SOUTH Korea’s Mina Sue Choi, 24, bested 85 other competitors to win the coveted Miss Earth 2022 title in glittering ceremonies held on Tuesday at Cove Manila, Okada Manila in Parañaque City.
Choi, a Communications student at the University of Illinois in Chicago, succeeded Destiny Wagner of Belize and became her country’s first-ever winner of the advocacy-driven pageant that is back in its standard format after two years of staging the event on a virtual platform due to the pandemic.
Born in Sydney, Australia and schooled in Incheon, South Korea, Choi has also resided in Canada and China. “This pattern of residing in unfamiliar places, adapting, then finding yet another new place has impacted me as a person today and most likely will impact the future versions of myself as a global woman of this era,” she said in her bio for Miss Earth.
A pre-pageant favorite, Choi aced the final question “What would you right (correct) in this world and how would you right (correct) it?” Her answer: “If there is one thing I would correct in this world, it would be being empathetic. We often mistake kindness for being empathetic but it really means putting yourself in someone else’s shoes.
“And when it comes to climate issue and othe issues in the world, one has to be empathetic. You really need to see how the other person perceives this world; you need to understand their pain by being in their shoes. And that I feel is how kindness differs from being empathetic…”
Another heavy favorite, Australia’s Sheridan Mortlock, came in second and was crowned as Miss Earth-Air. Arab beauty Nadeen Ayoub from Palestine was third and was named as Miss Earth Water. Heavy favorite Andrea Aguilera from Colombia rounded the top 4 was awarded the Miss Earth Fire title.
This year’s competition themed “ME Loves Fauna” drew 86 delegates worldwide. The show was hosted by TV host and automotive journalist James Deakin with former Miss Earth winners Angelia Ong, Karen Ibasco, and Nellys Pimentel as anchors.
The pageant started last on October 24 with preliminary competitions staged virtually. With the easing of travel restrictions, the delegates started arriving in Manila on November 12 and went on a two-week eco tour around the Philippines before the finals at Cove Manila last Tuesday.
Initiated in 2001, Miss Earth is widely recognized as among the “Big 4” global beauty contests, in the league of Miss Universe, Miss World and Miss International.
