LADIES AND GENTLEMEN.

THE DENR ENVISIONS A SAFER, ADAPTIVE AND RESILIENT PRESENT AND FUTURE FOR EVERY FILIPINO. BUT THIS DEPARTMENT, AS YOU HAVE HEARD USEC MITCH CUNA SAY, CANNOT DO IT ALONE. WE ALL MUST TO COME TOGETHER AND HELP BUILD RESILIENCE NOT JUST OF THE PROVINCE, BUT EVERY HOUSEHOLD IN EVERY BARANGAY IN AN EVIDENCED-INFORMED, SUSTAINABLE AND STRATEGIC MANNER.

THE COMPLEXITY OF CLIMATE AND DISASTER RISK AND THE DEVELOPMENT THAT WE NEED TO UNDERTAKE

NEEDS ALL SECTORS TO COME TOGETHER AND TO APPLY THE BEST SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF OUR ALREADY STRONG SYSTEM OF LAWS FOR THE PROTECTION AND ENHANCEMENT OF THE ENVIRONMENT.

PROJECT TRANSFORM WAS DESIGNED TO BRING TOGETHER PRECISELY DIFFERENT EXPERTS AND STAKEHOLDERS FROM THE PRIVATE SECTOR, GOVERNMENT – BOTH NATIONAL AND LOCAL – ACADEME, CIVIL SOCIETY, PEOPLE’S ORGANIZATIONS AND THE YOUTH IN ORDER TO EMPOWER AND ENABLE COMMUNITIES TO ACHIEVE FOOD, WATER AND ENERGY SECURITY, AND ADDRESS THE CHALLENGES OF WASTE MANAGEMENT, AND THE PROVISION OF QUALITY JOBS AS WELL AS SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOOD FOR ALL.

WE LAUNCHED PROJECT TRANSFORM LAST YEAR IN THE PROVINCES OF BATAAN AND SURIGAO DEL NORTE

INCLUDING THE ISLAND OF SIARGAO AND THE CITY THAT IS ORMOC CITY.

WE ALSO HAVE WORKED ON PROJECT TRANSFORM FOR A LONG TIME WITH OUR FRIENDS FROM THE NATIONAL RESILIENCE COUNCIL, THE ZUELIG FAMILY FOUNDATION, AND OF COURSE WE HAVE ALSO STARTED TO WORK WITH THE PHILIPPINE BUSINESS FOR SOCIAL PROGRESS (PBSP) ESPECIALLY ON A NATIONAL GOVERNMENT PROJECT WITH OUR DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS, THE PEACE AND EQUITY FOUNDATION, AND OTHER PARTNERS IN THE DIFFERENT LOCAL GOVERNMENT WHO ARE IN HERE PRESENT.

WE AIM TO DO THE SAME IN RIZAL PROVINCE, WHICH IS RANKED THE MOST COMPETITIVE PROVINCE, AS WE KNOW, FOR ALMOST EIGHT YEARS NOW. AND IT HOSTS VERY SPECIAL FEATURES. THERE ARE SEVERAL PROTECTED AREAS IN THE PROVINCE NAMELY,

HINULUGANG TAKTAK PROTECTED LANDSCAPE IN ANTIPOLO CITY, THE PAMITINAN PROTECTED LANDSCAPE IN RODRIQUEZ, THE UPPER MARIKINA BASIN, AND WE DO HAVE AN INITIAL COMPONENT PENDING IN CONGRESS FOR THE KALIWA RIVER WATERSHED LANDSCAPE. AND THERE IS AN ADDITIONAL AREA THAT IS COVERED BY PRESIDENTIAL DECLARATION 1636 THAT WAS PASSED IN THE 1970S THAT INCLUDES A NATURE AND BAY RESERVE THAT CUTS ACROSS SEVERAL PROVINCES.

MORE THAN THIS, IT IS ALSO THE HOST OF THE CENTER OF CULTURE, HISTORY, AND RELIGION FOR THE COUNTRY. I WISH TO ACNOWLEDGE THE BUILT HERITAGE THAT IS PART OF THAT HISTORY IN THE FORM OF THE CHURCHES AND OTHER BUILT HERITAGE _VUILDINGS THAT ARE HERE IN THE PROVINCE BUT MOST ESPECIALLY ONE THAT WE ARE NOW TRYING TO STRATEGIZE TO PROTECT: THE ANGONO-BINANGONAN

PETROGLYPHS WHICH ARE MILLENIA-OLD AND HAVE GLOBAL SIGNIFICANCE. THESE REQUIRES THRESHOLD PROTECTION.

