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Pahiyas Festival in Lucban Quezon (Photo by Chareze Stamatelaky retrieved from culturetrip.com)

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Quezon province is home to several scenic spots in the Philippines, both natural and man-made. It is rich, not only in culture and tradition but also in natural attractions, making it The Land of Thousand Colors.

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Quezon Province is located in the Calabarzon Region. It is an elongated province east of Manila and part of the Luzon provinces' downward chain. Despite its proximity to the city, it has kept many of the city's legacy, traditions, and relics.

Quezon is one of the largest provinces in the Southern Tagalog region in terms of land area. It covers an area of 8706.6 square kilometers along a section of the Japan-Philippine Highway that connects Luzon to Visayas and Mindanao. Its borders stretch from Aurora province in the north to Camarines Sur province in the south. The provinces of Aurora, Nueva Ecija, Bulacan, Rizal, Laguna, and Batangas border it on the west, while Camarines Norte and Camarines Sur border it on the southeast.

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According to the Philippine Statistics Authority's 2015 census, Quezon Province has a total population of 2,122,830 people, with a 1.33 percent annual population growth rate. There is no recent data on the current population but according to studies in 2015 the overall population is expected to reach 2,334,200 by 2020.

243 people per square kilometer is the population density. With 104 men for every 100 females, the sex ratio is almost 1:1. The province has a total of 485,673 households, with an average household size of 4.37 people.

Females have a greater educational attainment rate than males. 38.42 percent of the population aged five and up had completed elementary school, 38.42 percent had completed high school, 7.60 percent were college undergraduates, and 7.76 percent had earned an academic degree. In terms of individuals holding an academic degree and those doing post-baccalaureate courses, females outweighed males.

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Niyogyugan Festival (Photo Retrieved from Rappler.com)

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The province of Quezon is a first-class province. Infanta, Real, Polillo, Alabat, Atimonan, Mauban, Tiaong, Pagbilao, Mulanay, Tagkawayan, and General Nakar are among the 11 municipalities classified as potential economic zones under the Special Economic Zone Act of 1995 (RA 7916). Apart from services and manufacturing, agriculture and fishing are important economic activity in the province, and tourism is gaining popularity. From 2012 to 2016, the province was also named as having the fastest expanding economy in the region.

Quezon has a total agricultural area of 403,935 hectares, which accounts for 51% of the province's total land area. In 2018, 375,026 hectares were planted with coconut, making Quezon the Philippine province with the biggest coconut producing area. In addition, with 1,449,926.81 metric tons of total coconut production, Quezon is the country's leading coconut producer.

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Interior of Minor Basilica of St. Michael the Archangel (Photo by Isable Valencia)

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Quezon has a lot to offer when it come to tourist spots. There are hidden paradise in forms of beaches and mountains waiting to be admired by people. Some of the most famous destinations in the area are Borawan Island in Padre Burgos where one can enjoy the wonderful white sand, Sunshine Farm in Tiaong which is a sunflower paradise in the border city of Quezon, Mt. Banahaw widely known for its holy and mystical feel, Cagbalete Island which is often compared to Boracay, and Kamay ni Hesus where you can do the 300 step climb to the statue of Jesus and, as tiring as that may sound, the view from the top makes it worth it.

Quezon is not only known for its natural beauty, it is also known for the well kept historic structures. Some of the most famous ones can be seen in Tayabas City which is dubbed as "The City Left in Time".  Some of the historic landmarks are the Minor Basilica of St. Michael the Archangel (its original structure was built in 1585) which holds the longest church aisle in the country, Malagonlong Bridge which is the longest bridge made during the Spanish Colonial Era, and the Casa Comunidad de Tayabas built in 1776 and was used as barracks by the Japanese during World War II.

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This Sustainable Development Goal aims to end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture.

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- Data from 2019 showed that Quezon had the highest number of deaths by malnutrition in the CALABARZON region, accounting for 98 out of 623 cases in the said region.
- Rate of stunting of Filipino children under five years old in CALABARZON (Region of Quezon) is 27.7%
- Studies show that in 2019, 61.9% of households in Quezon Province is food insecure, which is roughly 6 out 10 households.
- Three out of ten (32.2%) households in Quezon Province experienced chronic food insecurity.

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In a recent study done by The Lancet Planetary Health, potential impacts and interactions of emerging food system technologies to the SDGs were identified. One of the impacts considered in the said study is the automation in food production. It was stated in the study that automation of food production may reduce its cost, hence making food products more accessible to more consumers. On the other hand, having the spread of the said automation may lead to exposure of workers to more danger, and the decreased need for workers leading to a more widespread unemployment and poverty rate, and, ultimately, a bigger widespread of chronic hunger.

