March 24 Meeting: World Water Day & Soldier Flies

    March 24 Meeting

Written by Caleb Paik

    World Water Day is a celebration held annually on March 22 as a means of focusing attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating for the sustainable management of freshwater resources. To celebrate World Water Day, Ecosave held a meeting and a fundraiser on March 24 to help global issues regarding water and other environmental problems. 

    One such issue Ecosave addressed was the problem of food waste and management. Food waste isn't just a social or humanitarian concern—it's an environmental one. When we waste food, we also waste all the energy and water it takes to grow, harvest, transport, and package it. And if food goes to the landfill and rots, it produces methane—a greenhouse gas even more potent than carbon dioxide. 

    To resolve this issue, Ecosave proposed the solution of Black Soldier Flies. Soldier flies are insects used to remove organic waste materials. They were commonly found throughout the southern portions of the US and now globally. With the production of these insects, food waste can be heavily mitigated especially because of the simple process of growing them. 

    Ecosave now seeks to promote these soldier flies, in addition to other awareness projects, in order to intervene in the growing issue of food waste and management. One project that Ecosave has already completed was making soldier fly emojis for the popular South Korean messaging platform, Kakaotalk. Through projects like this, Ecosave will persevere to address global environmental issues and find solutions to them. 

Christmas party & Bazaar with OPEN HANDS

"Have ourselves a Merry Little Christmas!"

 EcoSave Club members and OPEN HANDS, a non-profit charity organization we've been collaborating since 2016, got together to appreciate the improvement we made over Philippines' birth certificate  and home schooling projects. EcoSave members shared their artistic talents with staffs from OPEN HANDS while renewing vows to dedicate to better the environment and places inviting helps in 2024 as well.

By Eunseo Yoo 

Food & Water Security

  Food & Water Security

by Caleb Cheha Paik

 Food security is important to understand for the well-being of the people. In a rapidly developing world, food security has been a critical challenge to maintain. As the population increases rapidly, the need to safeguard these resources become more paramount.

    Food security revolves around the accessibility, availability, and stability of food sources. At its best, each individual person will have enough food to live a long, healthy life. However, this is far from reality. Unfortunately, this ideal remains absent for a significant portion of the world. 

    While there are many challenges to food security, three main ones are apparent. First, population growth is a major challenge to food security. With the global population already being over 8 billion people, the demand for food supply skyrockets. This puts immense pressure on the industry. Next, climate change is also a challenge to food security. Due to the increase of greenhouse gasses, global warming, erratic temperatures, extreme weathers, and irregular precipitations disrupt agriculture. This reduces crop yields and threatens food production. Lastly, food security is challenged due to scarce resources. Diminishing land, such as deforestation, will lead to reduced biodiversity, ultimately harming agricultural outputs. 

    To prevent these challenges, certain ways can be implemented. These include sustainable agriculture, which can utilize certain farming practices to enhance productivity while minimizing environmental impact. Furthermore, the use of technological innovations, such as genetically modified crops, can increase crop yields. Lastly, promoting a wider variety of crops can increase resilience to changing weather conditions.

    In conclusion, while food security is an urgent matter in the world, it can be prevented if people unite to do so. 

Energy Security

  Energy Security

Written by Caleb Cheha Paik

 Energy security, the uninterrupted availability of energy sources at an affordable price, is critical to a nation’s well being and prosperity. It revolves around the reliable and affordable access to energy resources, as well as protection against supply disruptions and price volatility. In today’s day and age, energy security is a global imperative sought by countries all around the world. 

    Energy security is significant for three reasons: economic stability, national security, and environmental sustainability. Economic stability and growth correlates with a consistent and affordable energy supply. Industries, businesses, and households rely on various amounts of energy in order to function efficiently. Furthermore, energy price spikes or shortages can cause reduced economic activity, inflation, and job losses. Secondly, overreliance on foreign energy sources can lead to consequences to a nation’s security. It renders the nation susceptible to geopolitical pressures, as energy exporting countries may use their source of energy as leverage to exert control. The conflict between Russia and Ukraine serves as a great example. Prior to the conflict, Ukraine and its allies heavily depended on Russian natural gas supplies. Consequently, these countries suffered a heavy impact on their energy security and economy. Lastly, energy security is not only about access to energy but also about the sustainability of energy sources. As the world is prioritizing cleaner and renewable energy, ensuring a stable, effective transition is essential for addressing climate change.

