Marianas Variety, Friday, January 5, 2007
By Zaldy DandanVariety Editor
BEAUTIFY CNMI! has expanded its cleanup efforts to include stray and dead cats ad dogs. This has been a long ignored, but troublesome and problematic issue that can be successfully managed with coordination, consistency and the leadership of ordinary citizens and other community groups.The government, lest we forget, enacted a stray dog control measure almost 12 years ago, but like most CNMI laws, it has yet to be implemented because the same lawmakers who passed the legislation never bothered to appropriate the required funding.
Friday, January 05, 2007
Wednesday, January 03, 2007
Donation
Soo Min Kim from HE Auto Shop donated 12 boxes of water and two boxes of garbage bags to Beautify CNMI! this afternoon.
Thank you, Mr. Kim!
Thank you, Mr. Kim!
CNMI National Anthem
I attended the memorial service held for the late President Gerald R Ford yesterday afternoon at American Memorial Park. My good friend Gus Kaipat sang the US National Anthem and the CNMI National Anthem at the beginning of the service.
I recorded Gus singing the CNMI Anthem using the video option on my Canon S80. When I got home I downloaded a program that allows you to rip the sound off of video.
The sound is pretty clear. It was very windy, but I kept my hand over the microphone to keep it from howling. The thing that sounds like a dog barking is my Canon S2 snapping pictures while I take the video with the S80. If you listen carefully, you can hear birds in the background singing along with Gus.
I took Gus' singing and played it over some of the pictures that I have taken (and three that Herb Soll took in Pagan) over the last nine months in Saipan (and Tinian). I tried to incorporate elements of our culture, our natural beauty, and life in the CNMI.
This is the first draft. What do you think?
Angelo
Letter to the Editor and other News
Saipan Tribune, Wednesday, January 3, 2006
Important partners, too!
Your Person of the Year article forgot to mention that the Saipan Tribune and your parent company, Tan Holdings Corp., are two of the most important partners of Beautify CNMI! Your weekly (and sometimes daily) reports of our various activities and campaigns have been essential in our goal "to enhance the CNMI’s natural beauty and foster community pride in its residents and visitors." You heap too much praise on us without recognizing your own involvement. Through your written words and photos, your paper has brought our vision to the people of the CNMI. We couldn’t have been as successful as we have been without your involvement. The honor you bestowed on us is as much yours as it is ours.
As for Tan Holdings, your company has been involved in everything we have done. Tan Holdings’ employees, friends, and family members have participated in cleanups, donated supplies, contributed ideas in meetings, and donated cash contributions.
What more can I say?
Thank you.
Angelo O’Connor Villagomez
Restoration Committee chair, Beautify CNMI!
Marianas Resource Conservation & Development Council
Other News:
>>>Beautify CNMI was mentioned in Walt Goodridge's weekly commentary
>>>We got a tongue in cheek reference by Sour Grape's Bruce Bateman
>>>The Saipan Tribune is also reporting that Beautify CNMI! is taking on responsible pet ownership (This is partially true; we are taking on the stray and dead dog issue, of which responsible pet ownership is a part)
>>>Four litter bugs have recently been busted
>>>We've also been asked by one of our partners to do something about the supposed "stench" eminating from the Garapan sewers:
Marianas Variety, Wednesday, January 3, 2006
Garapan sewer stench driving tourists away
By Emmanuel T. Erediano
Variety News
Staff
A STENCH said to be coming from the drainage system at the Paseo de Marianas in Garapan is driving tourist away, according to one of the restaurant owners in the area.
Kinpachi Restaurant and Paseo De Marianas Promoters general manager Misako Kamata said businesses in the area have been complaining about the foul odor for quite some time now.
She said tourists and residents who visit the Paseo have also complained about the sewer stench that “seems to be coming from all directions.”
Although people who work in the area seem to be used to it, the stench still poses serious problems for businesses, especially restaurants and bars, Kamata said.
She added that customers may lose their appetite and decide to eat somewhere else when they smell the disturbing odor from the sewer.
Kamata said she has already reported the matter to the proper authorities but nothing has been done about it yet.
