THE REPORT:

May 15-17, 2009; Setubal, Portugal

I. COMING TOGETHER IS A BEGINNING…

Friday, May 15, 2009-

The sum of small efforts, taken as one, equaled to and meant a big success for us. In nexus, the totality of the thinking or planning, sensing or feeling, acting and manipulating coastal and environmental activities, giving attention to details- collectively and proudly uttered the achievement of the Philippine Delegation to the 5th World Congress of “The Most Beautiful Bays in the World Club (or in short, WMBB Club)”, which was held recently, last May 14-17, 2009 in Estalagem do Sado, Setubal, Portugal. The World Congress Theme was “United By Oceans” (Oceanos Que Nos Unem).

Perhaps for some people, our advocacy could be just a drop in the ocean but for us it was really a great success. We experienced this successful endeavor definitely because of the long yet smart preparations done by the officers, members, organizers and nature advocates of the WMBB club. For the Philippines, this was spearheaded by Mr. Hubert D’Aboville and wife Ara, with other delegates, to wit- Dr. Alberto Fenix, Jr. and his wife, Isabel, Ex-Councilor Daniel Enriquez, Mrs. Luz E. Lombos and Ms. Therese Goldenaire E. Lombos, the Champion in the Worldwide Essay Writing Contest. Her entry was about the Puerto Galera Bay of our country.

As the famous saying goes, “The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” Our trip first to Amsterdam albeit it was a long and tedious one was safe and enjoyable. Oh, it was an experience of a 12-hour, butt-aching travel aboard the Air France-KLM airplane! There was no ennui but excitement and enthusiasm to represent and bring the pride and beauty of our country, particularly the Puerto Galera Bay. Moreover, it was the friendly people and their warm reception who made the event awesome plus the fact that nature was indeed breathtaking, most especially the beautiful Setubal Bay, the clean Setubal City itself and its cold climate, and the historical Lisbon City and other suburban areas of Portugal.

At the outset, there was a registration which took almost an hour. We were given our I.D.’s, WMBB official pins and bags where we found the packet of information necessary for the 3-day sessions. The opening session of the first day started a bit late but it was superimposed by the presence and wonderful messages of the following dignitaries—

· Maria das Dores Meira, the Mayor of Setubal

· Jerome Bignon, President of the Club of the Most Beautiful Bays in the World

· Jose Manuel Parreira, Tourism Portugal I.P.

Later after the coffee break, we heard speakers from different countries—

· Mario Ruivo- President of the National Council of the Environment and Sustainable Development

· Nancy Hochstrasser-Castillo- representing the Tadoussac Bay (Canada) and Banderas Bay (Mexico)

· Hong, Jong Uk- Ambassade De Coree Premier Secretaire, Korea-Expo 2012-Yeosu “The Living Ocean and Coast”; The Organizing Committee presented Expo 2012 and they received a round of warm applause.

Ms. Therese Goldenaire E. Lombos, 18 years old from the Philippines stole the scene because aside from being the youngest, she was awarded and recognized for being the First-Prized Winner in the Worldwide Essay Writing Contest which was entitled as “Here Is My Bay”. This was participated by many students- imagine just in Nah Trang, Vietnam, Therese Goldenaire defeated 200 Vietnamese students as reported, and many more from different countries. She accepted the certificates both in English and French translations. Well, she was admired by everyone for her great feat. Hence, she received the accolades from the participants of the World Congress.

The second session (afternoon) —

· The first talk was given by Carlos Sousa Reis, representing the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon and Permanent Forum for the Affairs of the Sea (Ministry of National Defense).

· This was followed by another talk entitled, “The Elimination of Plastic Bags” by Eric Lore.

· The second message was delivered by Jerome Bignon, President of the WMBB Club and moderator of the session with Andre Martins as Co-Moderator & Chairman of the Setubal Bay Association.

· Common Bottlenose Dolphin’s Population in Sado Estuary- Institute for Nature Conservation and Biodiversity/Department of Management of Classified Areas-Wetlands- was discussed by Marina Sequeira and Joao Carlos Farinha.

· The topic- Oceans: diversity, management and future, Sub-Honorary Director of College of France, Scientific Committee—was led and explained by Daniel Jouvance and Yves Le Gal.

The session was closed by Tito Rosa, President of the Institute for Nature Conservation and Biodiversity at around 7:00 p.m.

