No Student Left Behind: Ateneo prepares for mass academic strike in protest of the government's poor calamity response

Wazzup Pilipinas!

"We cannot sit idly by and do our modules, ignoring the fact that the Philippine nation is in shambles." -Ateneo students

Students from Ateneo have pledged not to submit any academic requirements starting November 18 as a protest against the ineffective typhoon response of the government and this would last until a proper response is made.

'The national government must act now or step down from their positions. No compromises,' says the statement of Ateneo students.

“Babagsak kayo.” - Palace spokesman Harry Roque responds to the students of Ateneo de Manila University who declared a mass student strike to condemn what they call the government’s “criminally neglectful response” to the recent typhoons that ravaged the country.

“Mawawalan kayo ng kinabukasan”??? 

To work collectively to demand accountability and competence from the government? Do you realize that what these students are fighting for IS their future?

Harry Roque is scum. Pass it on.

“Walang babagsak.” - Ateneo teacher Richard Bolisay counters Roque’s statement that students holding a mass strike will fail in school if they continue the protest action.

Some students from Ateneo have houses that also flooded till the second floor, with some houses completely submerged. They don’t deserve this gross negligence — NOBODY does. 

and that is precisely why this is such a HOLLOW response from a Presidential Spokesperson because we should never value grades over LIVES.

Ateneo de Manila University’s student publication The GUIDON on Saturday said that “over 150” students will go on academic strike starting Wednesday next week, Nov. 18, as protest vs the government’s response to recent calamities. 

"So I appeal to the teachers to please get to know where your students are from; reach out to them and be considerate. This is when the distance that's created by online learning needs to be crossed over for cura personalis." - Office of the VP, Ateneo Loyola Schools 

"Now more than ever, the entire Ateneo community, together with the Filipino people must strengthen their ranks and mobilize against the fascist Duterte regime." 

- League of Filipino Students

The Ateneo community is taking action, both academically and politically. 

From the Ateneo to UE, we're seeing classes being suspended school after school!

This is brought about by the collective action of our students for their demands!

If we can achieve this, then we can certainly achieve greater demands in holding the Duterte regime accountable! 

Holcim, Human Nature partner for sustainable management of plastic wastes

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Holcim Philippines and social enterprise Human Nature have teamed up to lessen plastics going to landfills with the former using used shampoo bottles and other plastic packaging as alternative fuels in making cement.

Leading building solutions provider Holcim Philippines, Inc. and natural personal care and home care social enterprise brand Human Nature have agreed to partner in sustainable waste management with the former using the latter’s used plastic packaging as alternative fuel in cement manufacturing.

Under the partnership, customers may turn over their dry, empty, and clean Human Nature bottles to the company’s select Metro Manila stores* under its “Balik Bote” initiative. The used bottles will then be delivered to Holcim’s plant in Norzagaray, Bulacan, where the materials will be shredded by Geocycle, the company’s partner waste management unit. Afterwards, the pre-processed materials will be used as alternative fuels and raw materials for cement manufacturing using co-processing technology.

Geocycle Vice President Frederic Vallat: “We are proud to be a partner of Human Nature, a company that is serious in its commitment to have a positive social impact and be respectful of nature. We share the same commitments at Holcim Philippines and are glad to help in their efforts to address the waste management challenge in the country.”

Human Nature President Anna Meloto-Wilk on the partnership with Geocycle: “We have been looking for a credible recycling partner for a long time who can help us manage our plastic waste and stay true to our commitment to steward the environment. We are so happy to have a partnership with Geocyle who shares our passion for stewardship and high quality. We hope many other companies will likewise discover the benefits of extending our responsibility not just to the products that we make but also the waste we generate.”

Human Nature’s “Balik Bote” initiative is part of the company’s thrust to help lessen wastes ending up in landfills. Aside from this, they also follow pro-environment practices such as ensuring that raw materials are naturally derived, processed with less energy and waste, and contain no harmful chemicals toxic to humans and the environment. Human Nature is also one of the pioneers of safe, sustainable, and accessible refilling stations for home care products that significantly reduce plastic waste. Other landmark efforts include transitioning to earth-friendlier paper packaging and shifting to plastic bottle-free products in waterless formulation such as natural shampoo bars which they launched late 2019.

Meanwhile, the use of alternative fuels and raw materials using co-processing technology is a key driver of improving Holcim Philippines’ sustainability performance.

Co-processing allows the company to produce cement with lower carbon footprint, reduce its consumption of non-renewable resources and provide partners a sustainable alternative for managing their wastes. In co-processing, qualified waste materials are pre-processed as alternative fuel and fed into the high-temperature kilns along with other traditional fuels to produce cement. This process transforms wastes to alternative fuel and converts these into energy for cement production. The technology is recognized globally and is approved by the Philippine authorities due to its proven advantages in environmental and safety performance.

In 2019, Holcim Philippines pre-processed as alternative fuel the segregated wastes of several local governments near its plants in Luzon and Mindanao and expressed readiness to help more communities on this matter. The company has also co-processed tens of thousand tons of non-recyclable plastics as it continues to provide waste management services to partners in various industries.

On postal voting: PHLPost ready to fulfill its tasks

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The Philippine Postal Corporation (PHLPost) is ready to fulfill its duty if called upon with respect to mail voting for Senior Citizens, PWD, Indigenous People and Pregnant Women for the coming 2022 national elections.

Chairman Norman Fulgencio said that “If this will be implemented, PHLPost will be ready to work on it. We only want to make sure that the names in the list of voters who will avail of mail voting will be certified by the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) and attested by the chairman of the barangay that the person voting is alive and a genuine resident in their barangay.

Fulgencio added that safeguards must be put in place to maintain integrity. The PHLPost position is to be more transparent in all these undertakings. That is one of the main reasons for our current efforts of digitizing the whole organization. 

PHLPost in the past has successfully implemented the Overseas Absentee Voting (OAV) in the national elections by mail from sending out election paraphernalia to embassies and consulates abroad and receiving the ballots under the supervision of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC).

PHLPost is launching in the first quarter of next year the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Project.

The ERP project, which started in 2017, will computerize and automate the whole postal system. It aims, among others, to streamline the procedures and processes in postal operations and improve the competence and proficiency of PHLPost in delivering its services to the people.

Chairman Norman Fulgencio remains steadfast in modernizing the postal system to cover the digitalization of the entire organization including the mail management system, corporate financial information system, financial counter system and human resource information system”.

Once in place, digital applications ranging from mobile to computer applications will be launched together.

This will reinforce existing strength across communications, e-commerce and financial services that would result in efficiency and convenience in delivering public service across the nation.

PHLPost is committed to fulfill President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s directive to bring innovative government services to the Filipino.

The opening of economy and the airlines gradual recovery in the new normal will keep the postal market relevant amid the challenges posed by the global health crisis.

PHLPost, however, remains undeterred and has continued to focus on achieving growth and stability, while simultaneously working on a range of strategic initiatives to further develop, enhance and innovate its services to keep up with the advancements in technology.