Leadership Team

CHAPTER LEADER

My name is Christian Marx and like my name which is derived from “Christ”, I believe that God sent me here on earth to make a difference, that my life has a purpose and a meaning, and “Marx” from the famous Karl Marx who has the same advocacy that I have which is to have equality despite of the differences.

 I grew in the untouched beautiful island of Sibuyan, Romblon where I learned and realized the essence of a sustainable clean and green environment, the splendid loveliness of nature itself. We must preserve the beauty of our nature, be the one to start the change in cleaning and taking care of our own environment, thus preventing climate change as a whole.

I am now enrolled at Rizal Technology University, Philippines, studying Education with Social Studies as a major. I have a great dream to teach the young especially the people of my hometown island, to educate them not just to erase ignorance and replace knowledge but to inculcate in them the genuine meaning of living as a human being here on earth, to stand and make a difference in their own little ways.

Rotaract Club of Rizal Technology University became my home as I stepped college in practicing the leadership capabilities I obtain right now, as the president of the Club several project have been implemented such as helping the victims of flood brought by the typhoon Ondoy last November, and the like. It is with this organization where I got the opportunity to represent my district club during the Asia Pacific Regional Rotaract Conference in Bali, Indonesia last 2008 and same conference in Singapore this year of 2009. It became the avenue for me to meet different people with different culture and beliefs.

One of the best experiences I have as a youth leader is during the implementation of the project “Sagip Sibuyan” where in youths from 3 municipalities of the Island run for 7 kilometers and express their hope to save and protect our Island.

ASSISTANT CHAPTER LEADER

Philosophy: Dialogue is more then just a chat, its changing the lives of the one ;who listens and the one who talks.

I am Mark, and I believe that making a change will truly leave a mark. I’m apt to inspire more youths to be an emblem of change; to influence more individuals to make a difference; and to live more to what God has given me. A graduate of Western Mindanao State University with a degree of Bachelor of Science in Nursing and an exchange student at Northern Illinois University. A proud product of Basilan, hence, a peace advocate by nature and by nurture. A believer of my own dreams and a dreamer of my own beliefs. A change-maker, thus, starts the change within me and with me.

I grew and learned my wisdom in Lamitan, Basilan. For 16 years, I’ve experience how it is to live in a place where everyone has a negative perception about my hometown. Discriminations, biases, prejudices, etc. name all of them and a Basileño can express how it feels like. I my self had witness before my very eyes the fearless exchanging of fires, the continuous bombings and the sound of the helicopters during the Lamitan Siege, the story telling-a-lie of the media about the real picture of the war zone and the genuine story behind the dramas of the military during the battle. I can’t imagine that if I my self had post traumatic complaints what more are the children, these children that at their younger lives had experience such. It is this little human that will harvest everything we did today, the fruit of the present that they will be living for in the future. Thus, I have a strong dedication to bring back the peace and order that my hometown had years ago. I’ll fight for peace and understanding with dialogue as my firearm. I believe that peace is not impossible if together we will make it possible.

Fortunately, I was given the following recognition by the university with my contributions in realizing its vision and mission; Leadership Award, Service Award, and Journalism Award. A Youth Leadership Excellence Award was also given to me by the JCI Philippines and Senator Francis Escudero. I was also awarded by the United Nations Association of the Philippines as one of the 2009 Outstanding Youth Leader Award last August, and recently, I was chosen to be one of the 2009 Young Peace Weaver Awardees.

The most remarkable accomplishment I had, is when I was able to organized I-YOU-DA (derived from a chavacano word AYUDA which means to help), the official civic youth organization of Western Mindanao State University. The said organization is implementing the project Operation Shoebox where in we donate, adopt and share shoeboxes that contains school supplies and grooming kits to the unfortunate children here in our city, all resources are from our own initiatives and even our own pockets. As of December 2009, we were able to share 3,850 shoeboxes to 15 poor and remote communities.

Currently, I’m working as an Assistant Researcher in Western Mindanao State University, under the Office of the Vice President for Research, Development and Extension.