Cheery lunch and dinner were served with their delicious and exotic culinary specialties. Bottles of wine were plenty. White wines and red wines did match with sardines, grilled fish and grilled spare ribs. By the way, fishing is their prominent industry. The fado, classical music added fun and romantic ambience, too.

II. KEEPING TOGETHER IS PROGRESS…

Saturday, May 16, 2009-

Just like a ladder with ascending steps, this event was likened to a commensurable increasing success, there were rungs of opportunities in order to reach its highest level by way of expressing and pronouncing reports, opinions, and resolutions; and by imparting and sharing a wealth of information and concepts.

The General Assembly of the Club of the Most Beautiful Bays in the World Session reserved for members of the Most Beautiful Bays in the World Club…T’is the reason why they were in an open, semi-circled formation. Members had the chance to talk and report the progress of the bay whereupon they represent. Mr. Hubert d’Aboville reported to the club that Puerto Galera Bay has established its own website and presently working to make the town as the first plastic free municipality in the Philippines. Mr. Alberto Fenix proposed many inputs during the deliberation on club’s charter amendments which were unanimously approved by the body. Mr. Danny Enriquez who will report on the environmental projects/activities at Puerto Galera Bay such as mangrove tree planting, underwater clean up etc. was not able to report due to limited time. An election was also held this session. Jerome Bignon and Bruno Bodard were reelected as president and secretary general of the club respectively.

III. WORKING TOGETHER IS SUCCESS…

Sunday, May 17, 2009-

The much-awaited tour around the Setubal Bay was participated by almost of the attendees of the 5^th World Congress. This fun was continued in the evening when there were much revels and when gastronomic dinner was served to us. Each deserved this treat after working together.

Coming home, everyone became ideal in every respect. We became dreamers. We were urged to dream more for our beloved country and put this into action. The wonderful experiences would link us not by just being “United by Oceans” but by being connected with immediate actions towards our vision. Conclusively, the words of Henry Ford, "Coming together is a beginning, keeping together is progress and working together is success." are proper for this special environmental event.

Written by: Edited by :

Luz E. Lombos Danny Enriquez

Academy Directress

Lombosco Academy

June 1, 2009

Additional Note: Environmental Impression on Setubal Bay

1. The City is very clean. You cannot see litters around the city.

2. Despite it is a big city with multiple use of the bay, e.g. yatch moorings, tourism, fishing industry, ship yard etc., they are able to maintain the cleanliness of the bay and the water quality. You can’t smell foul odor from the water of the bay.

3. The height of the building is almost the same usually 2-3 story building with uniform roof color- brick red and brown.

Puerto Galera in Oriental Mindoro was recently cited as the "Most Beautiful Bay in the World" by a European-based advocacy group of the same name.

The citation, given last April 2 in Nha Trang City, Vietnam in effect enlisted Puerto Galera as a new member of the Most Beautiful Bays in the World Club with over 80 members from various countries.

The protection, enhancement, promotion and commitment of the world’s top bays are the club’s fundamental mantra to hasten economic development without exploiting the natural resources.

Councilor Daniel T. Enriquez and Hubbert D’Aboville, a French expatriate, received the significant citation. D’Aboville, who heads the Philippine-based Together-Ensemble foundation, has been a long-time partner of the local government, alongside with the Locsin Foundation, headed by Tito Locsin.

In a recent press conference, both sectors expressed hopes that the municipals "quality" tourism coupled with tight environmental health security would boost not only the tourism industry in the Oriental Mindoro, but also the country as whole.

Enriquez, who heads the Committee on Environmental Protection, and representing Mayor Teo Atienza, cited anew the importance of the award for them and his municipality.

Into the world tourism map

Winning the award marked the gradual inclusion of the country into a world tourism map, saying that the citation was an honor not only for the municipal government, but also for the country.

"We hope that through this membership, Puerto Galera will be known and included into the world tourism map. With this also, we are looking forward that Puerto Galera Bay will be more environmentally protected by following wise tourism practices being implemented by the other member bays," Enriquez said.

In three months, the municipality, known for its finest beaches, lured million of local tourists and more than 12,000 foreign tourists, according to Venancio Yap, municipal administrator.

The influx of local and foreign tourists shows that indeed Puerto Galera has been eyed as one of the country’s prominent spots in the tourism enclave.

