In celebration of the upcoming National Climate Change Consciousness Week (NCCCW), the Department of Environment and Natural Resource Climate Change Service (DENR-CCS) pushes through with its fully-loaded activities--most of it to be held virtually--from November 19 to 27, 2020, while the COVID-19 is still present in the country.

With this year’s theme “Adapting for a Sustainable Future”, this annual celebration aims to create awareness on global warming and climate change by pursuing broad and intensive public information and education campaigns to secure the cooperation of the private and public sector.

“The ongoing climate crisis and pandemic has brought profound effects and impacts in our society. Despite limitations, we want to utilize this week to encourage individual actions and convene the public and private sector to address this dual-threat and contribute towards green recovery”, said DENR Undersecretary for Finance, Information Systems and Climate Change Analiza Rebuelta-Teh.

Upcoming events open for the public include the webinar on Turning Digital Innovation into Climate Actions on November 19 (9 am to 12 nn); Ang Tinig Klima Special Radio Episode on DZXL on November 20 (3 pm to 4 pm) will tackle Peatlands Conservation, and Climate Change, and a webinar on Resilient Rivers, Resilient Communities on November 23 (1 pm to 5 pm).

Interested individuals who want to attend said events can visit the DENR-CCS’ Facebook page at https://facebook.com/DENRCCS.

“Through these activities, we aim to strengthen DENR’s partnership with the private sector in addressing climate change, especially through the use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) which is what is vital in these times”, added Rebuelta-Teh.

The DENR, through its CCS  and the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) will also be conducting several webinars with targeted attendees from the DENR and EMB Central and Regional offices, government agencies, non-government organizations (NGOs), and the academe. These are: Re-tooling on Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation webinar on November 19 (1 pm to 4 pm); Gender-Responsive Climate Policy webinar on November 20 (1pm to 4 pm); Climate Change and Human Security webinar on November 24 (1 pm to 4 pm); Climate Change with International NGO Clean Air Asia webinar on November 25 (9 am to 12 nn); and Climate Change Adaptation Seminar and Workshop on Site Assessment using Ecosystem-based Adaptation Criteria and Valuation Tools webinar on November 26-27 (1 pm to 4 pm).

Co-organized by the Philippine Association of Tertiary Level Educational Institutions in Environmental Protection and Management (PATLEPAM), the DENR’s  CCS and EMB will also be holding a webinar on Green Recovery Strategies in the Environment and Natural Resources Sector for the Better Normal: Challenges for the Academe on November 26 (1 pm to 5 pm) for educators in the country.

The Cabinet Cluster on Climate Change Adaptation, Mitigation and Disaster Risk Reduction (CCAM-DRR), the inter-agency group headed by the DENR is also set to meet on November 25 to discuss Climate-resilient Urban Plans and Designs, Maximizing ICT for CCAM-DRR Actions,  a proposed bill on Environmental Protection and Enforcement Bureau, and a Future Philippnes Initiative.

The DENR CCS, through its Facebook page, will soon be featuring the winners of ‘Mga Kwentong KLIMA-likasan’ Photoblog contest showcasing photos from the individual’s and community’s best practices in creating a safe and healthy environment through pursuing behavior change especially during this pandemic.

The week will culminate on November 27 with the launching of the United Kingdom-Philippine Partnership for Climate Change and Environment.

The various bureaus, attached agencies, and regional offices of the DENR all over the country will also mount various activities highlighting climate change, and various ways to address it, in partnership with different stakeholders.

“We hope that through these activities, we will be able to tell everyone that we all can contribute to creating a safe and healthy environment through pursuing behavior change in their communities, especially during this pandemic,” said Rebuelta-Teh.

Tagged as the Global Warming and Climate Change Consciousness Week under Proclamation No. 1667, series of 2008, different agencies and organizations around the country annually conducts different activities to raise awareness on climate change and environmental protection in our communities every third week of  November.

According to the Global Peace Index 2019 Report, the Philippines is the country most at risk from the climate crisis with factors such as extreme weather and climate hazards.###

By Catherine Teves | Philippine News Agency

MANILA – The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) will accept until Nov. 15 this year photo entries for its "Mga Kwentong KLIMA-likasan: A Photoblog Competition" for 15 to 21-year-old Filipinos nationwide.

The entries must show individual's and communities' behavior changes that help create a healthy environment and boost the fight against climate change, noted staffer Kathleen Cornejo from DENR's Climate Change Service which is running the competition.

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The Philippine government continues to put in place measures to tackle climate change as it mulls declaring a “climate emergency,” according to Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu, who chairs the Cabinet Cluster on Climate Change Adaptation, Mitigation and Disaster Risk Reduction (CCAM-DRR).

“All government programs and initiatives are leaning towards the declaration of climate emergency,” said Cimatu.

Cimatu issued the statement after environmental group Greenpeace Philippines urged President Rodrigo Roa Duterte to declare a climate emergency as a policy instrument to help the Philippines achieve its goals under the Paris Climate Agreement.

Responding to the call, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the Chief Executive would consider declaring a climate emergency given that mitigating effects of climate change is high on his agenda.

Cimatu said that as early as February this year, the Cabinet Cluster on CCAM-DRR approved a resolution supporting House Resolution No. 535, entitled “Declaring a Disaster and Climate Change Emergency” filed by Albay Rep. Joey Salceda in November 2019.

According to Cimatu, the declaration of climate emergency would help deepen the country’s commitment to protect its economy, environment and communities from climate change.

“The Philippines has already suffered billions of losses, damages and disruptions due to the impacts of hydrometeorological hazards, so there’s an urgent need to address more projected adverse impacts to ensure climate justice for the current and future generations of Filipinos,” Cimatu pointed out.

Also in February, the Cabinet Cluster on CCAM-DRR approved another resolution underscoring the urgent need to consolidate government data in order to generate a nationwide climate risk assessment.

Cimatu said it is high time for the government to maintain a reliable climate risk profile that could inform and support development and investment planning and climate finance.

“With the consolidated government data, which is very important in articulation of climate rationale for project proposal development, the local government units could be enabled to have easier access to the People’s Survival Fund for their climate change-related development projects,” Cimatu added.

The two resolutions issued by the Cabinet Cluster on CCAM-DRR support strategies to enable the country achieve its goals under the Paris Agreement, in which world leaders committed to keep the planet’s temperature below 1.5 degrees Celsius. 

The agreement, which is the culmination of decades of international efforts to combat climate change, establishes a framework of global climate action, support for developing nations, and transparent reporting and strengthening of climate goals.

In 2017, President Duterte signed the Paris Agreement, which came into force in November 2016. The Philippines committed to reduce its greenhouse emissions by 70 percent by 2030, but will need technical and financial support to achieve it.

The President, in his speech at the recent 75th United Nations General Assembly, affirmed the country’s commitment to the Paris Agreement and urged “the parties, especially those who have not made good their commitment to fight climate change, to honor the same.”

The Cabinet Cluster on CCAM-DRR is the government’s arm tasked with integrating policies and programs on climate risk management, disaster risk reduction, and sustainable management. 

It serves as a venue and mechanism for coordination, harmonization, complementation and synergy among government agencies and instrumentalities in delivering the national vision on climate change adaptation, mitigation and disaster risk reduction. ###

By Louise Maureen Simeon | The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — The government is seeking a higher budget of P152 billion next year to roll out convergence programs on climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction.

The Cabinet Cluster on Climate Change Adaptation, Mitigation and Disaster Risk Reduction (CCAM-DRR), chaired by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), said the government has allotted P152.35 billion for the government’s Risk Resiliency Program under the 2021 budget.

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