THE Philippines must pursue a different path to strengthen its contribution to the Paris Agreement, one that is anchored on climate change adaptation and resilience, and which finds context in sustainable development, instead of the usual Green House Gas (GHG) inventory-centric approach.
The Paris Agreement sets out a global framework to avoid dangerous climate change by limiting global warming to well below 2°C and pursuing efforts to limit it to 1.5°C. It also aims to strengthen countries’ ability to deal with the impacts of climate change and support them in their efforts.
A study launched during a virtual town hall discussion titled “Convergence of Health and Environment in Shaping the Strategic Policy Agenda of the Next Administration” organized by top think-tank Stratbase ADR Institute recently said the necessary first step to strengthen and accelerate climate action in the Philippines would be to “return to the first principle of adaptation as the anchor strategy, pursuing mitigation as a function of adaptation, with programs and measures driven by their impact on sustainable development and not by emissions reductions per se.”
The study, authored by Dr. Toby Melissa C. Monsod (PhD), Sara Jane Ahmed, and Golda P. Hilario, was entitled Accelerating Resilience and Climate Change Adaptation: Strengthening the Philippines’ Contribution to Limit Global Warming and Cope with its Impacts.
Monsod, professor at the UP School of Economics, said adaptation is the anchor strategy meant to be translated for all levels of governance forward ecosystem-based management which shall ultimately render sectors climate resilient.
“Robust community ownership of climate action, a necessary condition for any successful pursuit of climate-smart low-carbon development, will follow more easily from dedicated investments and targeted market interventions to build local resilience; the same cannot be said for campaigns to reduce GHG emissions,” she said.
She pointed out that 60% of the population live in coastal zones and about 10 million rely on small-scale fishing for their food.
Despite this, and despite the role in human survival and the quality of life, the marine economy has received scant attention from the national government.
“The bias of public investments has been in the agri sector, which it is a part, has always been in crops, specifically rice. Thus, the degradation of coral reefs due to siltation, destructive fishing practices, overharvesting, etc. Even plastic pollution which has contributed to the decline in productivity and is threatening life,” she said.
In his statement, Stratbase ADRI President Dindo Manhit said environmental challenges like global warming have undermined the country’s capacity to respond to crises and emergencies.
“This affects the security of states and the welfare of our people,” he said. “This underscores the importance of fostering cooperation to address these emerging challenges with the same urgency as conventional security threats.”
Reacting to the presentation, Renato Redentor Constantino, executive director of the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities, said climate change will worsen the impact of the pandemic.
“GNP and GDP are not the only measures of progress,” he said. “It is time to establish resilience at the center of macroeconomics, and it is also time to establish ways to measure how resilient we are.
“Climate action strategies need to be a part of a larger transition strategy focused on sustainable, inclusive, and resilient economic strategy,” he said.
Constantino said the government must prioritize multi-model public transportation programs, and chase affordable, reliable and secure power.
Other panel members during the forum included Dr. Alma Salvador, Associate professor at Ateneo de Manila University and Co-convenor of the Department of Political Science-Working Group on Security Sector Reform, and Ms. Maria Fatima Garcia-Lorenzo, president of the Philippine Alliance of Patient Organizations and Co-convenor of Universal Health Care Watch.