She said Beautify CNMI! shares her concern and told her in a letter dated Dec. 23 that the group may either request the contractor to deploy a half-day cleaner in the area seven days a week, “or perhaps add a little money for the additional task.”
Beautify CNMI!’s junk goods committee also told her that the contractor hired to get rid of the problem will be given a stern warning to keep the site clean, or else the contract will be terminated.
Kamata said the Paseo de Marianas Promoters have already done all they can to enhance the area.
Now she said, the sewer stench is the only problem left and it’s creating a bad image for the area.
“We can clean this place ourselves. In fact we’re doing that already,” Kamata said, adding that they are willing to help whatever government agency will take action on the sewer stench problem.
“I hope (Beautify CNMI!) will include a solution to this problem in their program,” she said.
Important partners, too!
Your Person of the Year article forgot to mention that the Saipan Tribune and your parent company, Tan Holdings Corp., are two of the most important partners of Beautify CNMI! Your weekly (and sometimes daily) reports of our various activities and campaigns have been essential in our goal "to enhance the CNMI’s natural beauty and foster community pride in its residents and visitors." You heap too much praise on us without recognizing your own involvement. Through your written words and photos, your paper has brought our vision to the people of the CNMI. We couldn’t have been as successful as we have been without your involvement. The honor you bestowed on us is as much yours as it is ours.
As for Tan Holdings, your company has been involved in everything we have done. Tan Holdings’ employees, friends, and family members have participated in cleanups, donated supplies, contributed ideas in meetings, and donated cash contributions.
What more can I say?
Thank you.
Angelo O’Connor Villagomez
Restoration Committee chair, Beautify CNMI!
Marianas Resource Conservation & Development Council
Other News:
>>>Beautify CNMI was mentioned in Walt Goodridge's weekly commentary
>>>We got a tongue in cheek reference by Sour Grape's Bruce Bateman
>>>The Saipan Tribune is also reporting that Beautify CNMI! is taking on responsible pet ownership (This is partially true; we are taking on the stray and dead dog issue, of which responsible pet ownership is a part)
>>>Four litter bugs have recently been busted
>>>We've also been asked by one of our partners to do something about the supposed "stench" eminating from the Garapan sewers:
Marianas Variety, Wednesday, January 3, 2006
Garapan sewer stench driving tourists away
By Emmanuel T. Erediano
Variety News
Staff
A STENCH said to be coming from the drainage system at the Paseo de Marianas in Garapan is driving tourist away, according to one of the restaurant owners in the area.
Kinpachi Restaurant and Paseo De Marianas Promoters general manager Misako Kamata said businesses in the area have been complaining about the foul odor for quite some time now.
She said tourists and residents who visit the Paseo have also complained about the sewer stench that “seems to be coming from all directions.”
Although people who work in the area seem to be used to it, the stench still poses serious problems for businesses, especially restaurants and bars, Kamata said.
She added that customers may lose their appetite and decide to eat somewhere else when they smell the disturbing odor from the sewer.
Kamata said she has already reported the matter to the proper authorities but nothing has been done about it yet.
She said Beautify CNMI! shares her concern and told her in a letter dated Dec. 23 that the group may either request the contractor to deploy a half-day cleaner in the area seven days a week, “or perhaps add a little money for the additional task.”
Beautify CNMI!’s junk goods committee also told her that the contractor hired to get rid of the problem will be given a stern warning to keep the site clean, or else the contract will be terminated.
Kamata said the Paseo de Marianas Promoters have already done all they can to enhance the area.
Now she said, the sewer stench is the only problem left and it’s creating a bad image for the area.
“We can clean this place ourselves. In fact we’re doing that already,” Kamata said, adding that they are willing to help whatever government agency will take action on the sewer stench problem.
“I hope (Beautify CNMI!) will include a solution to this problem in their program,” she said.
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
2007: The Micronesia Challenge
This is the year!
It is time to start talking about the Micronesia Challenge. Here are some links:
Blogs of note:
Micronesians in Island Conservation
MIC is a peer learning network of conservation leaders from government and non-governmental organizations committed to protecting and sustainably managing resources in their islands. MIC’s approach is to strengthen the collaborative, organizational, technical, and policy skills of leaders and organizations so that, together with communities, they can advance the conservation and management of important natural areas in Micronesia.
