IBA’T IBANG lugar sa Luzon, Visayas, at Mindanao ang pinuntahan ng mga kandidata ng 2022 Miss Earth pageant sa loob lang ng mahigit isang linggo. Nakakapagod, ngunit sinabi ng mga kalahok na may napaghuhugutan pa rin sila ng lakas upang makapagpatuloy.
Miss Earth Canada Jessica Cianchino /ARMIN P. ADINA
“I think what keeps me going is, of course, the girls, their drive, and also the support I have from my family,” sinabi sa Inquirer ni Jessica Cianchino mula Canada sa tree-planting activity sa magiging lugar ng The Forum, isang Information Technology Park sa Batangas City mula sa Pontefino.
“If not for my family, I wouldn’t be where I am today. So I’m doing this for them, I’m doing this for myself, and I’m doing this for my country,” pagpapatuloy pa ng kandidatang Canadian-Filipino, na hinirang din bilang Miss Pontefino Hotel sa Batangas, kung saan sila pumunta makaraang dalawin ang Romblon sa Visayas at Zamboanga City sa Mindanao.
Para naman kay Andrea Aguilera mula Colombia, na Top 13 finisher sa 2021 Miss World pageant na ngayong taon lang din itinanghal, nabubuhayan siya ng loob dahil sa pagiging kinatawan ng bansa niya.
Miss Earth Colombia Andrea Aguilera /ARMIN P. ADINA
“This is not Andrea Aguilera anymore, so I have a big responsibility that I face with so much love and passion. And it keeps me always happy and motivated and energetic, and be a voice for environmental protection. So I think it’s my country and of course environmental cause,” aniya.
Sinabi naman ng news anchor na si Karina Basrewan mula Indonesia na “I still want to keep pushing because I do have the heart to really want to change and make a great impact, not just in Indonesia, but in the world. And I see this as the unity between me and my sisters from 85 different countries, how we can create relations, a bond that could go even beyond the two and a half weeks, and how we can work together long term to make sure the Earth is a better place.”
Miss Earth Indonesia Karina Basrewan /ARMIN P. ADINA
Isang “grateful heart” naman ang nagbibigay ng lakas para kay Sheyla Ravelo mula Cuba. “This is incredible, we are in a new country representing our respective countries, really on a vacation, getting to see all the beautiful sites with the red carpet rolled out everywhere we go, so much hospitality,” aniya.
Miss Earth Cuba Sheyla Ravelo /ARMIN P. ADINA
At bilang matagal nang eco activist, humuhugot din siya ng lakas sa pagnanais na masagip ang planeta. “You have to have a ‘why.’ If you don’t have a strong reason for being here, and then sometimes things can fall out of sight or they might not seem worth it anymore. And my why is my environmental advocacy,” ipinaliwanag niya.
Ang mga Pilipino naman ang binaggit ni Sheridan Mortlock mula Australia. “Every time we rock up a new location, they are so excited to greet us and so happy and so hospitable. So you just can’t help but smile back and be excited as well,” aniya.
Miss Earth Australia Sheridan Mortlock/ARMIN P. ADINA
Sinabi rin ng mag-aaral ng global sustainability at politics na humuhugot siya ng lakas mula sa “Miss Earth sisters” niya. “I’ve been able to connect really well with some of them, and so we keep each other’s spirits up,” pagpapatuloy niya.
Itatanghal ang 2022 Miss Earth coronation program sa Cove Manila sa Nov. 29, kung saan isasalin ni Destiny Wagner mula Belize ang korona sa tagapagmana niya.
Apat na Pilipina na ang nakasusungkit ng korona—sina Karla Henry noong 2008, Jamie Herrell noong 2014, Angelia Ong noong 2015, at Karen Ibasco noong 2017.
Ngayong taon, ang American-Filipino psychology student na si Jenny Ramp mula Tarlac ang kinatawan ng Pilipinas sa pandaigdigang patimpalak.