During my college time, my shcool organize an oratorical speech, to which all the 3rd year class with English subject has the freedom to join.

Im one in the list, in fact made me no choice as it is mandatory for our department to simply join and enjoy the contest.

Higher grades, exempted in the final exam, and most specially be posted in the Bulliten, where every student, visitors, parents, and anyone can see and reflected on the board watching your achievement in the lobby area, awaits for the winners. About a hundred of us take the chance, with the panel from other known school in our area.

Then finally after the presentation of every contestant including me, what a relief to finish the speech regardless of winning the contest or not, doesn't matter to me. Then, Im much surprise to know that i got the top vote for all the jury...congrats to me. Below is my winning piece.

My winning entry during my College Oratorical Speech

Today we are living in a world of constant and rapid change that we even sometimes do not notice them. Nowadays we are living in a world that changes very quickly, where globalization makes the headlines with lots of challenges and opportunities.

The call for industrialization and development in different countries like the Philippines create a major impact on employment, trade, travel, immigration, and other areas. The global marketplace blurs the lines between national economies, the communications revolution brings together cultures knowledge, and information. Issues that all countries must deal with-health, enviromment, peace and security-are increasingly global. And the ongoing tragedies of persistent poverty, disease, and conflict have become not just humanitarian concerns, but shared problems as they spill over borders and affect countries around the world.

The World Commission on Environment and Development defined sustainable development as "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." In other words, development must be based on the efficient and environmentally responsible use of all of societies scare resources-natural, human, and economic.

If we try to picture out our future, we are living in the world of uncertainty that we the next generation were not sure with what kind of Mother Earth we will abode. The increasing rate of natural resources depletion, the increasing poverty level and morality, pollution, global warming and the lost of biodiversity are some of our problems today.

Indeed, sustainable development becomes a challenge for us, a challenge that we need to face and we must have a concrete immediate action on it.

To take up these challenges, we need to create new talents, skills and values. This is only possible by taking the responsibility of our future through a personal development and concrete actions, concrete actions that belongs to the new generation our generation.

Do you know what? We, young people constitute 30 percent of the total population? If we are 100 million in the Philippines today, we are about 30 million young people who are to face the challenge. On the other hand we seem to feel more when we are young and slowly change into "products" of society, as we grow older. Yet, while being special, we young people are a changing generation. Today, sports and games are being replaced by drugs, gangsterism and fascism, working at home for the family is being replaced with child labor, slaving away at a factory or selling young bodies, and the alertness of our young mind is being replaced by the numbness of malnutrition and starvation.

With our current status, can we face the challenge for sustainable development if we ourselves are not prepared. Today's young people do not even have the basic weapon for survival, the tool to combat against poverty the skill and abilities in taking up the challenge for sustainable development. The skill that most of the young people have as of today as stated by our Education Secretary are texting and playing computer games.

As an inherator of the planet, we have the right but our right is coupled with obligations. Let us just remain as observers, as problem identifiers. Many of us remain idle. We are country's liabilities not an assets. Dr. Jose Rizal called us the hope of the Motherland, but what a hopeless hope the country can expect from us if we are static and not dynamic.

Our government is trying its best to provide the best education for us. In order to prepare us for our future and for our country. But what are we doing? Many of us are not serious with our studies. Our teachers taught us to get involve even in simple ways in protecting our environment. But try to look around, we dispose our garbage anywhere. We know that burning plastics harm the ozone layer yet many among us become the destroyers of it. It ended that we are oartners to a great catastrophe today, the global warming.

As a Filipino youth let's do something for our generation and for the next generation.

At all level, every individual has to be conscious of this fact and cooperate for a better world.

The chances for such endeavor, sustainable development to be realized depend on your willingness, our willingness to participate in genuine partnership for our common good.

Let's participate actively, let us be dynamic rather than dogmatic, let's reslond to the problem, and let's change our values. We can do something, we can make great things. We are well positioned to push for change. We have the energy enthusiasm to be the dynamic partners for sustainable development.

If only if we will move, if all of us will only get involve, we "The sleeping giant! as what Dr. Joseph Arthur reffered to we can create a great impact for a better a world.

As what President John F. Kennedy says, "ask not what the country can do for you but ask what you can do for your country".

Ladies and gentlemen, my fellow young people can be a partners for this great endeavor for "sustainsble developement? Yes, you and I the youth can indeed be partners of sustainable development!

Have any thoughts?

Let's have a Coffee

Hari