Manila: The Climate Change Commission (CCC) has teamed up with the National Youth Commission (NYC) to empower young Filipinos, stressing their vital role in shaping the country's climate solutions.
According to Philippines News Agency, the CCC and NYC, in partnership with selected higher education institutions, launched the Youth Climate Leadership Accelerator Project (Youth CLAP) to provide participating students with opportunities to strengthen their climate knowledge, develop leadership skills, and explore practical ways to contribute to a more transformative climate action. The Youth CLAP held its pilot session virtually last Saturday, bringing together students from various schools and fields to learn about climate science, policy, diplomacy, communication, innovation, and leadership.
The CCC stated that the program, designed to go beyond lectures, would cover four consecutive Saturdays. During this period, students will work through four core modules and a masterclass to develop proposals to present at an Innovation Showcase. CCC Vice Chairperson and Executive Director Robert E.A. Borje emphasized that bringing students with diverse skills into the same room can help turn ideas into workable solutions.
"There are students here from different institutions, disciplines, and communities. Meet them. Challenge one another. Borrow ideas. Improve them. Build friendships and partnerships. One of you may understand the science. Another may know how to build the technology. Someone else may understand policy. Another may know how to communicate the idea so that people actually listen," Borje said.
Borje further noted that climate solutions do not necessarily come from one person or one field. "Very often, the solution is not sitting inside one person. It emerges when different people learn how to think and work together," he added.
The students also heard from climate experts who connected the science of climate change to what communities actually experience on the ground. During the masterclass, Rodel Lasco, executive director of the Oscar M. Lopez Center, discussed climate science and nature-based solutions, emphasizing the role of natural ecosystems, including the potential of nature-based approaches, in helping communities adapt to climate risks.
"I hope we have seen that natural ecosystems are critical in enhancing climate resilience, the climate resilience of our people, especially the Indigenous Peoples," Lasco stated. Emma Porio of Ateneo de Manila University focused on youth action and the need to connect what students learn about climate change with the realities of communities.
Lasco and Porio, both former members of the CCC's National Panel of Technical Experts, have also contributed to the work of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, bringing expertise in climate science, adaptation, urban resilience, and sustainability. The CCC noted that the mix of disciplines is deliberate, emphasizing that climate action requires more than scientific understanding and calls for people who can work with communities, communicate ideas, develop innovations, and navigate policy.
Higher education institutions are expected to play a key role by providing students with spaces to learn, conduct research, develop ideas, and bring climate solutions to their fellow students and communities. The CCC stated that the pilot also supports the National Adaptation Plan 2023-2050, the country's long-term framework for strengthening resilience to climate change, which recognizes young people as participants in climate adaptation and mitigation efforts.