Tourism: ‘life and blood’

Yap said the tourism industry in Puerto Galera is the "life and blood of the people," citing that only a small portion of the area can be utilized for agricultural purposes and the rest are intended for tourism purposes.

However, D’Aboville cautioned the officials over the increasing number of tourists, saying a well-prepared scheme to address the needs of the tourists is needed, knowing that Filipinos has been acclaimed for their warm hospitality.

"The more we bring in tourists, the more we must be organized," D’Aboville said.

According to Yap, the capacity to receive tourists must be the main concern of the local government, saying that any discrepancies might trigger the death of the tourism industry in the area.

Battling for sustainable tourism

Locsin said the "fantastic biodiversity" should not be threatened, stressing that the concerned officials, groups, and agencies should map out a strategy "to minimize the impact and make it sustainable."

Yap further said that any ecological imbalance and biodiversity destruction would "mean total starvation in the area."

In response to the posing threat of the continuous tourism outburst, Vice Mayor Juan S. Ascan, Jr. assured that the local government has already installed administrative and legal systems of safeguards to shield the environment from any harm.

"We have ordinances regulating activities in the different beaches, as well as in the mountains and all around Puerto Galera. Aside from that, we conducted some meetings in every barangay to disseminate some activities in connection with conservation and protection of our natural resources," Ascan said.

To really preserve Puerto Galera’s biodiversity, they reactivated the "Bantay Dagat" project to watch activities not only in the beaches, but also in the diving sites.

He added that their tourist guides undergo seminars to properly guide the tourists.

He said the municipal administration is sincere in taking its full-swing effort to also maintain peace and order in the area.

Quality tourism

Due to diverse and unique seascapes, Puerto Galera was tagged as a "Man and Biosphere (MAB) Reserved," by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1970. In 2000, it gained prominence, following the award given by the Department of Tourism as the 9th Tourist destination in the Philippine archipelago.

Indeed, the fantastic biodiversity coupled with the commitment to protect the environment made Puerto Galera achieve their grandeur in both local and global tourism arena.

It’s not the "quantity" tourism that counts, but "quality" tourism.

The Puerto Galera Bay in northern Oriental Mindoro is now a member of the prestigious Club of Most Beautiful Bays in the World.

Supported by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the club is an international non-government organization based in Vannes, France which aims to promote, protect and develop marine and bay sources.

It was founded in Berlin in March 1997, upon the initiative by the tourism office of the Vannes region in the Gulf of Morbihan in France.

Puerto Galera is the 32^nd bay in the world to be recognized as among the world’s most beautiful and the third in Asia after the Halong and Nha Trang Bays in Vietnam. It is the first in the Philippines.

The accreditation was based on four concerns: protection, enhancement, promotion and local people’s commitment to the project.

Puerto Galera’s winning features were captured by Frenchman Hubbert D’Aboville, 50, in an audio-visual documentary he presented before 80 club members in Agadir, Morocco, in November last year.

On May 7, D’Aboville turned over the diploma of club membership to the municipal government, through Vice Mayor Juan Ascan, at his house in Villa Malasimbo during the launching of the Puerto Galera Bay Association, the club’s local chapter. Over a hundred guests came, the Frenchman said.

The Puerto Galera Bays club membership was recognized on March 30 in Nha Trang. The club has been helping it gain worldwide publicity.

D’Aboville showed to his guests the slide presentation that won the membership diploma for the bay.

Discovery

The documentary narrated that Puerto Galera was discovered by Spanish explorers Martin de Goiti and Juan de Salcedo on their way to Manila in 1570. Since the 10^th century, it has been known to seafarers as a trading port and strategic harbor along the vital shipping routes to and from the near East, Indian coast, Indochinese coast, China, various points within the Philippine archipelago, and the kingdoms of Sumatra and Java.

According to residents, the town of Puerto Galera used to be a lonely place as nobody wanted to inherit the beach area from their parents, until it was discovered in the 1960s by European backpackers.

D’Aboville said the University of the Philippines established a marine biological station in the town in the mid-1930s.

The post has identified 121 fish species (from the reefs); from the families of Pomacantridae, 140 species; Pomacanthidaw, five species; and Chaetodontidae, 15 species; nine out of 16 seagrass species in the whole world; 19 of the 40 mangrove species in the Philippines (dominant are the Rhizopora apiculata, Avicennia of ficinalis and the Avicennia marina); 152 out of 400 coral species in the country; and the rare hard corals, Anacropora puertogalerae.

