Loren bats for creation of Climate change commission in RP

Loren bats for creation of Climate change commission in RP
Thimpu, Bhutan (May 28, 2009) — Senator Loren Legarda yesterday batted for the creation of a Climate Change Commission in the Philippines as a first step toward addressing the impacts of climate change.
The chair of the Senate Committee on Climate Change, Loren pushed for the passage of a bill by the Philippine congress creating the commission in an interview at the sidelines of an international conference held here on global climate change adaptation.
“The Philippines is well on the right track as far addressing climate change-induced problems are concerned,” said Legarda.
She came to address the international conference on climate change in this tiny kingdom in the Eastern hemisphere in her capacity as Regional Champion for Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation for the Asia-Pacific, a task bestowed on her by the United Nations International Strategy For Disaster Risk Reduction Secretariat.
Loren said Senate Bill No. 2583, otherwise known as the The Climate Change Act of 2009, incorporates her Committee’s amendments as well as the individual amendments of Senators Miriam Santiago and Pia Cayetano.
In addition to mainstreaming climate change in various phases of policy formulation and development planning, Loren added the bill highlights the synergy between climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction as well as the importance of adopting a gender-sensitive outlook in addressing climate change in general.
The commission will be headed by no less than the President of the Philippines serving as its chairman, with the secretaries of different government agencies, the Presidents of the League of Cities, Municipalities and Barangay and the representatives from the academe, business sector, NGOs and civil society serving as ex-officio members.
The Commission is tasked to ensure the mainstreaming of climate change and disaster risk reduction into development plans and programs at all levels. It will also coordinate and synchronize climate change programs of national government agencies.
The commission will also formulate a Framework Strategy and Program on Climate Change and exercise policy oversight to ensure that the goals set are attained. It will strengthen Local Government Units to effectively address climate change issues; among others.
The commission may also recommend legislation, policies, strategies, programs on and appropriations for climate change adaptation; review and recommend the approval of major development investments in climate-sensitive sectors; create an enabling environment for the design of relevant and appropriate risk-sharing and risk-transfer instruments; create an enabling environment for the promotion of linkages between and encourage broader multi-stakeholder participation in climate change mitigation and adaptation; and formulate strategies on Green House Gas mitigation.
To aid the Commission in the discharge of its duties, a Climate Change Office shall serve as its secretariat which will be headed by an Executive Director.
The Framework Strategy and Program on Climate Change shall serve as the basis for planning, research and development, extension and monitoring of climate change activities, Loren said.

LOREN discuses the importance of Competitiveness

Competitiveness
Our country’s ranking in global competitiveness has sunk deeper from 40th to 43rd place among 57 countries. According to the 2009 World Competitiveness Yearbook, the Philippines fared worse among all four factors of competitiveness, namely, economic performance, government efficiency, business efficiency and infrastructure. It is now lagging behind ASEAN nations Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia.
For the sake of our people, the government should stop bragging about its successful development efforts. Instead it should review its policies and performance and take immediate action to correct them. Of importance is infrastructure, which according to world economists, is the reason why we have failed to attract more direct foreign investments. Government inefficiency should be eliminated so that business and the people should have more confidence to engage in development activities.
Relying on spin doctors to prettify government performance will be self-defeating.

LOREN LEGARDA

LOREN DISCUSES PHILIPPINE FOREST

Ladies and gentlemen, officers and members of the Society of Filipino Foresters, Incorporated, my partners in
environmental protection, a pleasant day to all of you.

Across the years, Philippine forests continuously declined in physical and environmental terms. Forest land area alarmingly went down from 36.3 percent or more than one-third of the country’s land area in 1970 to 18 percent in 2001. Evidently, most of our country’s once rich forests are now gone.

This is tragic because forests are indispensable in the overall ecological balance of the world by acting as a home for biodiversity and by protecting vital water and soil resources. Also, forests serve as major carbon sinks that absorb great quantities of carbon dioxide that otherwise would add to the greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming and rapid climate change.

