Sixteen-year-old Jedryc Romero’s love for the environment has been evident even when he was much younger. He has always been the kid who would put small bits of discards in his pocket, a habit he formed early on, thanks to his mother who taught him to care for the environment.

“She’s the one who influenced me to actively participate in environmental initiatives. She encouraged me and my sisters to refuse plastics and to put our garbage in the right place,” he shared, referring to his mother.

With his mother’s influence, it doesn’t come as a surprise that Jedryc has been regularly involved in the environmental initiatives of his school. In eighth grade, he was one of the heads of the environmental committee of their student council. In this role, he helped implement upcycling initiatives. He also helped train his schoolmates to become eco-warriors in an eco-camp with various organizations participating.

Then, in August 2020, a few months into the lockdowns due to COVID-19, Jedryc and his friends founded Kalikasan Pablo as part of his ambassadorship with Project SWAP (Sustainable Waste Action Program).

“KalikaSan Pablo is a youth-led environmental organization which advocates for environmental consciousness and sustainability in San Pablo City, Laguna,” shared Jedryc. “Our five long-term goals are: [promoting] environmental consciousness, sustainable development, clean and eco-friendly communities, climate action and justice, and youth mobilization.”

Three months after Kalikasan Pablo was organized, the group, which now has 50 members, held an online conference focused on plastic pollution. For the event, they invited environmentalists from other parts of the country to talk about various topics on environmental sustainability. 

“We’re currently limited to online and small-scale operations due to the pandemic, but we hope to do more upstream initiatives especially with regards to plastic pollution,” Jedryc said.

He added that they also plan to register Kalikasan Pablo as one of the youth organizations in the city through the local youth development council so they could work closely with their local government.

Youth for the Youth

Jedryc (rightmost, fourth row) together with fellow students during an eco-camp

For Jedryc, founding Kalikasan Pablo is an important milestone. “It means leading the environmental movement of the youth in our city and bringing together like-minded young people to help take care of our environment,” he said, adding that Kalikasan Pablo is the first youth organization in the city that is focused on the environment.

Jedryc also shared that he enjoys being with his fellow youth leaders. Being around them enables him to see different perspectives on various topics. “I’m lucky to be in a city where the youth are active in many advocacies. I learn from the examples of other youth who have started their own organizations before me. They give me hope,” he said.

And for Jedryc, having hope is important. “[We want to sow] hope. Although we say our house is on fire, we are also saying that we can still extinguish the fire, that we can still do something. But we must act now,” Jedryc said.

He added that it is important that the youth become involved in taking care of the environment, pointing out that they are, after all, the ones who will inherit the planet from today’s grown-ups. 

“If we fail to take care of our planet now, we will be the ones to suffer the adverse effects of its degradation,” he said. “The environmental cause is a fight for our future and for the many vulnerable sectors that are already being affected by climate change and environmental degradation. It is also a fight for the present. This is our planet, and it will be the same planet we will have for the coming years. There is no planet B.”


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This article is part of our QUARANTINE STORIES series. During the pandemic, we were forced to stay put. Some of us used the time to embark on great journeys—finding new hobbies, learning new skills, and pursuing dreams we would not have been able to, had it not been for the lockdowns. In this series, we feature stories about people who rose above the pandemic and embarked on a journey of a lifetime.