In the ’70s, Puerto Galera became a "Man and Biosphere Reserve", an environmental program of the UNESCO, owing to its diverse and unique marine and terrestrial flora and fauna.

In 2000, the Department of Tourism declared it the ninth tourist destination in the Philippines.

D’Aboville, a forester, married Araceli Valenzuela, a Filipina and granddaughter of revolutionary hero Pio Valenzuela, in 1982. Araceli was then engaged in tourism work in Manila.

Later, D’Aboville commissioned a man to look all over the country for a place to a stay. After a month, the man could not find a place to his liking, he said.

On their 10^th wedding anniversary, the Frenchman was worried about his gift to his wife. "My kids saved me on the evening of Dec. 30, 1992 at the Coco Beach. They were holding beautiful shells from the shore of Puerto Galera".

The following day, D’Aboville went to Tony Taylor, owner of the Ponderosa golf course in Puerto Galera, and was shown a 2,000 square-meter property. "It was just the size of my lot in Manila, I wanted more space to stay outside", he said.

One day, as he traversed Mount Malasimbo, he climbed a tamarind tree and saw a scenic view of Puerto Galera. "And that’s it", he said.

A certain Angela Cataquis showed him a land title covering an area of 10 hectares and one square meter, which, incidentally, was the number of years D’Aboville, had been married (10 years and one day). Right out, the land purchase was consummated.

"We have had the best relationship with the Cataquises since then", said D’Aboville.

Now a resident of Puerto Galera for 25 years, D’Aboville has been bringing many of his countrymen to Puerto Galera. He rents a house in Manila, where he manages a power and company. He is involved in a rural electrification project in Masbate, which is financed by the French government.

Personal Advocacy

D’Aboville’s commitment is more than personal. "Boracay is degraded after 20 years. Excess of something will kill a place. Development is very tricky; you have to think a plan. We don’t want this to happen to Puerto Galera", he said.

"This world is so small, fragile. We’re caretakers for a short time, I also care for myself and to live longer, we have to protect while enjoying the environment. It’s our responsibility to keep it. I’m terrified at the continuing cutting of trees in the country. People seem to not be scared of the effects", he said.

He remains steadfast in his advocacy for Puerto Galera, following up what the municipal government has done on reported cases of illegal logging.

A hectare of coffee plantation was started by his farm manager, Maning Morillo, a graduate of the University of the Philippines.

"We will plant seedlings to be given away to the people around us. I can buy their produce and sell them to Nestlé. It can be like a cooperative", he said. "They’ll be happy and this will even stop soil erosion", he said.

D’Aboville has been talking with key people. "Whether the diploma will remain on the mayor’s table or the recognition will remain as such is to be seen. And I don’t know whether they’ve understood me".

"People here are so familiar with Puerto Galera that they take it for granted. We’re not much concerned with money but with conservation [of resources and beauty], job [generation], then attracting tourism. Purity of air, freedom and others are what the paying tourists are after," said D’Aboville.

Because of D’Aboville’s contributions, Councilor Daniel Enriquez has proposed to make the Frenchman an "adopted son" of the town.

The Most Beautiful Bay Association-Philippine chapter recently held its first general assembly at the Puerto Galera municipal gymnasium to preserve and promote Puerto Galera Bay, which was named one of the world’s best bays.

There were presentations from different sectors in the tourism, cultural, environmental, government and people’s sectors to create synergy among the stakeholders of the town. Puerto Galera Mayor Hubbert Dolor was the guest speaker in the event.

Puerto Galera Bay was admitted as member of the Paris-based Most Beautiful Bays in the World Club in April 2005 during its annual assembly Nha Trang, Vietnam.

The award was given to the bay because of its natural beauty, diverse marine life, rich history and important economic contribution. The bay is a sanctuary to 152 coral species and 19 mangrove species in the country, and nine out of the world’s seagrass species.

Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro—With the onset of summer, people from all walks of life, all over the country, will once again troop to this island resort to savor the God-given natural beauty of the tropics. Puerto Galera, which is likened to a "jewelry box" for containing precious and unique marine life, is gifted for being at the heart of the "center of the world’s marine biodiversity ", which is the Verde Island Passage.

