Miss Earth South Africa, placed in the top 16, in the International Miss Earth. Miss Brazil, Larissa Ramos, was crowned Miss Earth 2009, with Miss Philippines, Miss Venezuela and Miss Spain clinching the top four positions.

The event was staged, in Boracay, an island paradise, noted for its white sand beaches and clear azure seas. The event was beamed across the world by ABS-CBN Channel 2 (TFC) and The Filipino Channel, beauties from 90 countries vied for the title of Miss Earth, on November 22 at the Boracay Eco Village Resort and Convention Centre in Barangay Yapak.

Miss Earth South Africa in association with Consol, Chanel Grantham, proudly modelled a necklace sponsored by De Beers, this piece of jewellery is from the ‘Shining Light Collection”, which is a collection of South African pieces, by South African designers and craftsman.  Her national costume, by Gerrit Pienaar, was distinctly South African in its beading, which was done by a Pretoria community based project. Her swimwear was designed by Joburg based, Colette Designer Garments. Her evening gown and cocktail wear were by KZN designers Francois Vedemme and Katherine Montague respectively.

Grantham is a student at the University of Cape Town, and is studying ‘Engineering and Built Environment’; her vision is to create awareness on the development of green buildings, thus reducing our ecological footprint. She will be returning to South Africa in the next week amidst great excitement.

For more information please contact Georgina 082 5050 664

Mabuhay South Africa!!

First off, thank you for all your support, votes, notes, sms’s, messages and well wishes. I really appreciate them all!

It’s 1.30am here and I just had to write this blog to you all cos I feel so exhilarated having visited one of the most incredible Eco-villages, Nuvali!! (will tell you more about this in my next blog:))) - can’t wait!)

It’s been 2 weeks now in the Philippines and everyday is a new delight.

So many people have sent messages asking about my experience thus far, the trip, the food, the contestants and the people. Hope I get to cover all your questions…..well here goes….the food is delicious, my friends know how much I love pasta so noodles for breakfast is different but YUM. It’s always so refreshing learning about other country’s culture. Ps - also luv the coconut milk drinks!

On the contestants…. All the girls are lovely and we get on well. We are having the most amazing experience you can imagine. The Miss Earth contest is HUGE in the Philippines! The popularity and hype around the contest is incredible. There are press, photographers, paparazzi and large crowds of people waiting to welcome us wherever we go. There are close to 90 contestants from all around the globe with different cultures, languages and needs so u’d think that it would be difficult to take care of all of us. Well I have to commend Carousel Productions on taking good care of every single one of us. We have chaperones that are so hospitable, efficient and helpful. We are made to feel like royalty wherever we go.

Catherine Constantinides, my pageant Director had said that the Filipino People are very friendly and hospitable and that I would really enjoy their company. She was completely on the mark here! People here are very warm and genuinely interested in hearing and learning from what we have to say about our countries. It reminds me a lot of back home in South Africa.

RE the weather … I guess i’m fortunate coming from sunny SA so i’m used to hot weather and humidity (especially in Durban). The temperatures here are extreme.

The best word to describe our schedules over the 4 week period is intense. We have back to back activities, guest appearances, eco tours, press conferences, interviews, rehearsals, make up and hair, and shows from early morning well into the evening. We get to meet and be interviewed by many people. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity to showcase our environmental work and I’m really doing my best to ensure that I get to spread the green word on our beautiful country and showcase what we have done as the Miss Earth South Africa Organisation in association with Consol in creating awareness around our environmental cause.

I promise to keep you updated. Remember, keep it Green! Got to get some sleep now – good night all:)

Green, Peace and Love

Chanel, Miss Earth South Africa.

Estelle from the witness requested news from Chanel on her experience this far and this is Chanel’s response

Mabuhay Estelle!!
Mabuhay South Africa!!
Warm greetings from the Philippines!! Thank you so much for supporting me, I really appreciate it:)

Estelle…there is so much that I can tell you, it’s just about where to start……….
…..the Miss Earth contest in the Philippines is HUGE! There are close to 90 contestants from all around the globe competing for the Miss Earth title. Carousel Productions together with our chaperones have to be commended for taking such good care of us all.
From my arrival here in the Philippines, every experience thus far has been a delight but the experience that has kept me up with excitement has been our visit (yesterday) to a new Eco model Metropolis called “Nuvali”. I called home to talk about this experience and believe me it was worth the huge cell tag cos I was bursting with excitement to share this experience and now I have the opportunity to share it with you!!

As you know, I’m a BSc, Property Studies student focusing on Green Developments and Sustainable living so imagine my excitement representing my country as Miss Earth South Africa having to visit Nuvali Evoliving that is a model for sustainability!  This Eco-Metropolis gives us an idea of how we can live and harmonise productivity and sustainability, where family, work, and leisure are seamlessly integrated in a diverse vibrant landscape. Every  detail of this City took into account the environment and everything looks harmonised, serene and futuristic. It a blend of nature and high technology. This model truly redefines urban living through sustainability and  distinguishing itself from cities as we know it. Experiencing this I felt like I had found the “gold wrapper in the wonka bar!!”  Eco-Bliss!!!

Some of the green applications in this model include :  A feature that I personally love is the tree-lined pedestrian and bike lanes which encourage walking and a healthier lifestyle. Over 100,000 trees had been planted or maintained to ensure good environmental air quality and less soil erosion. This also filters down to keeping the waterways even cleaner and improving the soil’s water-retention capacity. The lake which is a central environmental feature that is aesthetically beautiful and also serves as the key for ecological balance as the main reservoir for rainwater harvesting. The structures themselves uphold the principles of green architecture, utilizing energy-efficient lighting fixtures, green materials, green roofs, low-emissivity glass, appliances and equipment, passive cooling technologies, rainwater harvesting and sustainable landscaping. The project also has an efficient sewer management through the use of sewerage treatment plants enhanced with green wetlands. The key idea is that this entire development will be self sufficient. Amongst other things here, we planted trees and I was fortunate enough to address an audience on sustainable living and energy efficiency.

About the next 2 weeks…….well If the remaining 2 weeks are anything like the first weeks, then my eco journey here would start and finish on an incredible Environmental HIGH – Go Green!

Some upcoming highlights ….Can’t wait to see Boracay Island. I believe it’s one of the most beautiful Islands in the world. The finals is being in an Eco-Village on the Island. Hope we get some time to scuba.
Also looking forward to my parents and our family (the Dunn’s) coming over to support me on the big day, 22nd on Boracay Island. They arrive next week:) but our schedules are so intense that I don’t think I’ll be able to spend time with them but it’s still comforting knowing that they are around.
Thank you to Jeff from Archway Projects for arranging my beautiful gem stones at such short notice.
For all the girls wanting to know about the shopping here …. I really hope that I can sneak in some bargain shopping before I leave. Sandra (Miss Earth Philippines) is a very gracious hostess and kindly offered to show me some shopping hot spots;)

With the 22nd fast approaching, I would love to win and I’m certainly doing my very best to bring the green tiara home to South Africa. But whichever way it goes, it is such a wonderful platform to share the environmental work that we do as Miss Earth South Africain association with Consol and showcase the beauty our country has to offer, especially in the run-up to 2010. I’m taking every opportunity to do this and will continue to assure South Africa of my ‘green’ intentions always.”

Green, Peace and Love
Chanel, Miss Earth South Africa.