CBCP head urges Filipinos to shun ‘not in my backyard’ mentality to save environment

Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop and CBCP president Socrates Villegas. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – The head of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines is urging Filipinos to shun the “not in my backyard” mentality, saying that reducing the impact of climate change should be everyone’s concern.

“Unfortunately, we, Filipinos, are content to say ‘not in my backyard!’ We keep our home and surroundings clean even if it means dumping our waste in our neighborhood,” Archbishop Socrates Villegas of Lingayen and Dagupan said in a pastoral exhortation posted on the CBCP’s website.

The statement stressed how important it would be for the public to see what climate change means and why there was a need to start making changes.

It said fighting climate change was a huge challenge because many communities were not proactive about saving the planet.

“Having examined ourselves and our relation to the environment, we are then obligated to ensure that our response is not just on the individual, but also on the community level,” Villegas said.

According to him, economic powers are not solely responsible for this but everyone is called to care for the earth, “especially in this time of grave danger for her and for all of us.”

He urged church groups and civic organizations to explore ways to protect the environment as well as to propagate environmental awareness.

He also encouraged Filipinos to lobby for legislation and advocate causes that will curb environmental degradation “caused by the excesses of industry.”

“Even as we do our best as individuals and communities to curb climate change, we must realize it is already upon us,” said Villegas, adding that the task of addressing the problem was an urgent one.

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