The unique position of Puerto Galera in the mainstream of Verde Island Passage could be the reason why this island resort was made the 32nd member of the Paris-based World’s Most Beautiful Bays Club (WMBB), a singular distinction still unsurpassed by any bays in the Philippines.

The WMBB Club is sponsored by UNESCO, which also declared Puerto Galera a biosphere reserve under its Man and the Biosphere Programme in the 1970s. The Verde Island Passage is at the apex of the so-called Coral Triangle – the Philippines, Indonesia, and Malaysia – which has the distinction of being the "global center of marine biodiversity".

The passage houses 2,983 individual species of algae, corals, crustaceans, mollusks, fishes, marine reptiles, and marine mammals, based on a study conducted by scientists Carpenter and Springer in 2005.

As part of the triangle or the "eco-region", Verde Island Passage is under the Sulu-Sulawesi Seascape, and is one of the only four Marine Biodiversity Conservation Corridors in the Philippines.

The four MBBCCs are the Balabac Strait that links Sulu Sea with the South China Sea; the Tri-National Sea Turtle Corridor that links Sulu Sea with the Sulawesi Sea; the Cagayan Ridge (Tubbataha Reef National Park, Palawan); and the Verde Island Passage.

Puerto Galera, located on the northern part of the island of Mindoro, was named 2005’s Most Beautiful Bay by the Paris-based Les Plus Belles Baies Du Monde (The most Beautiful Bays in the World) club. A popular vacation spot, known for its beautiful beaches and proximity to the nation’s capital, joins 29 other bays from different countries in the prestigious list.

Puerto Galera, which means "Port of the Galleon" is a series of landlocked coves. The bay’s formation makes it an ideal and safe docking area for seafaring vessels. Its past is riddled with stories about Chinese and Spanish ships that traded with the native Mangyans and sheltered in the bay. A gold and marble mining industry provided income throughout the centuries. It’s great diversity of marine life perfect for scuba diving, its protected mangroves and rainforest mountains are testament to the island’s unique ecosystem.

The club, a UNESCO-supported, non-government organization, bestowed the title to Puerto Galera last April 2, 2005 during its general assembly in Na Thrang, Vietnam. The chosen bays worldwide are known for their natural beauty, diverse marine life, rich cultural heritage and important contribution to the local economic activity. These factors are in line with the club’s aim to promote, protect, and enhance the world’s most beautiful bays and to enhance the area’s sustainable economic development through preservation of its natural resources. The protection and conservation of these identified assets are for the benefit of future generations

Businessman and French expat Hubert d’Aboville was the main driving force behind the movement to get Puerto Galera on the international map. With the assistance of Councilor Daniel Enriquez, they were able to make a presentation to the club for the inclusion of Puerto Galera in the list. The main objective of the move was to harness the inevitable power of development and focus it on one goal: Puerto Galera, and the nation as a whole, should benefit from this natural tourist destination.

d’Aboville and Enriquez mapped out their plan and presented it to the town’s leading families and businesses. The plan was well received by everyone together with the local government where it was approved upon first reading.

In a course of six months’ work, with the support of the municipality and private enterprises, d’Aboville set off for Morocco to present Puerto Galera to the clubs’ selection committee.

All of that hard work paid off. A resounding "yes" was heard from the selection committee, making Puerto Galera one of the world’s finest bays.

"It’s just like opening a jewelry box," says d’Aboville, portraying his 25-year romance with Puerto Galera. Calling this municipality by the sea his home since 1995, d’Aboville was given the title of Adopted Son of Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro, last June 8, 2005.

On October 5, 2006, a photo exhibit representing all 30 most beautiful bays in the world will be organized at UNESCO in Paris. Its President Jerome Bignon, a French congressman, together with Bruno Bodard, secretary general of the world association, are finalizing all details.

Thanks to Ambassador H. E. Jose Zaide, the Philippine embassy in France, for his efforts to make this project a reality.

Adventure-seekers who step on the shores of Puerto Galera are forever enchanted by the place. Some keep going back there, others decide to live the rest of their lives there. One couple who built their residence there 22 years ago were Hubert d’ Aboville, a Frenchman, and his Filipino wife, Ara Valenzuela. Hubert went on to promote the fabled island cove by talking about it with unbridled enthusiasm during every trip he took to Europe and his native France. His efforts have borne fruit. Puerto Galera has just garnered The World’s Most Beautiful Bays award for the year 2005. It is the 30^th bay to get such a global award, and the third in the Asian region after Halong Bay and Nha Trang Bay in Vietnam.

