Earth Deserves A Voice

Alvero, Alvertte Jr.
2005 – 14451


I couldn’t count the times when I brought an umbrella and jacket with me thinking that it would really rain hard and in the middle of the day, as if it was a taunt, the sun would shine hard. Nor the times, Filipinos as we are, I assumed that classes would be suspended. But alas, the sun is truly not a good friend to be with. Nobody could trust our weather these days. Make no mistake about it, global warming is here, it's real, and it's a proven fact that humans are causing it. Global warming is not some science fiction that we have to imagine - it's already occurring and apparent.


With all the countries releasing there own documentary about global warming, it’s about time that we have one – one that is for the Filipinos. There are still a few who doesn’t have a clue nor have the concern to learn about it. They may have even heard the word ‘global warming’ but one could argue if they know how significant this problem is. People should be educated, and that is the documentary ‘Signos’ all about. Though, it is no surprise to me that the documentary would lack sophisticated data and complex research of experts that would not be easily digested by the targeted viewers. It introduced global warming and its effects as if explaining it to middle schoolers.

What is exactly global warming? In the usual setting, rays from sun entering earth bounce back to escape our atmosphere. But because of our incessant air pollution, the atmosphere as the decade rolls by, became thicker - hence, more heat are trapped inside. The effect is catastrophic: stronger storms, typhoons, hurricanes, tornadoes, volcanic eruptions; more occurrence of floods; unpredictable weather; forest fires and heat waves; droughts and famine; extinction of species; food supply depletion; massive refugees; water supply shortage, wars for supplies... I could go on and on.


All in all, if the warming continues in the next few decades, parts of Antarctica and Greenland would melt, and this would be the end of some countries - Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, San Francisco Bay, Netherlands, Shanghai, Calcutta, Bangladesh, Fiji, the Bahamas and other low-lying areas such as those of Pacific islands would be flooded with sea water - wipe out of the map.

The show tried to show all this in its simplest form, in all layman’s words. The good thing about the show is it included these effects in our country's setting – increasing number of diseases, landslides and rising water level. Global warming may have contributed to a recent spate of outbreaks of deadly diseases in the Philippines. Clearly what was predicted about the impact of global warming is already happening. The temperature is increasing leading to more diseases. There's going to be propensity for more cholera, dengue, typhoid and malaria. The diseases are all "manageable" as long as people practice proper hygiene and sanitation and those afflicted are swiftly brought to hospitals for immediate treatment.

The documentary also showcased some practical tips for Filipinos households could do – one good thing since I know some still can’t follow these tips as simple as they are. One inevitable aspect that brought me in concern is how our citizens express their take on the situation that we have forsaken earth according to some passage in a book and that we will all die anyway and the end is near… It is no surprise though we are in a catholic country, but this only shows that some are still not educated enough about our situation.

In conclusion, the film didn’t shake me to the core and gave me chills unlike other documentaries if I experienced first hand what will happen if global warming continues.

All I could say is that life is too precious to be taken for granted – our history too full of sacrifices to be dismissed. I sometimes think of the people who toiled to create computers, gadgets, electricity, clothes, the food that I now consume. We Filipino owe it to our fellow countrymen to make sure that this country's history stays afloat. Life is bigger than you and me. Life is bigger than our philosophy. Jose Rizal, Andres Bonifacio and all those who died for this tropical place we dubbed home, would be for nothing, if in the coming decades, the warming of the globe continues at the current rate.

Our earth deserves a voice. It needs solutions. It needs change. It needs action.