WE CAN never fight nature. The message is getting louder and louder. We need to listen closely and heed the warnings. The pandemic has proven that already. On top of these, the Philippines now faces volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, typhoons, resulting in very destructive flash floods and landslides. We can act in small and big ways to help.
Eleven years ago, I authored City Ordinance No. 504 Series of 2009 or an ordinance creating climate change mitigation and adaptation programs of Bacolod City. The ordinance also serves as a policy basis for the creation of the Bacolod Network on Climate Change (BNCC). BNCC shall be created for the purpose of data gathering, monitoring and evaluation, policy support, advocacy and linkages.
City Ordinance No. 504 sets the composition of BNCC as representatives from different sectors such as business, energy, religion, health, transport, solid waste management, agriculture, education, fisheries and coastal groups. To be involved are relevant national line agencies, Sangguniang Panlungsod committees on communications and energy (for projects involving energy or water conservation, efficiency and development or generation), health and sanitation (for projects involving health and sanitation issues), tourism (for projects involving tourism development), agriculture, fisheries and trade and commerce (for projects involving economic or business development and generation).
The key policy principles under City Ordinance No. 504 include Sustainable Agriculture (refers to agricultural systems and practices that make use of low-external to full organic inputs); Forest Resource and Biodiversity Conservation (refers to the protection, rehabilitation, conservation of forest and biological diversity resources); Ecological Waste Management (involves the promotion of the 3Rs, namely, reduction, recycling, and re-use of city wastes); Coastal Resource Management (a participatory process of planning, implementing and monitoring sustainable uses of coastal resources through collective action and sound decision-making).
In addition, it adheres to the disaster risk reduction or includes integration of adaptation strategies into local development plans, where disaster risk reduction is defined as the broad development and application of policies, strategies and practices to minimize vulnerabilities and disaster risks throughout society, through prevention, mitigation and preparedness.
It also highlights the importance of vulnerability and adaptation (V&A) assessment (involves an assessment of current and future climate risks and the coping measures and mechanisms adopted by local communities); and gender and development (represents a perspective that seeks to link gender analysis of vulnerability to policies, programs, measures and actions and the need to ensure participation of women in decision-making processes and actively securing their access to power and resources).
The ordinance also puts a premium on Sustainable Energy Development or activities related to energy development, energy conservation and energy efficiency and Sustainable Transportation, which involves the promotion of environment-friendly modes of transportation covering land, water and air.
In Bacolod, I laud organizations and corporations coming together to help in any way they can. SM Supermalls, in partnership with the United States Agency for International Development (USAid) and the Philippine Reef and Rainforest Conservation Foundation Inc. (PRRCFI), is launching a Mall Installation Campaign in which we will give away free reusable shopping bags for SM Supermalls’ shop goers from November 15 to December 5, 2020, at SM City Bacolod.
Each AweSMseas reusable shopping bag has a unique QR code to track the number of single-use plastic bags that have been prevented when being used.
As concerns about pollution and climate change have become more central in public discourse, shopping with reusable grocery bags has been strongly promoted as environmentally and socially conscious. In a recent SWS survey (2019), 4 out of 10 Filipinos thought companies should use/find alternative materials to plastic.
The AweSMSeas campaign is highlighting essential waste management at home and at work, with proper segregation and safe disposal as a basic practice, to reduce trash where produced and before trash ends up in our waterways, seas, and environment.
The AweSMseas booth is located at SM Bacolod City, South Wing, Cinema Area (in-front of Dave’s Fun House) which will also have information, education and communication campaign materials for mall-goers. Shoppers who used their AweSMseas reusable bag at least 10 times within the 21-day campaign will be eligible for a raffle to win prizes and gift certificates.