Philippines

Shooting Stars and Dancing Fish is part memoir, part treatise, and part storybook, punctuated with photos, paintings, and poems that would appeal to both young readers and policy-makers. Oposa, who received the Ramon Magsaysay award in 2009, has an interesting way with words that transforms what might seem complex subject matter for many into something simple and easy to grasp. “We are in a state…

The following link will take you to INQUIRER.net: http://opinion.inquirer.net/105907/climate-change-agriculture-food-security By: Rex L. Navarro Source: Inquirer.Net | 29 July 2017

Sea Rituals, Climate Change and Applied Theatre Research
 By Dennis Gupa I was a first year MFA Directing student at the University of British Columbia when super typhoon Yolanda struck the Philippines in 2013. As the typhoon’s rage decimated an entire city, leaving the whole Visayan region traumatized due to the magnitude of its destruction, I began to re-think my own work as a diasporic…

"Lagi silang maghanda kasi hindi naman natin masasabi kung kailan ba darating ang sakuna (They should always be ready because we can't say when disaster will strike)," Ablaña told Rappler in time for the observance of National Disaster Resilience Month. "Kapag sinasabihan natin ang ating mga kababayan na maghanda, 'wag namang ipagwalambahala. Ibig sabihin, paniwalaan at sundin ang tagubilin mula sa authorities (When…

Rodne Galicha, branch manager of the Climate Reality Project Philippines, said Duterte's support of installing coal-fired power plants will only place the country in a path opposite of the shift to more sustainable energy sources by other countries. "This is not only about mitigation or the reduction of carbon emissions, but also the health of nearby communities within the coal-fired power plant…

Migration as a coping strategy for women Losses in rural areas, especially where there's ongoing armed conflict, are not just financial. Across the world, climate and conflict are deeply intertwined and their negative effects mutually reinforcing. In the Philippines, this relationship is evident in Mindanao, a farming community on the country's southernmost island. Despite peace efforts to end over 40 years of social and ethnic…

The first round of trainings, dubbed "Coaches' Training on the Enhanced LCCAP Guidebook,” is held on July 25 to 28, 2017 in Quezon City. This undertaking is in partnership with the Department of the Interior and Local Government–Local Government Academy (DILG-LGA). Climate Change Secretary Emmanuel de Guzman expects these trainings to expedite the completion of the LCCAPs of all local government units (LGUs). “Equipping our…

These include Green Thumb Coalition, Power for People, Forest Resources Bill among others. They claim the president failed to fulfill his promise to protect the environment and natural resources of the country. “We want to tell him the pending issues and our calls to enact good environmental laws and the need for stricter and better administration in DENR,” Green Thumb Coalition convenor, Jaybee Garganera said…

While this process of iceberg calving is a natural one, the one that broke off was an unusually big one and scientists will be looking if it was due to climate change. There has been a marked increase in solar radiation absorbed in polar ice regions since the year 2000 and this has been attributed to increased carbon emissions by the world’s industrial nations. Thus…

About 80 delegates will be hosted by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in the 28th annual meeting of the ASEAN Senior Officials for Environment (ASOEN) to be held in Pasay City from July 23 to 29. The meeting will be chaired by the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR). DENR Secretary Roy Cimatu said the meeting will “critical” among the ASEAN members to…

During the competition’s final Q&A portion, Ibasco was asked what change she wants to see in national environmental policies. “In terms of environmental policies, everyone is experiencing climate change. The whole world is experiencing climate change and I’m just grateful that the Philippines signed the Paris Treaty,” Ibasco said. “What I want to see is to pass a carbon tax. In that way, we would…

Ortega is Toribio Ortega Jr, a 79-year old retired engineer from Palawan who was among the ranks of civil society and community groups that spearheaded his hometown Aborlan’s successful fight against a coal-fired power plant project. The legal action filed by the group of petitioners on June 30, 2017, was a petition for mandamus, a legal instrument that sought to hold the two government agencies…

The following link will take you to INQUIRER.net: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/914078/adb-7-ph-cities-most-vulnerable-to-flooding Source: Inquirer.net | 15 July 2017

National Renewable Energy Board Chairman Jose Layug, who spoke at the Negros Renewable Energy Summit 2017 at SMX Convention Center Bacolod on Thursday, July 13, said the region has biomass energy sources that can serve as base load on top of solar and hydro power. Layug said the National Energy Program has a doable target of 35 percent renewable energy use in the country by…

Insufficient budget Back in March, the NDRRMC said only about P5.8 billion is left of the calamity fund which is not enough to cover the needs of areas recovering from disasters. This means that two-thirds of the DRRM fund had already been used in the first 3 months of the year. Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo earlier told Rappler that the budget for 2017 is…

DISASTER RISK REDUCTION. Senator Loren Legarda shares at least 9 ways Filipinos can help mitigate the impact of disasters on their lives. Photo by Alecs Ongcal/Rappler Here are at least 9 ways to do it, according to Legarda: 1. Multi-hazard early warning systems Disasters now rarely cause one hazard alone, said Legarda. Citing the onslaught of Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) in 2013, she said there…

"Extreme events cannot be prepared for singly by the local government. Extreme events must be prepared for, orchestrated at the national or regional level; otherwise, if we don't have these scenarios and no conductor, our efforts we think are good, but these will not be aligned. And when these large-scale disasters will occur, we will find out that we are not working as a whole…

POWER OF MEDIA. Bryan McClelland suggested that it's time to incorporate climate change and disaster preparedness into pop culture. Actor and YesPinoy Foundation chair Jose Sixto "Dingdong" Dantes III said it is really a challenge to convey to people the message of disaster risk reduction. "I think it is also our duty and responsibility as citizens to help the government, to participate, and not just…

VICTIMS OR AGENTS OF CHANGE? Climate Change Commission's Rina Atienza said women are the most vulnerable demographic when it comes to climate change. All photos by LeAnne Jazul/Rappler What about the children and the youth? Javier Bornstein, emergency and disaster risk reduction officer of UNICEF, also noted that children are the most exposed to climate change, with a "very high number" of them living in…

During the Agos Summit on Disaster Preparedness at SM Aura in Taguig, Senator Loren Legarda said that the laws are "not implemented efficiently and effectively." Legarda authored Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act, which requires the segregation of wastes. She stressed that the government, and the rest of Filipinos, should be concerned about climate change, which continues to bring about calamities…