US Peace Corps to implement climate initiative

MANILA, Philippines — The US Peace Corps volunteers who will arrive in January next year after resuming operations in the country will be among the first to implement a new climate initiative.

US Peace Corps chief executive officer Carol Spahn announced on Thursday the resumption of the organization’s operations in the Philippines with the return of one of the largest batch of American volunteers in the project sectors of education, youth development and coastal resource management in Luzon and the Visayas.

Spahn said the volunteers would be among the first to implement Peace Corps’ new climate initiative support with over two million hours of volunteer and staff service.

Up to 40 coastal resource management volunteers will help identify and implement strategies that contribute to climate priorities and local government units’ climate change adaptation plans.

“I believe every person, every volunteer who comes in has a role to play in support of climate change initiatives so this can be turned into education and teaching of students and coastal resource management which is directly impacting,” Spahn said at a press conference.

At least 60 volunteers will arrive and work for two years at the invitation of host communities across Luzon and the Visayas.

“This group will be one of the largest that the Peace Corps has organized since resuming overseas operations in March 2022,” Spahn said.

By September 2023, she said over 120 volunteers will be working alongside community members in the country.

Peace Corps volunteers were recalled from their assignments at the onset of the pandemic in March 2020.