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Malnutrition leads to many negative health outcomes. It impairs the body's immune system, which makes it hard for the body to fight infections and make it hard to treat them as it also delays wound healing. Furthermore, it reduces muscle strength and size, which makes those affected more susceptible to accidents. The aforementioned are just some of the many negative impacts malnutrition have on one person. Having these in mind, its widespread will affect the society as children who are malnourished tend to under perform in school which limits their opportunities in the future. Moreover, adults who are malnourished tend to underperform in their jobs, which can create a domino effect ending in them losing their jobs and the worsening of their malnutrition.

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This Sustainable Development Goal aims to protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.

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- A study done in 2016 concluded that the biodiversity of the Quezon Protected Landscape needs to be a high priority for protection and conservation in the Philippines. The park showed high species diversity, however, the identiﬁed threats if not properly addressed, may lead to forest ecological imbalance thus resulting in forest destruction and species extinction (Conda et. al, 2016).

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- Quezon Province. (2022). @QuezonGovPh. https://www.quezon.gov.ph/general-information/about#:~:text=Geography,located%20in%20the%20CALABARZON%20Region.&text=Quezon’s%20topography%20is%20characterized%20by,as%20its%20most%20prominent%20peak.
- Bello, J. (2017, August 5). BusinessMirror. BusinessMirror. https://businessmirror.com.ph/2017/08/06/quo-vadis-quezon/#:~:text=Quezon%20province%20is%20called%20%E2%80%9CCocolandia,and%20in%20the%20whole%20country.
- Cybulskie, P. (2021, May 28). 12 Best Quezon Province Tourist Spots: Islands, Churches, Farms. Guide to the Philippines; Guide to the Philippines. https://guidetothephilippines.ph/articles/what-to-experience/best-quezon-province-tourist-spots

‌- Traversing the Malagonlong Bridge. (2012). Vigattin Tourism (ARTICLES) - Philippines. https://www.vigattintourism.com/tourism/articles/Traversing-the-Malagonlong-Bridge

‌- Villareal, M. (2013, May 2). Casa de Comunidad de Tayabas. Out of Town Blog. https://outoftownblog.com/casa-de-comunidad-de-tayabas/
- Undernutrition in the Philippines Scale, Scope, and Opportunities for Nutrition Policy and Programming

By  URL: https://thedocs.worldbank.org/en/doc/c8c10ff8b15291d1846cb8b73714aa08-0070062021/original/PH-Undernutrition-Report-Executive-Summary-2021.pdf
- Conda, Jennifer & Buot Jr, Inocencio. (2016). Biodiversity Assessment and Conservation Status of Some Pteridophytes in the Northeastern Portion of Quezon Protected Landscape, Philippines. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/334731184_Biodiversity_Assessment_and_Conservation_Status_of_Some_Pteridophytes_in_the_Northeastern_Portion_of_Quezon_Protected_Landscape_Philippines

‌- Technologies to protect biodiversity. Tristan Lebleu. @solarimpulse. Solar Impulse Foundation. 2019. https://solarimpulse.com/news/technologies-to-protect-biodiversity

‌- Sandbrook, Chris. (2015). The social implications of using drones for biodiversity conservation. AMBIO A Journal of the Human Environment. 44. S636-S647. 10.1007/s13280-015-0714-0.
- Herrero, M. (2021). Articulating the effect of food systems innovation on the Sustainable Development Goals. The Lancet Planetary Health. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2542-5196(20)30277-1. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2542519620302771

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Why do we need to address threats to our biodiversity?

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Why do we need to address threats to our biodiversity?

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Preserving our biodiversity is something that all of us should work towards as its destruction have grave effects to our environment, thus it has grave effects to us. One of the biggest reason to preserve our biodiversity is because it boosts ecosystem productivity. A healthy and proper functioning ecosystem makes for an environment that is more resistant to harshness like climate change. Furthermore, preservation of the biodiversity is good for the economy as at least 40% of the world's economy relies on biologic resources. A continuous decline in the biodiversity can mean a decline in the economy as well.

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Drones are helpful in monitoring species in areas that are hard to reach by providing aerial images. Thermal cameras are fitted into drones which helps detect heat sources from different species to observe them better. Having these unmanned aerial vehicles improve the the data collection will aid in the decision making of those spearheading the protection of our biodiversity. Furthermore, scientists are now looking into tree planting drones, so it can be possible for drones to not only monitor forests but restore them as well. This is going to help hard to reach areas whose biodiversity is getting destroyed.

It is easy to think of drones as the "deus ex machina" we are looking for to preserve and restore our biodiversity, but even with everything aforementioned, it is important to take not of the possible negative implications this advancement may have. A study done in 2015 has concluded that although drones are helpful, it is not the solution. It may thrive in some places, but can make the situation worse in others. And ultimately, it will not be able to replace the ongoing need for tried and tested conservation strategies to address our current problems in relation to our biodeiversity.