MA. GENEFE NAVILON (Miss CALBAYOG City) in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro

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Miss CALBAYOG City

MA. GENEFE NAVILON

Model

Miss Earth 2012 in Nuajan Oriental Mindoro

May 09, 2012

DESCRIBE YOUR CHILDHOOD/GROWING YEARS (8-13 Years old)

I had a good family life, though my parents argued a lot. My family was very supportive and I knew that I was well-loved. I was also very skinny when I was young so I was always teased. I didn't care about my appearance and rarely fixed my hair or dressed up. I developed a fascination for reading fiction at an early age and had a special interest in journalism. I was a consistent honor student, but I wasn't very popular and I rarely got noticed. I had a very happy childhood, full of laughter and no worries. I look back with no regrets.

WHAT LESSONS DID YOU LEARN FROM YOUR CHILDHOOD/GROWING YEARS?

I learned that some people will always put you down, so the best thing you can do is keep your chin up and not give them the satisfaction of seeing you beaten down. I also learned that humility is an important trait that can help give you a clearer perspective on life. Lastly, I've learned that respect is very essential, but you can't earn respect without kindness and integrity.

WHAT IS YOUR MOST MEMORABLE MOMENT? 

The most memorable moment for me, I guess, was seeing the proud look on my papa's face when I won Miss Anyag. I've always known that he would be proud of me no matter what I did, but seeing him with misty eyes and a huge grin made me really happy and at that moment. I vowed that I would try my best to always make him proud, if only to see that reaction again.

WHAT IS THE MOST UNUSUAL THING YOU'VE EVER DONE?

Join pageants - I've just never seen myself as a beauty queen when I was young. I wanted to be a journalist, a news anchor, but I never imagined I'd want to be a beauty queen. I was very shy and although I consider myself to be a confident person, I never imagined I'd have the courage to face a lot of people on stage, walk with a full smile and answer the q & a with grace. Joining my first pageant was definitely a leap out of my comfort zone because it was something unusual for me.

WHAT IS YOUR AMBITION IN LIFE?

When I was young, I wanted a lot of things and I was very particular about it. But now, I would just simply say that my ambition is to find the profession that I'm passionate about, do something useful and worthwhile that would impact a lot of people, and be happy with my life.

WHAT IS YOUR ENVIRONMENTAL ADVOCACY AND WHY DID YOU CHOOSE THIS?

My environmental advocacy is to promote Green/Sustainable living in all the communities, especially cities around the world. I think that sustainable living would immensely help in preventing global environmental degradation. I believe in the significance of the government's role in promoting this and educating the people that a little alteration in their lifestyles can go a long way in saving our environment.

WHAT TIP CAN YOU SHARE TO PROMOTE SUSTAINABLE ENERGY FOR ALL?

I encourage everyone to use alternative sources of energy. There have been many developments in sustainable energy -- we have the existing alternatives, such as the use of solar energy and the newer developments, such as green energy.