Biology major

In 2004, as a college junior, I was part of a movement. That was a nationwide student movement to help the Coalition of Immokalee Workers in achieving economic justice. I can remember our protests in front of the local Taco Bell at 54th and 34th, our table displays in front of the mail boxes on campus, and even my friends taking part in hunger strikes to convey the gravity of the situation.

That year was also the fourth year of Eckerd's Alternative Spring Break program. My interest in the Immokalee workers arose from my firsthand experience volunteering for a week with their organization during my spring break. I was not impressed by the one larger worker meeting that took place while I was visiting Immokalee. It was in Spanish, and I don't know Spanish. Because there was no aggressive agenda, lively discussion and decision making such as what took place in our student club meetings, I dismissed it as a waste of time. Now I realize the relative importance of "getting along" and "getting things done" in cultures different from ours. Reflecting on this now, it seems similar to the fisherfolks' association meetings I have been participating in here in the Philippines.

And if there's one thing my week in Immokalee really made salient to me, it's that here were people of a different culture living lives very different from mine in my country. I had the chance to work in the fields one day, picking red vine-ripened tomatoes (slower, easier work than picking green ones). It was a pretty fun day.

I never pitied the farm workers for having to labor in the hot sun. I still prefer physical work in the rural or wild outdoors to sedentary work in the artificial office environment. The Immokalee farm workers don't have such a choice though. Neither did I pity them for not being able to afford cars, their own homes, and other such luxuries. A life with minimal possessions contributes to my happiness. But again, the Immokalee workers didn't have the choice to be tech-saavy supposed post-materialists like many of us college students.

They simply didn't make enough money to rescue themselves from a life of little choice.

At the end of our work day, which lasted around 12 hours including 'looking for work' and transportation time, we were not given payment. This wasn't because we had agreed to be volunteers or were less competent than the regular workers: they didn't receive payment as well. "Next week," maybe, they were told.

So while my spring break service week came and passed, it's only now that I realize this, this thing about choices, which they call empowerment.

After college, I completed two Americorps contracts, then came here to the Philippines under the U.S. Peace Corps. The Philippines is the center of marine biodiversity. It has literally hundreds of declared Marine Protected Areas. However, only 5% of the coral reefs are in excellent condition. This is where environment and poverty intersect. In the town I have been living and working in, there are 6 coral reef protected areas; the largest one is about 20 hectares. There is also nearby silica mining, and illegal encroachment of commercial fishing vessels. Additionally, the province, Negros Oriental, faces the Tañon Strait Protected Seascape, a unique dolphin and whale habitat now open for exploratory oil drilling. Working here on environmental governance has been difficult, because change is so slow. However, it is a wonderful opportunity to learn about a different culture and way of life, to understand how vital serving is in our unequal world.