AT A GLANCE
Drita Ziri of Albania won Miss Earth 2023, succeeding Mina Sue Choi of South Korea.
Miss Philippines Yllana Marie Aduana was crowned Miss Air during the Miss Earth 2023 beauty pageant held in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam on Friday night.
Drita Ziri of Albania won Miss Earth 2023, succeeding Mina Sue Choi of South Korea. Other winners were Miss Vietnam Đỗ Thị Lan Anh, Miss Water, and Miss Thailand Cora Bliault, Miss Fire.
Delegates who finished in the top 20 were Brazil, Kazakhstan, Netherlands, Russia, Indonesia, Puerto Rico, South Africa, Venezuela, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, England, India, Mauritius, United States, and Zimbabwe.
During the final question-and-answer for the top 4 candidates, Aduana was asked: "An official at a recent climate conference was quoted as saying ‘there is no science behind calls for the phaseout of fossil fuels.’ Do you agree? Why, or why not?”
Aduana answered: “As someone who is from the medical field, I do believe that everything roots from science and I think that the greatest gift we have in this generation is the sophisticated technical installations that we have and so there is science in the phaseout of fossil fuels. One thing we can also agree on is that we can live a zero-waste and sustainable lifestyle. I’ve always been practicing it because sustainability will always ensure stability in our future."
Earlier, during the semi-final round of the top 8 candidates, Aduana was also asked: "At what age do you think a child should be given access to social media?"
She answered: “I believe that when a child is parented by their parents to practice responsible cyber-citizenship in which they know when to click, what to read, and who to trust online, then no matter what the age is, then this should be validated and accepted with proper guidance."
Aduana, 25, is a medical laboratory scientist from Siniloan, Laguna. She finished college at the Centro Escolar University in Manila.
Asked about her advocacy for Miss Earth, Aduana said: "My advocacy is called E.A.R.T.H. Education which stands for Environmental Awareness and Action to Restore and Transcend Home through Education. Through my nonprofit organization, Edukasyon for Every Juan, we aim to achieve environmental amelioration through the 17 UN SDG Promotion.
"My concrete project as the Miss Earth Philippines- 2023 is the 17 Sustainable Development Goals for 1 Goal: Environmental Amelioration for a Greener Nation. Through this project, I’ve been to all 17 regions of my country to conduct 17 community outreaches in line with the 17 UN SDG.
"I chose this advocacy to debunk the notion that Earth Queens only advocate for the trees, the plants, and green sceneries. For me, it’s more than that because The EARTH is a concoction of biodiversity. The Earth consists of the people, the animals, the communities, the indigenous tribes, and every single unit of life you can see on this planet. This is all covered by the 17 Sustainable Development Goals," she said.
