Faith in Action

During our National Museum immersion, there were three exhibits that really struck me: the Tree of Life canopy and the Philippine Eagle display in Natural History, the Manunggul Jar in Anthropology, and Carlos Valino Jr.’s Graveyard Scenery in Fine Arts. However, it was Valino’s painting that struck me the hardest. It had this heavy and dark depiction of wartime struggle that made me realize how human suffering can also be connected to the environments people live in, especially when those environments are neglected. It felt like a contrast to the balance and cultural meaning shown in the Manunggul Jar and the Philippine Eagle. Seeing how the condition of an environment can affect people physically and emotionally became a wake-up call for me as a STEM student. It showed me that science cannot just stay in textbooks and classrooms, but should also be used to respond to actual problems affecting our communities.

This made me look more closely at our own campus and the spaces that students, teachers, and staff use every day. Right now, our open lawn near the Sr. Marie Madeleine Multipurpose Gym has some weather-related problems that may seem minor, but I think they are still worth addressing before they become worse. The lawn traps too much heat when it is dry, while during heavy and continuous rainfall, it easily collects muddy runoff water. Some of the concrete and synthetic materials around the area also do not provide enough drainage or natural cooling, and at the same time, we often overlook the possibility of using low-carbon and nature-inspired materials in the way we design for our shared spaces. The Manunggul Jar is not directly a drainage model, but its earthenware material and cultural design made me think about how natural materials can also be part of thoughtful human design. Whenever heavy rains hit, the flooded lawn becomes slippery and hazardous, disrupting outdoor PE/HOPE classes and sports practices like Palaro; however, I realized that the issue goes beyond convenience. Our campus problem reflects a greater reality that many communities experience today, where increasing heat, intense rainfall, flooding, and poorly designed spaces can affect both human safety and the environment. When the spaces we build are not prepared for natural conditions, we also become more vulnerable to them, and because of this, the lawn is not just a problem that makes activities harder for students; it also shows the need for climate-responsive spaces that can protect people while respecting the environment we share.

Looking at this issue more deeply, I realized that the problem is not simply about a lawn becoming flooded or uncomfortable during certain weather conditions. It is also about how the spaces we create and maintain reflect the way we care for people and the environment. When a shared space repeatedly becomes unsafe or difficult to use because of excessive heat and rain, it shows that we need to think more carefully about how our campus responds to the natural conditions around it.

This also made me realize that environmental problems do not always appear as something large or distant. Sometimes, they are already present in places we use every day. The heat that makes a space uncomfortable and the rainwater that collects on the lawn may seem like separate problems, but both are connected to how we design and manage our surroundings. If we ignore these conditions simply because they are familiar, we may only allow the problem to continue or become worse. Because of this, I now see the condition of our lawn as a concern for both community well-being and environmental responsibility. The students, teachers, and staff who use the space deserve an environment that is safe and suitable for learning and activities, while the environment itself should not be treated as something that can simply absorb the effects of poor planning. This made me realize that addressing the issue should involve more than making the area convenient. It should consider how we can create a space that protects people while also respecting and working with creation.

In Luke 4:16-21, Jesus declares His mission to bring good news to the poor, freedom to captives, recovery of sight to the blind, and release to the oppressed. He wasn't simply reading from a scroll, but proclaiming the mission He would live out among His people. This shows me that Jesus’ mission is centered on restoring dignity and helping people experience greater freedom and fullness of life. Looking at our campus through this lens made me realize that this mission can also challenge us to notice the conditions that affect the well-being of the people around us.

A flooded and overheated lawn may seem small compared to the situation Jesus directly addressed, but it still affects how safely students can move, learn, and participate in school activities. More importantly, it made me realize that human well-being is connected to the conditions of our surroundings, and if the spaces we create and maintain are unsafe or are not able to respond to the changing environmental conditions, then we are also failing to fully care for the people who depend on those spaces. This is where Laudato Si’ depends on my understanding of the issue, since caring for people cannot be separated from caring for our common home. The environment is not just a background where human life happens; it is a part of the conditions that allow communities to live, learn, and grow.

Pope Leo XIV’s Magnifica Humanitas also strengthens this understanding by reminding us that human intelligence, science, and technology are gifts that can be used to serve others and protect our common home. As a STEM student, this made me reflect on how the skills I am learning should not only be used to create something functional or impressive, but they should also respond to the real needs and consider the people and environment affected by what I create. This challenges me to look beyond simply making the lawn more convenient and instead ask whether the way we design our campus actually promotes human dignity, responsible stewardship, and care for creation.

Valino’s Graveyard Scenery further deepens this reflection because it shows the consequences of human suffering and neglect through a space marked by destruction and loss. The reality shown in the painting in mush heavier than the problem I am trying to address, but I think that contrast is necessary because it reminds me that neglect should not only be recognized once a problem has already become severe; we can choose to respond while problems are still manageable. Through this discernment, I began to see Project CANOPY not simply as a way to fix a flooded lawn, but as an opportunity to use STEM in service of people and creation. If Jesus calls us to bring greater dignity and freedom into people’s lives, then caring for the environments where people live and learn can also become one practical way of responding to that call.

