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Jose and Maria Dulce Fernandez Environmental Sanctuary |
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Introduction The Calamianes Group of Islands in northern Palawan is among the most exciting areas for the tourist industry in the Philippines today. There are three major islands: Busuanga, Coron, and Culion. Coron Island – with its unique rock formations, mountain lakes, lagoons, and beaches is the most attractive tourist destination today. Divers explore not only colorful coral and exotic fish but also the remains of historic shipwrecks. The newly expanded airport in Busuanga is bringing in tourists from all over the world. Culion Island lies south of Busuanga – an hour’s ride away by boat. It was formerly a reservation under the Philippines’ Department of Health; here, government doctors, Jesuits, and St. Paul sisters cared for lepers. Hansenite Disease has, meanwhile, been totally eradicated; the community’s former hospital is now a regional medical center. Today, Culion has its own local government dedicated to local development and poverty elimination through responsible tourism. It is aggressively developing the infrastructure of the island, including a network of roads and an airport. Off Culion, there are the islands now being referred to as “New Boracay”, the largest of which is Tambon. This island group; with its white-sand beaches, is the investment area of the group of developers who created Boracay in Aklan into the major tourism destination it is today. Jose “Jobo” and Maria Dulce “Toti” Fernandez Environmental Sanctuary
From Jan. 8-18, Mr. Deo Princesa III, an environmental specialist now on the faculty of Ateneo de Naga University, camped on this property and documented copious natural sources of water and rare flora and fauna including freshwater turtles and rich mangrove areas. On Feb. 7, Loida Lewis, Angie Cruz, Fr. Florge Sy (Parish Priest, Culion), Doy Labios (Loyola College of Culion) , Fr. Joel Tabora and Deo Princesa III(Ateneo de Naga), toured part of the property guided by Mr. Vic Alulor, representing the Alulor family. This group was so impressed with the site’s ecological value that they agreed with Ms. Lewis' observation: “The best way to add value to this property is to do nothing to it; the best way to diminish its value is to ‘develop’ it.” This would, thus, be a perfect site for an ecological sanctuary. With the consent of the Alulor family, on the recommendations of the Jesuits, Ms. Maria Elena “Malena” Fernandez, Filipina citizen, and her designated Filipino/a co-owner, have consented on 19 March 2009, the Feast of St. Joseph, to purchase the Tangyad Property for the purpose of making it an environmental sanctuary in perpetuity in honor of her parents, Jose “Jobo” and Maria Dulce “Toti” Fernandez. In acquiring this property Ms. Fernandez has consented to support the Ateneo-Loyola HOSTEL Project, as explained below. The Ateneo-Loyola HOSTEL Project
Loyola College of Culion is a Jesuit school serving the poor, mainly of Culion, on the high school and college levels – including AB Literature in College. The blossoming tourism activity is motivating the school to offer college and vocational courses relevant to the tourism industry; tourism investors have already requested the school to do this. It will be able to do so, first, in cooperation with the autonomous Ateneo de Naga University to augment its academic resources, and, second, if it can survive a sudden stop in grant funding from the Spanish NGO, ANESVAD, which until this academic year covered 70% of its operational budget. To enable the school to survive by reorienting its training to responsible eco-tourism, a “Teaching Hotel” needs to be built, i.e., the Ateneo-Loyola Hotel for the Study of Ecotourism and Livelihood, or the Ateneo-Loyola HOSTEL. For this purpose a former dormitory next to the Parish Church will be renovated with the agreement of the St. Paul Sisters and the Department of Health. The teaching facility would make instruction in tourism possible, both according to the standards of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) of the Philippines. [Business Plan] Ms. Malena Fernandez has consented to donate the PHP 6 million for the renovation and start-up costs of this project. The teaching hotel will be called: the Hotel Maya The tax-deductible donations to the Ateneo-Loyola Project are to be made through the Philippine Jesuit Foundation in the USA.Last Updated: 04/02/2009 Gallery Animals | Corals | Landscapes | Plants
Aerial View of the Jose and Ma. Dulce Fernandez Environmental Sanctuary
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