Recent events have shown us the grim scenario of climate change impact. The intense and record-high rainfall by Ondoy, Pepeng and Santi, as well as the consequent fatalities and damages have shown us that the price we pay for denuding our forests and abusing the environment is well beyond our means.

It is therefore an imperative for us to do everything in our power to protect the forests left for our children and for humanity. It is an uphill climb but we must gather courage. We must pool in our knowledge, our skills, our commitment, and our passion. Essentially, we could find the know-how, the skills, and the passion among our foresters.

Our foresters are the ones who are literally “on the ground” in protecting our forests from abuse and misuse. They are the foot soldiers. They are our forests’ caretakers. And incident to their vocation, foresters are also our partners in reducing poverty in the rural areas. Indeed, many are already rising to the challenge, and our gathering here today is a testament to this.

Let me reiterate that forest protection, like environmental protection, is not its own end. As always, the strong environmental thrust of my advocacy is part of my larger plan and vision of eradicating poverty in the grassroots. Taking care of our forests not only responds to climate change and other environmental concerns but also deals with persistent local poverty because forests are a vital part of the development in the rural areas. I envision every part of the country, every nook and cranny, to be planted with trees so as to be eventually capable of developing to their fullest potential.

The recently passed Climate Change Act gives a window of opportunity for us to respond to the challenges of climate change in a comprehensive manner. As the principal author and sponsor of the law, I set out to give more stakeholders and communities greater responsibility and opportunity to initiate programs in their respective areas of responsibility that are aligned to the national and global goal of sustainable development.

This legislation mandates the creation of a Climate Change Commission which will create an enabling environment for multi-stakeholder participation. Moreover, it will provide technical and financial support to local research and development programs and projects in vulnerable communities. Financial packages for climate change related projects will be provided by government financial institutions.

Given the global condition of the environment, foresters are becoming more important in the future. Rest assured that my advocacy of tree-growing and rejuvenating our forests has not been a case of missing the foresters for the trees. You have my ears in matters of environmental protection and so feel free to tell me your concerns. We will find ways to address them.

In conclusion, I wish you success in your convention this year. As I read your theme, “Sustainable Forests: Key to Climate Change Adaptation and Biodiversity Conservation," I am gladdened because it is aligned with my advocacy of environmental protection and sustainable development. It is aligned with our efforts in finding the best ways to put forests to work for the benefit of the poor in rural communities and in the world. It is aligned with our efforts in making forests adapt to the adverse effects of climate change. Forests make the world safe for habitation and you, foresters, are instrumental for making this world a better place.

LOREN PUSHES CREATION OF REGULATORY BODY FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING

Senator Loren Legarda pushed today for the creation of a government agency that would license and regulate the professional practice of environmental planning in the country, including those of foreign planners who are contracted for work in the Philippines.

Loren stressed that environmental planning in the establishment of communities and in the construction of public and private structures like buildings, roads and houses has taken an added importance in view of the deleterious effects of climate change already being felt worldwide.

“Typhoons Ondoy, Pepeng and Santi opened the eyes of people on their relations with the environment – that while we must minimize our activities that harm the environment, we must also adapt to the world we live, minimizing the risks posed on us by natural calamities,” said Loren.

“People are now aware how some communities had been built on fault lines, on veritable water basins that go underwater during heavy rains, on paths traversed by floods,” she added.

The senator said she envisions the creation by legislation of a Professional Regulatory Board of Environmental Planning, which will also be tasked to ensure the continuing education of environmental planners.

She said foreign environmental planners may be allowed to work in the Philippines, but on the condition that their own countries must also be open to hiring Filipino environmental planners.

A vice presidential candidate in this year’s elections, Loren said that it is good that environmental planning is now being taken into account in the establishment of residential and business communities so they can be integrated into the environment.

She explained that communities and human structures should be complementary with nature, in that communities must not degrade the environment while people must be relocated away from geographically hazardous areas like near volcanoes, fault lines, water basins and mountainsides.

Loren said that Presidential Decree 1308, the law that regulates the profession of environmental planning, has already been overtaken by time and does not apply to foreign environmental planners who come in and out of the country.

