Palace to Pinoys: Act on climate change

MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang yesterday emphasized the need to act on climate change as the world observed Earth Hour, which encourages establishments and individuals to care for the planet by switching off non-essential electric lights and gadgets for one hour.

“The Philippines is highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change and this year’s Earth Hour is a good reminder that climate change and global warming are real issues that we need to pay more attention to and require urgent action,” acting presidential spokesman Martin Andanar said in a statement.

Andanar added that participating in Earth Hour is “a show of solidarity and active involvement in shaping our future.”

Earth Hour was observed last night from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.

The environment department had recently urged Filipinos to go beyond the symbolic switching off of lights and make environmental stewardship a part of their “new normal” lifestyle.

Acting Environment Secretary Jim Sampulna said climate change is not foreign to the Philippines, which is frequently visited by typhoons.

The country aims for a 75-percent reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, but the goal won’t be reached if people continue to engage in unsustainable practices that significantly harm nature, according to Sampulna.

The bulk of the target or 72.29 percent is “conditional” or dependent on the support of climate finance, technologies and capacity development, which will be provided by developed countries, as prescribed by the Paris Agreement.

The remaining 2.71 percent is “unconditional” or will be implemented mainly through domestic resources, according to the Department of Finance.

Organized by the World Wide Fund for Nature, Earth Hour started in Sydney, Australia in 2007 and is being supported by more than 180 countries and territories.

‘Shape Our Future’

The observance of Earth Hour in the country this year maximized online events and campaigns that carried the theme “Shape Our Future.”

In line with the annual “lights off” activity which is held every last Saturday of March, conservation group World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)-Philippines earlier came out with a social media mini-series dubbed #ShapeOurFuture that ran from March 1 to 11.

“This featured select individuals encouraging the public to probe into the election candidates’ platform for the country’s biodiversity conservation,” WWF-Philippines executive director Katherine Custodio said.

Apart from this, the group also launched “Earth Hour Virtual Run,” a self-paced virtual run that aims to promote a sustainable and healthy lifestyle, raise environmental awareness and support conservation efforts of WWF-Philippines. It commenced yesterday and runs until April 22.

Participants can choose their distance from 10 kilometers to 60 km. The registration started last Feb. 2 and ends on April 9.

Jefferson Lo, founder of Pinoy Fitness, which partnered with WWF-Philippines for the Earth Hour Virtual Run, expressed belief that “protecting the planet is everyone’s responsibility, especially for us runners and those who are into fitness, knowing how important the environment is.”

“We’re really happy that Pinoy Fitness, as a platform, can enable more active participation from our community. Rather than starting from switching off the light, we can now extend this campaign by donating their sweat, steps and distances,” Lo said.

“By joining this virtual event, they are giving back something already to the environment, helping WWF to shape the future,” he added.

It was also last night, an hour before the switch-off, when a “Countdown to Earth Hour” roundtable discussion was held. Hosted by WWF ambassadors Marc Nelson and Pia Wurtzbach, the discussion featured speakers from the Green Thumb Coalition, farmers and fisherfolk sectors and on-the-ground environmental workers.

The discussion focused on the importance of legislation and policies for the future of the Philippine environment.

“With 2022 being a critical year for both the environment and Filipinos, this aims to empower voters with the proper knowledge to create well-thought-of choices in the upcoming national election and elect leaders that will put sustainability on the pedestal,” Custodio said.

Millions of people participate every year in Earth Hour regardless of nationality or religion, making a true movement of humanity for the environment, according to WWF.

With the theme “Shape Our Future,” the environmental movement aims to be a platform to encourage and mobilize collective action for the environment by educating and inspiring everyone, especially government leaders, to act for nature and climate.”

For Wurtzbach, “it is high time that Filipinos educate themselves and one another about environmental issues, especially now that we are about to elect a new set of leaders who will lead us in the next six years.”

“Earth Hour is a step forward towards the goal to collectively act for our environment. We should cast our votes for leaders who will commit to address the worsening environmental issues,” she said.