Hubert made his marketing pitch before 80 members of the Club of the World’s Most Beautiful Bays in Agadir, Morocco in November last year. His video presentation of the bay, the serene cove, rock formations, fishes, coral reefs, sea grasses, mangroves, verdant forest – and the people (approximately 9,315 persons living in 1,863 households, and not counting the vacationers and backpackers), left the discriminating viewers no choice but accredit Puerto Galera as one of the world’s most beautiful bays.

The local government of Puerto Galera, together with d’ Aboville, will receive the award in Nha-Trang, Vietnam, at the end of this month.

The club was an initiative of the tourism office of the Vannes region on the Gulf of Morbihan in France. It was founded in Berlin in March 1997, with the objective of protecting the environment and the development and enhancement of marine and bay resources worldwide. It has the full support of UNESCO.

Puerto Galera is located in Oriental Mindoro, and can be reached by ferryboat from Batangas City. It was discovered in one of the explorations made by Martin de Goiti and Juan de Salcedo on their way to Manila in 1570. But since the 10^th century, Puerto Galera was known to seafarers as a trading port and a strategic harbor along the important trade routes to and from the Near East, Indian Coast, Indo-Chinese coast, China, various points within the Philippine archipelago, and the kingdoms of Sumatra and Java. Its Muelle Bay area was recognized as one of the safest natural harbors in Asia and was used extensively for dock repairs and as a safe anchorage for all types of sailing vessels.

According to Hubert, in the 60s, European backpackers "discovered" Puerto Galera – its series of pristine bays and coves, snow-white sand, and fantastic coral gardens. When German backpackers wrote for a large-circulation magazine about the romance and beauty of Puerto Galera, enhanced by scenic photographs, it created a tourism storm. Instantly, Europeans knew more about Puerto Galera than the country’s capital, Manila. The ensuring tourism explosion has attracted tens of thousands of foreigners over the years and has made Puerto Galera what it is today."

Hubert spent his own money "selling" the place. He and Ara met in 1980 in Manila. Ara was actually assigned to promote the Philippines in France for Rajah Tours, and Hubert was in Manila as a timber exporter. Ara was telling him was the most beautiful place in the world, while Hubert was telling her the Philippines was his most beautiful in the world.

Both have something in common: having historically famous ancestors. Ara’s great grandfather was Dr. Pio Valenzuela, who was a part of the triumvirate (the others being Andres Bonifacio and Emilio Jacinto) that played an important role in the Katipunan. On Hubert’s side, seven generations of the d’ Abovilles were in French military service, an ancestor headed the French Art 17^th century. Hubert’s brother, Gerard, rode sole by rowing a kayak from Cape Cod to the coast of France in 1980, and negotiated 10,000 kilometers, also by rowing, for 134 days from Japan to America.

Hubert and Ara wound up marrying, having four children, and running an estate ( a demo farm where they also manufacture virgin coconut oil) in Puerto Galera.

In 1992, Hubert founded the Philippine-based Together-Ensemble, a foundation for development and progress, which was active in relief operations in Real and Infanta, Quezon, during the recent disaster. The foundation was created after Mt. Pinatubo eruption. Since then it has been involved in many emergency relief missions in Luzon and the Visayas with the French NGO Doctors of the World, and in Mindanao in a long-term agricultural program. Later the foundation was incorporated in France to draw French funds to help Filipinos.

Hubert says the accreditation of the World’s Most Beautiful Bays award is based on four considerations – protection, enhancement, promotion and commitment to the project. He says that Puerto Galera has had its share of foreign and local tourists, but it has remained the country. Local tourism has to be promoted to earn revenue, without sacrificing the four considerations above, in as much as it does not receive any financial support from the Club of the World’s Most Beautiful Bays. I guess just being beautiful enough is a quality to be valued, but it can also be capitalized on to make it more beautiful.

Getting an award for his "adopted: town is not enough, certainly, Hubert is taking the initiative to exploit the international award to help develop Philippine tourism, always keeping in mind the protection of its fragile environment. He is sitting down with Sen. Richard Gordon, chair of the Senate Committee on tourism, and Tourism Secretary Joseph Durano, to map out an international media strategy.