“We know little of whether those foreign planners are qualified, thus the need for a body that would strictly regulate the profession,” said the chair of the Senate Climate Change Committee.

Loren is also the United Nations Disaster-Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation champion for the Asia-Pacific Region, in which capacity she asked governments and fellow legislators to unite for the environment during the recent Copenhagen Climate Change Summit.

“Right now, the liability of foreign environmental planners is limited only to their clients, even if their haphazard work has far-reaching consequences to the environment and to the people,” added Loren.

She pointed out that with people becoming more environmentally conscious, the scope of work of environmental planners will be broadened to include adapting to climate change, socio-economic concerns, public administration and the needs of the marginalized sectors.

“Environmental planning must also include subdivision planning, environmental investigation, disaster prevention, mitigation and response,” said Loren.

Loren discuses socio-economic affairs

Today’s state of socio-economic affairs should not be business-as-usual. It is high time for the world to slow down this contemporary development practices.
It is high time to re-think development - and for a more holistic development philosophy to emerge and to prevail.
- the kind of development that transcends economic capital measures such as GDP;
- the kind of development that has regard for social, cultural and natural capital of countries;
- the kind of development that is not only sustainable but also adaptable;
- the kind of development that does not create new risks and promotes resilient investments;
- the kind of development that is founded on sustainable and equitable socio-economic development, ecosystems protection, cultural resilience, and good governance.
Now is the time for all of us to unite on all these challenges, and to transcend territorial boundaries, political persuasions, and institutional affiliations.
If only we keep an open mind, an open heart, and a genuine passion for good governance, I believe we can make an important difference for our people especially the poor, for our society, and for the world.
The time to make that difference is now.
Humanity’s future depends upon us.
Let us be the change we seek.
Thank you and Mabuhay!

LOREN LEGARDA

LOREN: The challenge in development is undeniably clear

The challenge in development is undeniably clear.
Through the centuries since the industrial revolution, Mother Earth has been at the mercy of human’s insatiable desires for material wealth and economic progress. Yet our ways of thinking and pursuing development have depleted our social, cultural and natural wealth. Sadly, we must admit, our so-called development has made the poor more vulnerable, has placed some cultures at risk of extinction, and has pushed ecosystems services like fisheries beyond repair.
Contemporary development practices have been irresponsible since they have allowed disaster risks to grow, to spread, and to prevail until today. Urban poverty, weak governance, ecosystems decline, vulnerable rural livelihoods, turbo-charged by climate change have altogether created enormous risks in our cities and communities and have put the poor in greater peril.These risks will constantly challenge our human capacity to cope, imperil all development gains, and keep the Millennium Development Goals elusive.
The “slumdog millionaire” reality that has bedeviled many developing countries is a wakeup call for all. We are in a vicious cycle of economic boom and bust, with the peoples and environment at the receiving end of a failing model of economic development. This has entrapped the poor and the vulnerable, and has corrupted societies. We cannot continue using Mother Earth as collateral in our economic games of chance.

LOREN LEGARDA

Loren, change to make an enduring difference

Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,
So much remains to be done to usher our desired change and to make an enduring difference in building the resilience of nations and communities.
The predominance of risks in our societies calls for urgent policy reforms. We need new policies that build local capacity beyond disaster response capability; new policies that link disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation and mainstream them into development action and formal education; new policies that reduce and not worsen existing vulnerabilities and risks; new policies that make reducing risk a prerequisite for development funding; new policies that ensure the resilience of our development investments; new policies that are backed by scientific studies and empirical proofs; new policies that are sensitive to indigenous knowledge systems; new policies that promote gender sensitivity and equality; new policies that uphold fairness and equity especially for the poor and disadvantaged.
There is no more appropriate time to show political will, good governance, and exemplary leadership than these trying times. Indeed, these times call for a new breed of leaders – leaders of integrity and responsibility, leaders of wisdom and compassion, leaders of conscience and conviction, leaders who are truly committed to eradicating poverty and uplifting humanity.

LOREN LEGARDA