From this reflection, I came up with Project CANOPY: A Bio-Inspired Eco-Filtration and Green Shelter Design. The project aims to respond to the campus problem by combining nature-inspired design, lower-impact materials, rainwater management, and green spaces. Across the open grass near Sr. Marie Madeleine Multipurpose Gym, I, with the help and guidance of the administration and coordinator, propose modular canopy structures inspired by the “Tree of Life” to help manage heavy rainfall and provide shade in the area. Instead of only reacting whenever flooding happens, the design aims to make the space better prepared for heavy rainfall while also making it more comfortable for the people who use it. Along narrower lawn sections such as the staircase from the lawn to the basement, the project proposes terracotta-based drainage and filtration modules that can help slow down and redirect excess rainwater into the surrounding soil. The use of earthenware is inspired by the material and cultural significance of the Manunggul Jar, rather than treating the jar itself as a filtration device. In this way, the project takes inspiration from a Philippine cultural artifact and adapts the idea of natural materials into a modern environmental application. We shall also set up vertical planter shelters along the entrance and exit gates in Gate 1 and Gate 3. These structures can provide covered pathways during sudden downpours, while the use of appropriate native plants can help provide shade and cooling around the area. Together, these parts of the project aim to transform the lawn from a space that simply reacts to harsh weather into one that is more prepared to work with natural conditions.

If I believe that science is a gift that should serve people, then the scientific knowledge I have should respond to actual community needs, and if I believe in caring for creation, then my solutions should also consider their effects on the environment. And if I believe in Jesus’ call to serve and restore dignity, then my response should go beyond convenience and ask how our shared spaces can become safe, more sustainable, and more caring for everyone. This is why I see Project CANOPY as more than just a STEM project. It is my attempt to put what I have discerned into action.

Project CANOPY will be carried out through a proposed collaboration with the school administration, coordinators, and members of the community. Its first step would be to identify the areas where heat and rainwater create the greatest problems, followed by looking at the feasibility, materials, placement, and maintenance needed for the proposed structures. The project should not simply add new structures to the campus, but it should respond to the actual conditions of the space and make sure that the material and design are safe, practical, and sustainable. The canopy structures, drainage modules, and vertical gardens would then be developed according to the areas most affected by heat and rainfall, and would need regular observation after implementation to see whether the structures actually reduce water accumulation, improve the usability of the space, and remain functional over time. This makes the project more than a one-time STEM output because it becomes an ongoing form of service that requires responsibility from the people who implement, create, maintain, and use it.

This advocacy also asks the STCQC community to change how we look at ordinary environmental problems. A flooded lawn or overheated pathway can easily be dismissed as something that we simply have to live with. However, these small problems can reveal bigger questions about how we care for the shared spaces and how willing we are to use our knowledge to respond to them. Project CANOPY therefore invites Thereisans to see environmental stewardship not as something separate from service, but as one of the ways service can be lived out in everyday life.


To evaluate whether Project CANOPY is actually effective, I can use the UN Sustainable Development Goals and STCQC Core Values as standards for evaluation, rather than simply using them to justify the project.

For SDG 11, Sustainable Cities and Communities, the project should be evaluated based on whether it makes the campus more prepared for changing weather conditions by reducing the effects of excessive heat and improving the management of rainwater in areas that frequently experience flooding. For SDG 12, Responsible Consumption and Production, I can evaluate whether the project’s use of lower-impact and reusable materials actually reduces unnecessary environmental impact while still retaining the structural safety and functionality. For SDG 15, Life on Land, the vertical gardens can be evaluated based on whether the use of appropriate native plants contributes to a healthier campus environment and supports plant life within the space.

The STCQC Core Values can also help me determine whether the project is truly successful. Through servant leadership, I can ask whether the project responds to an actual need within the community rather than simply creating something for recognition. Through the care for the environment, I can ask whether the project works with natural conditions instead of creating new environmental problems, and I can also look at whether the project reflects Jesus’ mission of serving others and promoting greater dignity within the community.

Looking back at the original problem, I would consider Project CANOPY effective if it reduces the flooding and heat problems that originally led me to propose it, remains safe and practical for the school community, uses materials responsibly, and continues to be maintained after its implementation. This evaluation also taught me that a STEM solution is not automatically a good solution just because it is innovative; instead, it has to be looked at based on its actual effects on the people and the community they live in. In this way, evaluation becomes a part of discernment because it asks whether the action truly lives out the values that inspired it in the first place.

As a Theresian servant-leader, this whole process showed me that true discipleship is not just something we talk about, but something we live out throughout everyday choices and the way we care for people and the environment around us. As I moved from seeing the human and environmental neglect depicted in the Graveyard Scenery to developing an actual response through Project CANOPY, I began to understand more deeply what it means to be sensitive to the needs of persons and of the community. I realized that being a servant does not always mean responding to the biggest problems in the world because sometimes, it may begin by noticing the problems that people have become used to ignoring and choosing to do something about them.

I also find inspiration in the Three Great Women and their devotion to serving others without expecting rewards or recognition, and it is their examples that remind me that service does not always have to begin with grand or heroic gestures, as it can begin with something as ordinary as noticing a flooded pathway, overheated space, or an area of our campus that could be cared for better. What makes these actions meaningful is the intention behind them and the willingness to use what we have for the good of others.

This is why I believe Project CANOPY should not only be seen as a STEM project, but as an invitation to practice a culture of service and environmental responsibility. As Theresians, we should learn to see science and technology not only as tools for innovation, but also as ways of serving people and caring for creation.If we can begin by transforming something as ordinary as a campus lawn, then we can also begin to build a community where students actively notice environmental problems and use their own talents to respond to the needs of others and create meaningful change. Inspired by the Three Great Women and by Jesus’ call to serve, I want to continue using my background in STEM to not simply build things, but to build things that have a purpose beyond themselves. Project CANOPY reminded me that hope is not only something we wait for. It is something we can help create through our choices, our skills, and our willingness to serve. In this way, we do not simply walk through our pathways of hope. We help build those pathways together, with faith, service, and care for our common home.