CALAPAN CITY, Oriental Mindoro – Kinilala sa isang international forum sa Vietnam ang Muelle Bay ng Puerto Galera bilang isa sa "world’s most beautiful bays" kamakailan.

Nakamit ng Puerto Galera ang pandaigdigang pagkilala nang makompleto ang mga kinakailangang dokumento na dumaan sa isang masusing pagsusuri ng mga eksperto sa baybaying dagat.

Ayon kay Puerto Galera Mayor Aristeo Atienza, ang pagkakahirang at pagkilala sa Muelle Bay ay isang akreditasyon hindi lamang sa Puerto Galera o sa Oriental Mindoro kundi maging sa buong bansa sa larangan ng turismo at likas na yaman.

Sinabi pa ni Atienza na ang Muelle Bay ay nag-iisa sa Pilipinas na napasama at mahirap mapabilang sa ganitong kataas na international category kaya isa itong pagpapatunay ng kagandahan at kalinisan ng mga likas na yaman ng lalawigan.

Napasama sa world’s most beautiful bays ang Puerto Galera sa pagnomina ni Hubbert D’Aboville, chairman ng isang non-government organization na nagtataguyod sa turismo at kabuhayan ng iba’t ibang bansa.

"Sa pamamagitan ng pagkilalang ito, nabigyan ng pagkakataon ang Puerto Galera upang mapabilang sa hanay ng mga kinikilalang tourist destination sa buong mundo," ani Atienza.

Tinanggap nina Mayor Atienza, D’Aboville at Councilor Daniel D. Enriquez, kasama ang isang kinatawan ng national press ang katibayan ng pagkilala sa Vietnam noong Marso 30 na inaasahang magiging daan upang lalo pang lumakas ang industriya ng turismo sa Oriental Mindoro.

The Most Beautiful Bay Association-Philippine chapter recently held its 1st General Assembly at the Puerto Galera municipal gymnasium to preserve and promote Puerto Galera Bay which was named as one of the world’s best bays.

There were presentations from different sectors in the tourism, cultural, natural, government and people’s sectors to create synergy among the stakeholders of the town. Puerto Galera Mayor Hubbert Dolor was guest speaker in the event.

Puerto Galera Bay was admitted as member of the Paris-based “Most Beautiful Bays in the World Cup” in April 2005 during its annual assembly in Nha Trang, Vietnam. The award was given to the bay because of its natural beauty, diverse marine life, rich history and important economic contributions.

The Bay is a sanctuary to 152 coral species and 19 mangrove species in the country, and nine of the world’s sea grass species.

Puerto Galera, which literally means port of galleons, has provided safe refuge during storms to seafarers throughout the centuries. In the 1970s, it was declared as a “Man and Biosphere Reserve” by the UNESCO.

PROTECTION

The most beautiful bays in the world, enfolded, as they are, between oceans and continents, have the distinction of being sites of particularly sought-after riches. The club’s members exploit to the full their respective areas of expertise, as well as their pooling of ideas, in an effort to maintain the balance between the economic development and the conservation of their natural heritage, the results serving as models for the rest of the world.

ENHANCEMENT

Recognized not only as areas of great richness and diversity, but also of important economic activity of the intermixing of ethnic groups, the beautiful bays in the world, because of their uniqueness and their global importance, offer an exceptional natural heritage. As members of this worldwide club, the people who represent the bays contribute to the development of their sites, thanks, in particular, to a foundation whose objective is to support exchange projects, scientific research, and the promotion of the bays.

PROMOTION

In addition to the promotion of these areas of exceptional interest by sophisticated means of communication, and thanks to the local population’s recognition of their worth, the club’s ambition is to achieve international recognition for its expertise with regards to controlled and sustainable social, economic and tourist development.

COMMITMENT

In confirming their support for the concept of sustainable development for future generations, the members commit themselves to defining the conditions of a certain way of life in the areas around the bays, a way of life which is appropriate for everyone, whether local inhabitants or visitors. The wish of each member of the Most Beautiful Bays in the World Club is to play an active part in the ever-changing field of global tourism, and in the economic and social development of their areas.

SUPPORTED BY UNESCO

The members of this non-governmental organization (NGO) are committed to the improvement of tourist management and environmental protection as well as to the enhancement and development of the natural resources of their respective bays. The eligibility of a bay for membership is based on its obligation to meet at least two of the criteria recognized by UNESCO within the natural and cultural fields and on its acceptance of the charter’s commitments.