I resolve... to start planting seeds: One for the trees!

There was the poem many of us had to learn and recite before the class in kindergarten—searching the ceiling for a clue, rocking on the balls of our feet and our toes and crocheting our fingers behind our backs, as we haltingly and uncertainly declared that perhaps we would never see a poem as lovely as a tree. Then there was the stingingly familiar cautionary tale in the Lord of the Rings, when the whole forest, literally aghast from the devastation wreaked upon them, returned the favor: floods cascaded thunderously from the hills and drowned much of the flatlands, including the aesthetically challenged orcs (see the unflattering analogy?).

It’s easy to take trees for granted, and sometimes you don’t really notice that they’re there, or appreciate the world of good they’ve done for you, until someone chops them down to have a better view of a cathedral or to presumably widen a road. Here’s how my friend, who shall be code-named Phoebe, thanks to bursts of ditz-wisdom, put it: “If a tree-hugger had no time in between appointments to drive out to the countryside to hug a tree, and went to Katipunan for a quick fix instead, he or she would be most certainly disappointed.”

In other words, one of these days, we would really be sorry, if we aren’t already, that we’ve not done enough to safeguard our green leafy friends. So it’s happy news that more and more people are raising awareness for better care and appreciation of trees — among them, one exciting art contest launched by the Cultural Center of the Philippines in celebration of the upcoming Earth Month this April, particularly of Earth Day on April 22.

“Juan for Trees (143s): An Installation Avenue” is a design competition of conceptual trees that will be part of a public art installation at the front lawn of the CCP. The whole project, according to its website, is “an avenue literally and otherwise for students to implement theories into actuality, and work with corporations towards innovative recycling ideas. 143s is about nurturing a green generation.”

For more details on contest rules and the full schedule of registration dates and deadlines, check out www.143installave.multiply.com. If you’re on Facebook, search Juan for Trees and make a new friend.

For the benefit of those now interested, here’s a useful snippet of FAQs from Juan for Trees site.

Who are qualified to participate in 143s?

143s is open to students from Metro Manila schools, colleges and universities that offer art, design and other technically related courses (i.e. fine arts, architecture, engineering). Members of the team must be actively enrolled in at least three units in their particular schools; certification from the school is required. There can only be one competition entry per team. Members of the team can only join once; a team member cannot be part of another team.

Can students from different schools comprise a team?

The 143s organizers encourage that team members are enrolled in the same school. Not only will you carry your school’s name, they can also assist you in getting corporate partners. Furthermore, coordination and cooperation will be simpler if you come from the same university. 

Is it necessary to get a corporate partner? 

Yes, it is necessary. Having a corporate tie-up is part and parcel of the competition parameters. One of the goals of this contest is to provide a meaningful platform of collaboration between the youth and the business sector where the young leads the way in advocating recycling through sound and artistic design, as it paves another track for corporations to get aligned with sustainable green habits. Moreover, it will be easier for the teams to source out their materials if they have a ready resource from which they can get all the traditional and non-traditional waste they need to erect their conceptual trees. Lastly, teams are required to provide a separate listing of the recyclable materials to be utilized; this should be derived from a mix of the traditional or non-traditional waste from the team’s corporate partner.