Philippine heritage Tree Museum Day

The University of Negros Occidental – Recoletos celebrated the Heritage Tree Museum Day last May 23, 2013 with the soft-launching of its Philippine Heritage Tree Museum and Environmental Sustainability Mini-Eco Park. Highlighting the global significance of Philippine biodiversity conservation as its way of commemorating the First Anniversary of its Live Museum of Philippine Heritage Trees, the UNO-R@50 greening celebration participants last year will get together and invite all environmental stewardship advocates for a special gathering at Greenheart Hermitage inside its University campus. From adopting the Not-Just-Any-Tree, UNO-R will enhance its greening focus by also adopting NOT JUST GREEN BUT PHILIPPINE GREEN advocacy to include all other indigenous plants which are also part of the Philippine green heritage. Initiated by the University through its Environmental Stewardship Program called UNO-R + EDC Urban Greening Grow-a-Heritage Tree, the tree museum is situated along with the award winning and media featured solar-powered Earth Chapel, the Hanging Urban Garden on Recycled Plastic Bottles, the University Recycling Depot, the indigenous Stations of the Cross, and the Grotto of Our Lady of Environmental Stewardship at Greenheart Hermitage inside the campus.

With the Live Museum of Philippine Heritage Trees inside its campus, UNO-R easily becomes a relaxing and energizing place to go. The growing premium tree species, which are also indigenous, rare and vanishing, have superior mechanical density that make them highly efficient in absorbing CO2 and other air pollutants.

The tree museum is the actualization of UNO-R + EDC Urban Greening Grow-A-Heritage Tree in-Campus reforestation project, which aside from rescuing the high value and endangered endemic trees species and restoring Philippine biodiversity, aims to improve the green cover of towns and cities like Bacolod where pollution and warming temperature are a problem.

 

The heritage trees are taken care of by their Bantay Kahoy, the silent heroes coming from the UNO-R students, faculty and personnel who committed themselves to care for the trees, up to three years, when they can grow by themselves with less human intervention.

 With EDC, READS scholars alumni, UNO-R alumni, and other interested organizations, groups and individuals who would like to support the establishment of its Mini-Eco Park, the University would eventually  also put up the Eco-Museum and Greenheart Souvenir Shop, the picnic grounds and relaxation benches, and the environmental awareness signage and info-billboards. 

 UNO-R integrated into its own the DENR-ERBD objectives in the setting-up of a forest park. Thus, aside from ecological conservation, provision of health benefits, and spiritual upliftment, the Mini-Eco Park will also serve as live laboratory for instruction and research.

—With reports from Mrs. Mely Flores, UCDO