The Philippines has one of the longest coastlines in the world, with a total length of approximately 36,289 kilometers. These coastlines are threatened by dredging, dump-and-fill projects, and other activities related to reclamation. The Philippines currently has over 180 proposed and ongoing reclamation projects. Coastal reclamation in the country has negatively impacted our marine ecosystems and the livelihoods of fishing communities. Reclamation activities can destroy coral reefs, our mangroves, seagrass beds, wetlands and other marine habitats which disrupt fish migration patterns, and decrease fish stocks, leading to a decline in the income of fisherfolk. The current form of reclamation projects also pose an increased risk of flooding and erosion, especially in areas that are prone to natural disasters such as typhoons and storm surges.The sites of these projects are vulnerable to ground shaking and liquefaction that raise red flags to people’s safety when earthquakes and flooding occur. The youth of the Philippines will be the most affected by the long-term impacts of these projects, which is why it is essential that our voices are heard in decision-making processes. We enjoin you to strengthen our efforts to defend and protect our country's natural resources. Stop dump-and-fill and dredging projects that threaten life both in land and sea! Break the silence, sign on, and let our voices be heard. Stop reclamation! #NoToReclamation #ClimateJusticeNow

Ang oil spill mula sa paglubog ng MT Princess Empress ay isa na sa pinakamalalawak na oil spill sa kasaysayan ng Pilipinas. Umabot na ang langis sa pampang ng iba’t ibang probinsya, mula Oriental Mindoro hanggang Palawan. Namataan na rin ito sa Verde Island Passage, isang bahagi ng katubigan na mayaman sa marine biodiversity. Nananatili rin itong banta sa mga tanyag na tourism spots gaya ng Boracay at Puerto Galera. Sa loob lamang ng ilang linggo, libu-libong pamilya at mangingisda na ang dumaraing dahil sa insidenteng ito. Lampas 19,000 mangingisda na ang nawalan ng kabuhayan, mahigit isandaang residente na ang nagkakasakit, at nangangamatay na ang mga isda sa Oriental Mindoro at sa mga karatig-probinsya. Ngunit hanggang ngayon, ni isang kusing ay wala pang binabayad ang mga kumpanyang dawit sa sakunang ito. Maging ang charterer ng barko ay hindi pa rin lumalantad. Ang gastusin sa pagbangon ay dapat sagutin ng mga kumpanyang may sala — hindi ng gobyerno lamang o ng mga komunidad na mismong naaapektuhan ng kanilang mapaminsalang negosyo.

We need your voices to help stop the destruction of one of the most celebrated conservation areas in the Philippines. Photo above from Jeremy Agsawa.

Palawan is our only and last ecological frontier, known for its lush primary forests and rich biodiversity. It has 105 out of the 475 threatened species in the Philippines. Based on the IUCN classification, 105 are endangered, and 67 are endemic to the Philippines. Palawan's forest also provides ecosystem services that benefit the vast communities in Palawan and extend to the whole country by acting as a significant carbon sink. Yet, mining operations, monocrop plantations, and ill-planned infrastructure projects have degraded Palawan's forests for the longest time. The women, youth, farmers, fishers, indigenous peoples, and residents of Palawan once again join hands to call on the national government and local government to save Palawan's forests by upholding laws that are supposed to protect Palawan's natural forests and stop the issuance of permits, clearances, and legal instruments that the continued destruction of Palawan's forests.

The repercussions of climate change are already being felt in the twenty-first century. Droughts, more intense and frequent storms, rising sea levels, and higher temperatures are all having a negative impact on the planet's natural food webs and ecosystems. It is more important than ever to persuade people to abandon fossil fuels, which emit greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, and instead invest in renewable energy.