Marianas Resource Conservation & Development Council
The Marianas Resource Conservation & Development Council is working to raise public awareness of coral reef issues in Saipan. This is their story.
Coral Bones
Will tropical coral reefs be the first ecosystem to be eliminated by global warming?
Beautiful Oceans: Coral Reef and Eco Diving Magazine
A tropical warm water space for scuba divers and snorkelers interested in coral reef biology and best diving practices.
NGO News:
The Nature Conservancy
The World Conservation Union
Conservation International
It is time to start talking about the Micronesia Challenge. Here are some links:
Blogs of note:
Micronesians in Island Conservation
MIC is a peer learning network of conservation leaders from government and non-governmental organizations committed to protecting and sustainably managing resources in their islands. MIC’s approach is to strengthen the collaborative, organizational, technical, and policy skills of leaders and organizations so that, together with communities, they can advance the conservation and management of important natural areas in Micronesia.
Marianas Resource Conservation & Development Council
The Marianas Resource Conservation & Development Council is working to raise public awareness of coral reef issues in Saipan. This is their story.
Coral Bones
Will tropical coral reefs be the first ecosystem to be eliminated by global warming?
Beautiful Oceans: Coral Reef and Eco Diving Magazine
A tropical warm water space for scuba divers and snorkelers interested in coral reef biology and best diving practices.
NGO News:
The Nature Conservancy
The World Conservation Union
Conservation International
Blogging in Beta Blogger
I'm switching this blog over to the new Blogger. Depending on how motivated I am to sit in front of the computer, it will take a day or five to get this blog looking pretty again.
The new Blogger is pretty fancy. The new archive system allows you to navigate to any page within the site from any page. Nifty! You can also bounce between the next or the previous post with the click of a button. Awesome! It also allows the webmaster to attach labels to each post. Woot!
It is also a lot easier for the webmaster (me) to edit and to play around with the format of the blog. Anything that makes my life easier is good.
Happy New Year,
Angelo
P.S. Would you like to contribute to this website? I could sure use the help if you would like to be the one to report on our activites, post pictures, or whatever. It is really easy and I can give you a quick tutorial.
The possibilities of what we can post here are limitless. Are you a photographer? Do you want to post your pictures of the beautiful places in the CNMI on this website for the world to see? Are you an aspiring journalist? Want a worldwide audience?
The new Blogger is pretty fancy. The new archive system allows you to navigate to any page within the site from any page. Nifty! You can also bounce between the next or the previous post with the click of a button. Awesome! It also allows the webmaster to attach labels to each post. Woot!
It is also a lot easier for the webmaster (me) to edit and to play around with the format of the blog. Anything that makes my life easier is good.
Happy New Year,
Angelo
P.S. Would you like to contribute to this website? I could sure use the help if you would like to be the one to report on our activites, post pictures, or whatever. It is really easy and I can give you a quick tutorial.
The possibilities of what we can post here are limitless. Are you a photographer? Do you want to post your pictures of the beautiful places in the CNMI on this website for the world to see? Are you an aspiring journalist? Want a worldwide audience?
Monday, January 01, 2007
Person of the Year
Saipan Tribune, Monday, January 01, 2007PERSON OF THE YEAR
Beautify CNMI!
By Marconi Calindas
Reporter
In a span of less than a year, Beautify CNMI! has become a byword among the CNMI community members, garnering respect not only within the islands but also across the nation, making the group this year's Saipan Tribune Person of the Year.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 9 Office said it best: “Beautify CNMI! is one of the best thing that has happened in 2006.”
In a briefing in November, U.S. EPA program manager John McCarroll said that Beautify CNMI! puts the Commonwealth in the spotlight among its Pacific island neighbors.
“Beautify CNMI! is really a great program for taking leadership in the largest cleanup,” McCarroll said, adding that the group's Adopt-A-Beach Program, Anti-Litter Campaign, and junk car removal program, among many others, are all commendable.
McCarroll added that Beautify CNMI! is unique in the Pacific Region. “They have done so much.”
Click HERE for the rest of the story
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