MANILA, Philippines — Tzu Chi Foundation, which originated in Taiwan, has scheduled a charity run on July 21 for one, three, five and 10 kilometers at the UP Diliman campus. They will be distributing loot bags that have hydration cups made of wheat straw as part of its massive, aggressive global campaign for recycling farm wastes, among others.
According to Tzu Chi, the marching words for the campaign is: “wave goodbye to single-use plastic and paper cups, and say hello to our collapsible wheat straw cups!”
The wheat straw cup is Tzu Chi’s effort at eliminating waste – specifically, the thousands of single-use plastic and paper cups that litter races.
Just like rice, wheat straw after harvest is considered as agricultural waste and burned – until someone discovered its many uses: from compost, animal bedding and feed to materials to make paper, biofuel and building materials.
As a drinking cup, wheat straw is safe given that it comes from nature and is chemical and toxin free. Proceeds from the charity run will help sustain the scholars under Tzu Chi’s Educational Assistance Program.
Since its founding 30 years ago, Tzu Chi has helped over 13,000 disadvantaged elementary, high school and college youth through scholarships that cover various school expenses and allowances.
Education is one of four main missions of the foundation established by Buddhist nun Dharma Master Cheng Yen in Taiwan in 1966.
In its website, Tzu Chi narrates that disaster and extreme weather are becoming more common because of global climate changes, resulting from humankind’s irresponsible actions against nature. Environmental Protection could be the only solution to solve this problem and it should be promoted to inspire everyone’s participation, it said.
According to Tzu Chi in 1990, garbage collectors staged a work (collection) stoppage. Master Cheng Yen was on her way to a speaking engagement and saw the piles of uncollected garbage rotting in the streets. After her speech, she urged the people to “do recycling with your clapping hands,” and encouraged everyone to recycle and love the earth.
Aside from recycling, it also incorporates environmental protection concepts in all its building constructions and recycling centers, the group also said. Grass and trees are planted in abundance and floor bricks are used to allow water to seep into the soil and allow the earth to breathe. Water resources are also recycled and reused, with rainwater recycling systems and water conservation systems used in every building.
Solar energy is used for street lighting to conserve energy and natural light and ventilation are incorporated in structural designs of Tzu Chi buildings, not only to reduce or eliminate the use of air-conditioning systems, but also to bring us closer to nature.
“From caring for our earth to caring for our heart, Tzu Chi promotes a healthy diet of fruits and vegetables over meat, as well as a simple lifestyle to reduce our carbon footprint and incorporate recycling into our daily lives. Choosing a vegetarian diet helps in the promotion of environmental protection and can reduce common illnesses,” Tzu Chi said.
Furthermore, Tzu Chi said its environmental volunteers come from all walks of life – students, businessmen, government leaders, the elderly and even the partially disabled. As of 2016, Tzu Chi counted 105,457 recycling volunteers, 548 recycling stations and 10,204 recycling points in 16 countries, which host government workers, offices, and even school field trips to educate people on recycling.
Human activities are taking an increasing toll on our planet. As Master Cheng Yen says, “Natural disasters arise from man-made destruction of natural resources. Human beings, in order to enjoy, greedily destroy earth resources… Facing so many disasters, we should inspire kindness, compassion, love, and benevolence. As long as everyone adjusts living habits and behavior, we can mitigate natural disasters.”
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