Climate change is upon us. In fact, experts say it’s happening now as seen in the Earth’s rising temperature, melting ice caps and rising sea levels. But despite these staggering observations there is a rampant “climate change denial” in the absence of concrete laws and policies to fight one of the most defining issues of our time.
The recent events of Typhoon Haiyan, the biggest storm ever recorded in the Earth’s history, had become the world’s sobering reality.
Thus, the Headshot Clinic, Climate Change Commission, together with Emmy-award winning Filipino producer Michael Carandang, supported by Facial Care Centre’s Corporate Social Responsibility program, have decided to spearhead Earth Faces, a formidable project that aims to raise awareness for Climate Change and at the same time, send a message of hope to Filipinos and the rest of the world.
Earth Faces endeavors to capture through film and photographs, the human strength to overcome risk and adversity as told by the survivors of Yolanda. It is a storytelling of portraits that weave a magnificent tapestry of human resilience, linking the lives of these survivors and those closely praying for them. In a span of 7 days, they’ve met and captured the smiles of 22 families in 4 island provinces and handed over their family portraits. For many of the survivors, it was their first family picture; for others, the new portraits replaced lost, old photographs.
Earth Faces officially launched last April 24, 2014 at Greenbelt 5 Fashion Walk in celebration of this year’s Earth Day. The one-night event, hosted by RJ Ledesma, was attended by media personalities, advocates and friends from press and media. The digital exhibit of the 100 faces were displayed throughout the entire event. Facial Care Centre’s newest face and Climate Change Commission ambassador, Bianca Gonzalez, headed the event presenting the Earth Faces campaign and sharing her experiences during the Visayas outreach project. Aside from the digital portrait display, another highlight of the night is the Earth Faces feature presentation, introduced by its Emmy-award winning Fliipino producer and director, Michael Carandang.
The completed work will be given to the Climate Change Commission, accepted by Climate Change Commission secretary Lucille Sering during the event. This video aims to influence climate change policy so that it may serve as a reminder of what has happened and what will continue to happen if things remain as they are. The body of work hopes to bolster concrete steps that it may help in preventing such tragedies from happening again.
For the country, Earth Faces may be a story of how a nation came together in solidarity with those affected. For Yolanda survivors, it is a testament of their willingness to live on and endure the odds. For the rest of the world, it is and always will be, a momentous display of Filipino spirit. Unstoppable. Unbreakable. Unrelenting.
The beauty of the human spirit.
Be part of the change. Visit www.climate.gov.ph and find out how you can help.