Written by Mae Janica Palkit, International Affairs Staff (Linkages Office)
Continuing the step towards environmental sustainability, the University of Baguio (UB) has kicked off the third episode of its Greening, Optimizing, Orchestrating, and Magnifying Mother Earth (GROOM ME) Project. Spearheaded by Dr. Donna Marie Panday and her team at the Research Innovation Extension and Community Outreach (RIECO), this initiative collaborated with the Office of Student Affairs (OSA) and the Palawan Group of Companies, taking place on October 19, 2024, at the Busol Watershed—an area vital to the university’s conservation efforts.
In this project, 132 UB’s management, teaching, and non-teaching staff and employees participated alongside 34 international exchange students and six faculty members from Jining University, Linyi University, Nagasaki Wesleyan University, and Amikom University. This diverse group came together to bolster the university’s commitment to environmental sustainability through collective action.
The GROOM ME Episode 3 project aimed to enhance reforestation efforts by planting 1,000 seedlings at the newly adopted site. In addition to planting, participants engaged in maintenance activities, including cleaning the area and removing weeds and tree guards around previously planted saplings. These saplings were originally planted by UB students and faculty during earlier tree-planting and fencing activities.
The project built upon the success of its first two episodes, which took place on September 28, 2024, at the exact location. During these initial episodes, participants planted 800 pine seedlings, contributing to UB’s goal of planting 1 million pine tree seedlings over the next three years.
The GROOM ME initiative aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDG), particularly Goals 13 (Climate Action) and 15 (Life on Land). It reflects the university’s ongoing commitment to advocating sustainable practices for the community and the environment.
