Social media in Belize blew up last night after the announcement that Miss Belize Earth, Destiny Wagner, had just won the title of Miss Earth 2021. The crown made Destiny the first Belizean to hold an international title for the country. Needless to say, Belizeans are ecstatic about the announcement and proud of Destiny for her great achievement.
Destiny’s title is a historic win for Belize as she becomes the first Belizean woman to secure a placement at Miss Earth, the first Belizean woman to place at a Big 4 pageant (Miss Universe, Miss World, Miss International, Miss Earth) since 1979, and the first Belizean to win a Big 4 crown. On her advocacy, Wagner said she’s focused on the sustainability of marine life and conservation of our natural resources and children’s rights.
“My family and I have a non-profit organization in which we supply sustainable meals to children in 3 plus villages for the past 10 years. We provide them with school supplies, toys, and resources necessary for them to excel in the classroom,” she added.
Following the announcement, Destiny shared how ecstatic she is to win the crown. “My country has never placed at Miss Earth before nor have we ever had an international crown,” she said. “So right now, this is what we needed and I am happy to represent such a gorgeous country. I am overwhelmed right now with emotions. The words and the gratitude, it’s very hard to express. But I am thankful.”
During the final question and answer portion, the Top 4 contestants – Belize, USA, Thailand and Chile – were asked how far can technology go to help save the environmental situation the world is currently in. In responding, Destiny said: “I am so thankful to live in a digital age right now. Because of technology, we are able to spread awareness of things that are happening not only in my country but in other countries as well.”
“However, technology can also be used to save our environment because by incorporating innovation and technology as well as sustainability, we can use those two things to come together. I am so thankful to be a woman now in 2021 and be able to have access to these things such as solar energy and renewable energy. When mixed together, there’s nothing that we cannot do. I am thankful to be in the digital age of technology and it will be used to save the planet,” she added.
Destiny topped 87 other delegates who participated in the competition to take the crown. Of the final four contestants, USA’s Marisa Butler won Miss Earth Air, Chile’s Romina Denecken was selected as Miss Earth Water and Thailand’s Baitong Jareerat Petsom settled for Miss Earth Fire. In 2020 the Miss Earth pageant successfully mounted its first virtual competition and following its success, the organization decided to hold the 2021 competition virtually as well. In justifying its decision the organization said “the safety of the delegates, the production staff, and the public is still paramount for the organization, and will not, in any way, put anyone involved with the event at risk.”