We strongly condemn the railroading of the amendment of the Environment Code of South Cotabato, specifically the lifting of the ban on Open-Pit Mining. The Sangguniang Panlalawigan of South Cotabato did not consider the magnitude of the effects their actions have on the people and the environment, not only in South Cotabato. With this action alone, it will affect multiple watersheds of South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao and Davao del Sur. Further, it will also threaten the ecological integrities of Allah Valley (102,000 hectares) in Sultan Kudarat, the watershed of the Padada River (120,000 hectares) in Davao del Sur, and the watershed of the Marbel River (122,000 hectares) in the Province of Cotabato. Watersheds are geographical ecological units, and what happens in one part of the watershed will influence the whole watershed from forests, agricultural, urban, and coastal to estuarine ecosystems due to its geomorphological characteristics, connected rivers and tributaries at the surface, and including groundwater reserves. Open-Pit or Strip Mining is a metallic mining method assessed as one of the most extensively difficult to mitigate and manage; its impacts do not focus on one contained area. It also requires mass deforestation and removing 20-30 meters of the laterite zone to access the metallic resources underneath. This large-scale industry demands enormous hectares of land for operational processes from stripping, extraction, and tailings treatment, to ship loading and refinery. Furthermore, the Tampakan Open-Pit Mining will demand and use groundwater resources and transport highly toxic wastewater through a 150-km pipe from the Municipality of Malalag draining to Davao Gulf. There is a treatment process presented, however, the risks of overland flow, flooding disasters, or possible collapse of tailings ponds will inevitably impair marine and aquatic biodiversity, fish stocks, and aquaculture in the coastal areas, similar to the incident in Mapagba River in Banaybanay last January 2022. The Open-Pit Mining in Tampakan will hugely affect the long-term viability and sustainability of these watersheds that currently provide ecological services and natural resources to the people of South-Central Mindanao. The Tampakan Open-Pit Mining will become the largest mining in Southeast Asia. According to the project information, it is estimated to extract 2.94 billion tons of metallic resources, 15 million tons of copper, and 17.6 million ounces of Gold. According to S&P Global Market, Open-Pit mining emits a vast amount of greenhouse gases than underground mining methods. On average, copper mining emits 2.3-2.5 tons of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) per ton of metal and nearly 1 ton of CO2 emitted per ounce of gold produced. Combining both Copper and Gold extractions, it is estimated that around 55 million tons of CO2 will be added to the country’s greenhouse gas contribution. Hence, this is ironic to our country’s commitment during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow that said it is moving ahead with urgency in cutting greenhouse gas emissions and committed to reducing its emissions by 75% in 2030.

This is important because so many lives have been damaged and wasted because of the OLA. We want justice for all victims. Those who are depressed, those who want to end their lives due to extreme grief due to the humiliation and intimidation of these Online Lending Apps. So many victims have lost their jobs because even their bosses or employers of this poor victims, were texted by the agents of OLA, saying malicious things and slandered the victims. There are also many who want to end their lives due to trauma and depression due to death threats, slander on social media and contact with their friends and co -workers. Those who can no longer return to their normal lives. Broken relationships and friendships. It’s all just because of debt. Debt that they do not plan to run away from. But begging for a delay in payment. But the answer was intimidation, threats, humiliation on social media, humiliation of friends and relatives.

We have been receiving unfair debt collection practices such as insults and use of profane language,violent threats,fals representation,publication of our names in social media, invasion of our data privacy,calling and threatening our personal contacts/friends/ family and relatives which greatly put us to very shameful situation. We hope u will help us take this matter urgently. More Power.God bless Location: Quezon City

Current and dominant election narratives in the news and in social media focus on personalities and partisanship. We believe that this focus must be shifted and more space must be made for tackling issues, particularly the issues that will define the future of the planet and the fate of the youth. The #Love52 movement envisions an empowered and forceful youth voice that is demanding good governance and a better normal. “Why do we vote?” We vote to protect our loved ones, our country, and our planet. Together with various youth nationwide, we’ll seed changes in the Filipinos’ thinking about election issues, and show them that they have the power to change the narrative and move candidates to adopt the youth agenda.

Current and dominant election narratives in the news and in social media focus on personalities and partisanship. We believe that this focus must be shifted and more space must be made for tackling issues, particularly the issues that will define the future of the planet and the fate of the youth. The #Love52 movement envisions an empowered and forceful youth voice that is demanding good governance and a better normal. “Why do we vote?” We vote to protect our loved ones, our country, and our planet. Together with various youth nationwide, we’ll seed changes in the Filipinos’ thinking about election issues, and show them that they have the power to change the narrative and move candidates to adopt the youth agenda.

Current and dominant election narratives in the news and in social media focus on personalities and partisanship. We believe that this focus must be shifted and more space must be made for tackling issues, particularly the issues that will define the future of the planet and the fate of the youth. The #Love52 movement envisions an empowered and forceful youth voice that is demanding good governance and a better normal. “Why do we vote?” We vote to protect our loved ones, our country, and our planet. Together with various youth nationwide, we’ll seed changes in the Filipinos’ thinking about election issues, and show them that they have the power to change the narrative and move candidates to adopt the youth agenda.

Current and dominant election narratives in the news and in social media focus on personalities and partisanship. We believe that this focus must be shifted and more space must be made for tackling issues, particularly the issues that will define the future of the planet and the fate of the youth. The #Love52 movement envisions an empowered and forceful youth voice that is demanding good governance and a better normal. “Why do we vote?” We vote to protect our loved ones, our country, and our planet. Together with various youth nationwide, we’ll seed changes in the Filipinos’ thinking about election issues, and show them that they have the power to change the narrative and move candidates to adopt the youth agenda.