Working Paper
In the Eye of the Perfect Storm: What the Philippines Should do about Climate Change

By: Jose Ramon T. Villarin, Ph.D. S.J., Ma. Antonia Y. Loyzaga, Antonio G.M. La Vina, J.S.D.

ABSTRACT:

Climate change represents the most serious, most pervasive environmental threat the world faces. The "perfect storm" is the result of the convergence of humanity's improvident past, its difficult present, and the uncertain future. The issues are not merely scientific; climate change spans political, social, and economic dimensions, crosses national boundaries, and promises to impact future generations in a crisis of global proportions.

In their lecture, In the Eye of the Perfect Storm: What the Philippines Should Do About Climate Change, Fr. Jose Ramon T. Villarin, Ph.D. S.J., Ma. Antonia Y. Loyzaga, and Dean Antonio G.M. La Vina, explore the entire spectrum of climate change issues - from scientific to political dilemmas, from global to local impacts, and from international to Philippine responses. They look at the current scientific evidence of climate change and discuss the causes as well as the uncertainties behind the science. The impacts on a global scale, on the Asian region, and on the Philippines , with emphasis on the vulnerability of people to climate and weather-related risks, are also identified.

What the Philippines can do in terms of adaptation and mitigation strategies to deal with the consequences of climate change is highlighted in the lecture. Solutions do exist, but there is an urgent need for an integrated Adaptation-Mitigation framework that will ensure the effectiveness of these solutions. Adaptation and Mitigation are not mutually exclusive, so the most effective way that these strategies can be maximized in the context of Philippine development is to integrate adaptation and mitigation.