THE City Government of Tagum has been named a national finalist in the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) One Planet City Challenge (OPCC) for 2023 to 2024, alongside Makati City and Baguio City.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, April 9, 2024, the City Government of Tagum celebrated this achievement, highlighting it as a testament to the city's responsible and successful actions in addressing the challenges of climate change and global warming.
“Testamento kini sa responsable ug malampusong mga lakang sa atong siyudad kabahin sa mga hagit sa climate change ug global warming (This serves as a testament to the responsible and successful measures our city has taken in addressing the challenges of climate change and global warming),” the city government wrote in the post.
In addition to Tagum City, Makati City, and Baguio City also made it to the finals list.
The selection process involved evaluating climate data reported by participating cities in the CDP-ICLEI track scored through the OPCC Assessment Framework 2023.
Out of about 350 cities from 50 countries participating in the event, only 15 were from the Philippines, with three being selected as national finalists.
“All OPCC finalists will be evaluated by an international jury composed of leading experts within the field of urban sustainability from around the globe. National and global winners will be announced publicly by September-October 2024,” WWF wrote on its website.
The WWF-OPCC is a biennial global competition aimed at supporting cities in meeting their commitments under the Paris Agreement, specifically targeting limiting the rise in global temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius. It also recognizes cities making strides in climate change mitigation and adaptation, along with those adopting comprehensive approaches aligned with the competition's objectives. RGP