On stage at Carnegie Hall: The Third Annual The Outstanding Filipino Americans in New York Awards held October 26, 2013. Photo by AJ Images

WE WON! Thank you for your support.   This was a momentous week for us as we were one of the recipients of The Outstanding Filipino of New York Award. I'd like to extend my heartfelt gratitude for all of your votes, for believing in the cause and supporting the passion that I share with my friends and colleagues.  It was a great honor to be recognized by my "kababayan" (countrymen) and receive an award alongside inspiring Filipinos who are making a difference in our communities. I commend the organizing committee of The Outstanding Filipino Americans in New York for empowering Filipino leaders in this region and giving them a voice.  Youth are not the leaders of tomorrow, we are the leaders of today. We have dreams and aspirations greater than ourselves. Climate change is the greatest challenge of our time. We felt it here in NYC during Hurricane Sandy, wefelt it in the Philippines during Typhoon Bopha where 1,000 lives were lost and 1.2 million people were displaced... and we have the solutions to help climate change impacts from exacerbating. My friends and colleagues across the globe have been working hard in implementing sustainable solutions across the globe. I share this award with them, they have been my inspiration. I have never seen such a committed group of young individuals, dedicating their lives to this cause.  We need to continue our efforts in helping to scale these sustainable solutions and technologies-- and we need to continue to empower and support young leaders and future decision makers who are eventually responsible for taking on this great challenge.  "Bugsay" is a Filipino term which means to paddle. To quote the African proverb, "If you want to go fast go alone, if you want to go far go together." We have to go far, quickly. We need to bugsay together.  After seeing the awardees with their loved ones, it made me that wish my family was there. They are my rock - and I couldn't have done this without their continued support.  For more information:  Philippine Inquirer's A night of celebration and NY's brightest, most committed Fil-Ams honored

Strongest tropical cyclone to hit the Philippines #yolanda #typhoonhaiya

Typhoon Haiyan is pictured in this NOAA satellite handout image taken November 6, 2013 at 23:13 UTC. NOAA / Reuters

After an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.1 hit my hometown last month, Super Typhoon Haiyan, the biggest storm in the world this year, will hit the Philippines tomorrow. The storm is equivalent to category 5 hurricane with winds of 315 kph (195 mph) and gusts as strong as 380 kph (235 mph). Haiyan's high winds and rain are expected to affect more than 25 million people.

This is serious - lives are stake. Last month, the earthquake's force reported by Wall Street Journal to be the force of 32 Hiroshima-level atomic bombs, left 8,300 homes destroyed, 222 killed, and 350,000 displaced. 

The Philippines ranks third in the list of countries most vulnerable to climate change. We have an average of 20 disastrous typhoons annually that cause serious damage.  Last December, Typhoon Bopha, the most powerful to hit the country last year killed as many as 1,900 people and left 1.2 million people displaced. 

This stresses how crucial adaptation and resilient measures are in the Philippines. We need to put more efforts in building and investing in stronger coping mechanisms for these ongoing disasters.