire lives, if not within several kilometers proximity.  

Rather than being expected to get a job and get on with your adult life at or around the ages of 18-21 in the States, Filipinos are expected to stay with the family beyond secondary schooling, college, marriage, and the like for as long as there is no good reason not too.  In fact, in most families here, it is looked upon as rude or disrespectful to not stay in the home grew up in and to visit on a weekly basis, even when far away at school.  Subsequently, elder rule is a way of life.  

My Filipino friends are sometimes astonished when I tell them of my experience with independence.  I do my best not to flaunt or seem as though my experience is better, but they all seem to be very receptive to the idea of personal freedoms in adulthood.  They cannot believe their ears when I tell them that I live on my own and like it, unmarried.  They are sometimes astonished to hear that I have family living over many miles away, and that I see my father and brother twice a year, at best.  And moreover, that it's not a driving concern of mine.  

The fact that I have a job and go to school full time is probably one of the most puzzling things to Filipinos.  They find it hard to comprehend making time for both.  This is understandable to me having experienced the college curriculum for only half of a semester thus far, and will be explained in another blog, entirely.  A rant that I'm saving for...

For now, I think the importance of this entry relates to those freedoms and liberties that I have taken for granted for so long.  I have taken for granted developing my own values and sets of rules to live by, and my ability to deviate or make exceptions in given situations.  I love my parents and family, but it has been long since I have 'lived under someone's roof', and not my own.  Similarly, I have always been encouraged to go out and to do whatever I dream and to make the most out of life as I see fit.  That is not the case for most Filipinos, and I can't help but think to myself how fortunate I am to be independent as I am.  

I haven't had a curfew for over 10 years, and I haven't had to check in, or really ask for any type of parental permission for about the same time.  I have Filipino friends of my same age, that still find themselves under someone's roof.  I can't imagine.  I appreciate the perspective I have gained, and without being too culturally insensitive, I will wrap up saying, 'Thank you Mom and Dad for encouraging my hopes, and dreams, and endeavors, and for letting me tinker with life, even if it bit me in the ass sometimes.'

MJ