It’s been a few months since we’ve started with the #OneSongChallenge. We’ve been able to share it with friends, discuss on how we can extend our initiative, and discover different mediums on how to do it.
Personally, it’s a battle between my natural introversion and the drive to reach out and share to people our love for the ocean! (Haha!)
So in the middle of this struggle, one fine afternoon, I googled “beach cleanup” - Lo and Behold! The first search result was “International Coastal Cleanup Philippines”.
I can’t even begin to describe how I felt about this discovery.
Overjoyed. Overwhelmed. Surprised. Excited.
Not only was it within reach (since they’re based in Subic, Zambales), it was also a very active organization with its projects!
I quickly browsed over the website and here are the facts about ICC:
The International Coastal Cleanup is the largest volunteer movement that focuses on ocean conservation through cleanups. It was founded by Ocean Conservancy in Washington, DC in 1986 by helping create ocean policy at the federal and state government levels based on peer reviewed science.
In the Philippines, International Marinelife Alliance (IMA) headed the official joining ICC in 1994. Fast forward to 2006, ICC Philippines was born and assumed coordination of the movement nationwide; This was done with the supervision of then Vice President of IMA, Commodore Gerry Reyes who was also then a captain of PCGA.
Since then, ICC Philippines joins the the global coastal cleanup every 3rd Saturday of September.
DEFINITELY, I CANNOT MISS THIS EVENT!
I instantly signed up myself and Nikko in the event! And then I told him afterwards. Haha!
Ever since we started, we’ve been looking for people who share the same passion as we do. We’ve met people who are wanderlusts, we know lots of them, we started as wanderlusts but this has been the first time that we’re meeting a group who are passionate about the same thing as we are.
It fills my heart with joy (not to get poetic there, but seriously) that we’d get to join this project. As we’ve told you, we’ve been around for only a few months and cleaning up through the #OneSongChallenge whenever we can. This time, we get to do with this group! Imagine how many volunteers will come to this event and create a sea of change, even just on that day. Wow!
I immediately scanned through and looked for the joining form. I was already typing my name while I was calling Nikko. I was just that excited. I told him about ICC and that I was currently typing his name so we could join the cleanup happening soon. And yep, we were both ecstatic!
I can’t even begin to describe how I feel. I can’t find the right words, but it just feels like the first bite of moist chocolate cake. Heaven! haha!
So, hopefully you got to the end of this post. (don’t worry this is my last paragraph ;) ) And I would just like to invite you and hopefully, you can join us --- the ICC Clean up will be held on 17 September 2016. You can register online (through the ICC homepage, link below) or you can join our group! Get in touch with us! Send us a PM! Come on and join this once a year global challenge!
We have actually attended an ICC event recently, a teaser of the event to come on September but that’s another story. *wink*
Read more about ICC and the movement on their homepage --- http://www.icc.ph/