How the Philippines can break the cycle of climate injustice
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Alcarazen [Paulo Alcazaren, a renowned Filipino landscape architect and environmental planner] says the most effective approach now is to turn to the natural frameworks of the country's river basins.
"[We] need a radical change of governance structure that should take into account the ridge-to-reef, river basin reality, rather than the political frameworks that have guided us up to now," he says.
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One alternative is to focus on nature-based solutions (NBS), which have been around since time immemorial and are deeply rooted in traditional practices in many parts of the world, including the Philippines.
"[This] is how our Indigenous people dealt with their situations, because they knew they had to work with nature," Alcazaren explains.
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"We have to recover that mindset and that connection to our land, our culture and the nature that surrounds us to be able to move forward," says Alcazaren.
That includes developing a flood control masterplan for the country's major river basins focused on NBS, supported by similar plans at the regional and municipal levels.
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The Philippines' future lies in the hands of its communities, who must be well informed about climate issues as a crucial first step, giving them the power to elect good leaders.
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