Miss Earth 2014: Miss Puerto Rico Franceska Toro

Vote for the Yahoo Beauty for a Cause: See all candidate profiles here

Miss Earth 2014: Miss Puerto Rico Franceska Toro

What is your environmental advocacy and why did you choose this?

Energy, for me, makes the Earth go round. It has become the foundation in the new way humanity lives. Our recent generations in the last 100 years have experienced the change to an industrial and electric lifestyle. From horses to cars, from rafts to boats and now airplanes, from lighting a fire to turning on a switch, our lives are definitely more comfortable than ever before. But it all comes with a price: gasoline and pollution.

All my life, I have been worried about this real impacting (sic) situation, and how as a civilization we can maybe alter our ways of generating energy and still enjoy the way we live. So, when I became an ambassador of our Mother Earth, I teamed up with Puerto Rico's Casa Pueblo, a non-profit environmental watchdog community-based organization in the mountains in the center of the island, were their mission is to be the "Voice of the Waters, the Forests, and our People" here in Puerto Rico, since they were established more than 30 years ago. They were pioneers here in my country as top environmental defenders, giving the example of becoming the first entire solar energy community in the island, were they run everything solar, even their own radio station.

Puerto Rico is an island that measures 3,515 square miles (9,104 km2), with around 3.8 million citizens, consuming 120 millions of dollars every year in street lighting public energy alone. That’s a lot considering our land size. So, understanding this issue, I researched new alternatives to reduce this excessive annual bill and, more importantly, reduce the impact it has in our environment. As it turned out, I discovered a wonderful and inspiring new invention.

Engineering students here, at the University of Puerto Rico, with concerns about energy just like mine, have recently developed a lighting LED card that can substitute every traditional street lamp bulb around the island. The invention is amazing, because the investment would not rely in changing the whole street lamp, just the bulb for the new card. The old bulb used at least 200 watts, generated heat in the environment and needed to be replaced every 4 years versus this card, which only consumes 33 watts, with its cold lighting and does not need replacement in around 20 years. Replacing the bulbs with these cards will have 50% economic benefits in bill reduction and less pollution to our environment; and if you adapt these bulbs in a solar community, well, the possibilities are endless.

Casa Pueblo will change all the street bulbs and already the town of Adjuntas whose population rises to 20,000 citizens will adapt these new cards to all their streets. Just imagine if all of the island can make that change; just imagine if our whole planet can make that change....wow, now that's real change...that is the dream. I’m working and advocating here in Puerto Rico giving this positive energy message through newspapers, television, radio, social media, campaigns, meetings with government leaders and to make it happen.

I can only imagine that with the Miss Earth's Beauty for a Cause platform, together we certainly can make an impact around the earth.

What tip can you share to promote this year's theme, Eco Tourism?

Make it fun and educational!

Would you like Miss Puerto Rico Franceska Toro to be Miss Earth 2014? Support her by sharing her profile on Facebook and Twitter. Tag @YahooPH and use the hashtag #MissEarth2014.

Yahoo Philippines is the official online partner of Miss Earth 2014.

(Photo courtesy of Franceska Toro)