Amid ongoing headlines about flood-control projects, ghost projects, and corruption in the Senate, Ms. Earth Philippines 2025, Joy Barcoma, is advocating for disaster resilience and raising awareness among Filipinos.

In today’s episode of Spotlight, Barcoma shared how her firsthand experience with Typhoon Ondoy in 2009 made her realize how drastically such calamities and flood control-can impact people’s lives.

“It was actually a questionable moment for me because our place is not flood-prone. But that’s when I started to think, what’s happening? What’s happening around the country?” she recalled. She added that her family later moved to Bacoor, where flooding and the heavy traffic it caused became part of daily life, even forcing her to cancel work activities.

Another experience that strengthened her passion for the advocacy was the pandemic, during which she worked closely on the ground as part of a party-list group. She witnessed firsthand how natural disasters affect people’s livelihoods and basic needs. “That’s when it hit me. I felt like I had to do something about it,” she said. “And knowing that I have this platform, I know it’s my responsibility to help people.”

Aside from the environment, Barcoma is also active in promoting mental health and youth empowerment. She shared that her first interview in Miss Earth focused on the connection between her advocacies, explaining how nature and humanity are deeply intertwined.

She cited examples such as maintaining a balanced diet, which supports both mental and physical health while also being environmentally friendly by reducing food waste. She emphasized that connecting with nature allows people to connect more deeply with themselves, since humans are the “core of the Earth.”

Barcoma, who graduated with a degree in Broadcast Communication and plans to pursue law after her Miss Earth journey, shared that she has always been naturally opinionated. She credits her family background for encouraging her to respect people’s voices and honor their decisions and values that shaped her into the person she is today.