MANILA, Philippines – Everest Summiteer Romi Garduce and a group of UP mountaineers will get on their bamboo bikes and mountainbikes and pedal for biodiversity in Padyak Palawan 2016, a fund-raising bike tour across the country’s Last Frontier Oct. 10-23.
A 520-K ride kicking off in Bataraza and culminating in famous El Nido, Padyak Palawan will showcase the province’s most impressive heritage sites, stunning wildlife locations, and picturesque spots like Talbon cave, Estrella Falls, Matanglaw Falls, Umalad Falls, and St. Paul’s underground river.
Garduce, the first Filipino to climb the Seven Summits, said his group takes a multi-pronged approach for Padyak Palawan.
“We want to promote Palawan for tourism but with emphasis on sustainable, responsible eco-tourism. We’ve chosen bikes because they’re a very reliable way of travelling,” said Garduce, who is working closely with the Center for Outdoor Recreation and Expedition (C.O.R.E.), the advocacy arm of Primer Group of Companies.
Padyak Palawan aims to encourage help for the Center for Conservation Innovation (CCI) program Oplan Tandikan, a biodiversity conservation project committed to increasing the area of land conservation management and building conservation capacity, specifically of high profile endemic species and their rapidly diminishing habitats.
“Palawan is one of the most beautiful islands in the Philippines, known for its wildlife and biodiversity. While there’s no question about the beauty of Palawan, we can’t deny the problems it faces,” said Garduce during Tuesday’s press launch at Biker’s Café in Pasay, where he was joined by Primer Group CORE manager Kristine Villaflor, CCI executive director Edmund Leo Rico, and cyclist Charm Bartolay.
“We’re campaigning against illegal wildlife trade. We’re also helping our partner NGO, the CCI. They’re doing long-term projects not just in Palawan but across the Philippines. We want to start a donation drive for CCI not just for the campaign against issues and threats in Palawan but also for conservation work,” he added.