Legarda vows: PH to continue fight for climate justice
MANILA, Philippines — Ten years after the launch of the Manila Call to Action on Climate Change, Sen. Loren Legarda looked back on its legacy on ocean and climate leadership and vowed that the Philippines will continue its fight for climate justice.
Legarda said that the Manila Call to Action is “no longer a call, but a commitment,” emphasizing how climate action “must be urgent, inclusive, and deeply rooted in human dignity and environmental integrity.”
“Ten years on, it’s clear how much our future is hanging by a thread, and so our fight continues,” she said in her speech at the Department of Foreign Affairs’ Manila Call to Action forum at the National Museum of Fine Arts.
READ: Legarda leads the PH push for ocean protection ahead of UN conference
Legarda underscored that the people’s compassion and desire to act on climate justice should know no boundaries, even when we come from different geographies.
“The Philippines will continue to lead, not from a place of power, but from a place of purpose. Because we know that the ocean is not just a resource: it is our history, our heritage, our home,” she affirmed.
Legarda then noted that the Philippines, with over 36,000 kilometers of coastline and at the heart of the Coral Triangle, is home to rich marine biodiversity.
However, she highlighted various climate issues, including rising sea surface temperatures, mangrove deforestation, and increasing sea levels.
She also said that ocean degradation is a “public health risk, a food security threat, and a driver of poverty.”
“We must now protect the ocean not just as a resource, but as a rights-based imperative. For the fisherfolk. For the coastal residents. For indigenous communities. For future generations,” she emphasized.
The call to action’s legacy
The Manila Call to Action on Climate Change was launched on February 26, 2015, by former President Benigno Aquino III and French President François Hollande, paving the way for the success of the Paris Agreement at COP 21, the 2015 Paris Climate Conference.
The agreement forged a foundation of commitment between the two countries on climate, environment, and oceans.
Legarda emphasized that keeping the promise alive and relevant should be given the same spirit of urgency and cooperation, in which the commitment will translate into concrete actions.
“The call recognized the interlinkages between climate vulnerability and poverty; asserted that addressing climate change requires inclusive development and international cooperation; and demanded that the Paris Agreement be ambitious, equitable, and legally binding,” she added.
READ: PH gears up for 2025 UN ocean meet; recommits to SDG 14
As the Philippines gears up for the United Nations Ocean Conference in France, Legarda recalled the launch of the “Blue Nations,” a program by the Embassy of France to the Philippines that leads up to the conference next month.
She likened the initiative to the Manila Call, where they both enhance “political, scientific, and civic engagement to protect our environment, advance climate action, promote a just and sustainable blue economy, and ensure maritime security.”
The ocean conference will focus on topics such as representing blocks of successful Sustainable Development Goals 14 implementation, and implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea to strengthen ocean conservation. /cb/abc