    To ensure energy security and its importance, a nation can implement many actions. Governments can encourage the use of diverse energy, including conventional and renewable, to reduce susceptibility  to price fluctuations and supply disruptions. They can also promote energy-efficient practices/programs in industries and households through regulations, and campaigns. These programs can include policymakers creating an environment for renewable energy development, including research funding and tax incentives. Furthermore, investment in energy infrastructure and collaboration among nations can ensure reliability and resilience especially during crises that require urgent mitigation. 

    Energy security is a complex issue that requires crucial attention. The current world needs to ensure energy security more than ever as the world faces challenges such as climate change and geopolitical tensions. 

Internship with Open Hands - Birth registration for the Vietnamese

Internship with Open Hands - Birth registration for the Vietnamese

Written by: Grace Hyunjoo Lee

In remote areas of the Philippines, there are people who live in extremely 

impoverished conditions. Many of them live without being registered as lawful citizens 

of the Philippines and often do not feel the need to register their children either. 

As a result, those children do not have the opportunity to attend school or get a job. 

Without proper education or support from the government, these children grow up 

to live a life suffering from poverty like their parents. 

Since 2021, the Ecosave club members have been supporting those children 

to obtain proper citizenship in order for them to be protected by the social safety net. 

So far, 18 children have obtained citizenship in the Philippines 

with our support. 

In July 2023, I had an opportunity to work for Open Hands with 2 other members 

of the Ecosave club for 3 weeks.We launched an effort to extend the birth registration 

initiative to include babies being born in Vietnam. We learned that birth registrations 

in Vietnam are different from the Philippines, as they can be made only at the time of birth 

with records of hospital visits.

In partnership with Open Hands, by raising awareness about the issue 

using campaign boards, fliers, and communication through social media, 

we supported birth registration for 12 babies in Vietnam. 

I felt very proud to lead the process of target setting, brainstorming, planning, 

and final execution. I feel appreciated that I am able to help out others with our skills 

and resources and continue to guide them through each of their journeys. 

I hope those babies and children will benefit from our social support and get 

one step closer to achieving their dreams.

Making sustainable dates cake for my dog!

Sustainable Dates Cake for my dog! 

Dates, otherwise known as "Daechu" in Korean or jujube, are a well-known low-fat, cholesterol-free snack for dogs to enjoy. This ingredient contains various vitamins, minerals and fiber, making it not only perfectly safe for dogs to eat but also providing them with health benefits. With our ecosave project promoting sustainable awareness of edible insects, I decided to integrate these two ingredients to create the perfect healthy and environmentally-friendly recipe for my dog.

Hence, I started baking dates/daechu cupcake for my dog. Because I wanted it to be extra healthy for my pet, I decided to replace normal flour with almond flour. But of course, the main ingredient was the edible insects. By using mealworm powder and edible dried mealworm and crickets to top the little cupcake at the end, I made sure that my dog was getting all the protein she needed. Since my dog loves to run, I found that it could damage her joints, which is why she needs to consume protein. Whilst thinking of the best protein source, I reflected on how our Ecosave club endeavored to create edible insect cookies for dogs and how edible insects are a nutritious protein source. 

By demonstrating how so many delicacies can become healthier with just edible insects, we aim to promote and spread awareness of the importance of using edible insects as an alternative food source for a more sustainable and an environmentally friendly future not only for humans but also for our lovely pets! 

My dog loved it!!

Written by : Ella Nakyo Hong 

Fundraising and picking up trash in Apgu, Seoul

 FUNDRAISER & PLOGGING IN APGU

During the summer, Ecosave Club organized a plogging event where our members gathered in Apgu, a popular spot for socializing and shopping in Seoul. Our members gathered in this neighborhood to clean up the streets, finding various items like plastic bottles, advertising flyers and leftover food from the previous day. 

We collected them in biodegradable trash bags. Although we couldn't pick up every single piece of litter, we hope our project still contributed to cleaning up the area. We were pleased to see some locals in the area supporting our initiative by joining in the trash pickup. For instance, a store manager guided us to areas with vast amount of trash. 

Furthermore, we held a fundraiser after the plogging event to generate funds for creating birth certificates for the children in the Philippines. These birth certificates cost around $115 and most Filipino families are unable to afford them - leading to lack of access to quality education, proper health care. Through this event, Ecosave club aims to improve the access of children in the Philippines to fundamental human rights. 

Written by: Ella Nakyo Hong