THE OTHER AREAS THAT ARE IMPORTANT TO THE PROVINCE IN CULTURE ARE THE CENTERS OF ART. CURRENTLY, THERE ARE SEVERAL AND WE ALL KNOW, THE PINTO GALLERY IS HERE, THE MUSEUM OF THE BLANCO FAMILY, AND THIS IS THE BIRTHPLACE OF OUR NATIONAL ARTISTS SUCH AS BOTONG FRANCISCO, AND WE ALL KNOW THE MANANSALA FAMILY HERE AS WELL. THESE ARE VERY IMPORTANT CULTURAL AND SPIRITUAL COMPONENTS FOR THE RESILIENCE OF THE PROVINCE, BUT THEY ARE ALSO OF NATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE.

RIZAL PROVINCE IS MORE THAN JUST ITS NATURAL RESOURCES. IT IS ALSO PART OF THE CULTURAL AND SPIRIT OF OUR COUNTRY. WE ARE HERE TO CONNECT ALL THESE DOTS.

THERE ARE IMMEDIATE AND ACTIONABLE OPPORTUNITIES AHEAD OF US AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING HOW WE CAN LINK WHAT HAS ALREADY BEEN DONE AND THE WONDERFUL WORK THAT HAS BEEN DONE BY THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND THE PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT AND WHAT WE COULD DO TO HELP SUPPORT THIS BY GREATER COLLABORATION.

TOGETHER, LET US APPRECiATE AND UNDERSTAND THE INTRINSIC VALUE OF RIZAL TO OUR COUNTRY. THE NATURAL WEALTH OF THIS PROVINCE ACTUALLY SUPPORTS URBAN LANDSCAPES AS WELL AS OTHER REGIONS IN TERMS OF ECOSYSTEM SERVICES. ITS HILLS, FORESTS AND ABUNDANT BIODIVERSITY NOT ONLY SERVE AS A NATURAL SANCTUARY OF SPECIES OF FLORA AND FAUNA THAT SOME YET TO BE DISCOVERED, BUT THEY PLAY A CRUCIAL ROLE IN THE ECOLOGICAL BALANCE OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF OTHER REGIONS IN THE COUNTRY.

THE PROVINCE’ WATER RESOURCES, MOUNTAIN RANGES AND GREEN SPACES AND FORESTS DIRECTLY BENEFIT THE WEALTH AND WELL-BEING, NOT JUST IN THE PROVINCE, BUT OF NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION AND REGIONS BEYOND.

WE NEED ONLY, FOR EXAMPLE, TO TAKE A LOOK AT THE SAN MATEO LANDFILL WHICH HAS BEEN REHABILITATED, WHICH AS YOU KNOW WAS THE SITE OF THE FIRST BIRTHDAY OF OUR PRESEIDENT WHEN HE FIRST ASSUMED OFFICE TO CELEBRATE IT HERE IN THIS PROVINCE BY TREE PLANTING IN THIS PARTICULAR AREA.

LET ME JUST SAY THAT CLIMATE AND DISASTER RESILIENCE DEVELOPMENT IN RIZAL PROVINCE CANNOT BE OVERSTATED AS A GOAL. WE KNOW WE ARE PRONE TO MULTIPLE HAZARDS BUT WE HAVE A RICH ECONOMY

AND A HUGE HUMAN RESOURCE THAT CAN BE PART OF POWERING PROGRESS FORWARD. THUS, IT IS IMPORTANT TO WORK TOGETHER TO IDENTIFY THE RISKS AND PRIORITY AREAS, UNDERSTAND SOME VULNERABILITIES THAT WE FACE, AND IDENTIFY THE APPROPRIATE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION, MITIGATION, AND DISASTER RISK REDUCTION STRATEGIES.

MORE IMPORTANTLY, LET US DELVE INTO THE TRANSFORMATIVE POWER OF INCLUSION, RATHER THAN EXCLUSION, IN DRIVING FORWARD THE ECONOMIC AND SUSTAINABILITY GOALS OF THE PROVINCE. EMBRACING INCLUSIVITY MEANS WE RECOGNIZE DIVERSE NEEDS, PERSPECTIVES, AND CONTRIBUTIONS OF ALL THE MEMBERS OF THE SOCIETY. BY RECOGNIZING EVERYONE’S CONTRIBUTIONS, PROGRESS BECOMES MORE REALISTICALLY FELT BY ALL THE SECTORS.

BY FOSTERING A CULTURE OF INCLUSIVITY, WE CAN HARNESS THE UNTAPPED POTENTIAL OF MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES, EMPOWER LOCAL ENTERPRISES, AND BUILD A MORE RESILIENT AND SUSTAINABLE ECONOMY THAT BENEFITS EVERYONE.

AND IDENTIFY THE APPROPRIATE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION, MITIGATION AND DISASTER RISK REDUCTION STRATEGIES. MOST IMPORTANTLY, LET US DELVE ON THE TRANSFORMATIVE POWER OF INCLUSION, RATHER THAN EXCLUSION IN DRIVING FORWARD THE ECONOMIC AND SUSTAINABILITY GOALS OF THE PROVINCE. EMBRACING INCLUSIVITY MEANS WE RECOGNIZE DIVERSE NEEDS, PERSPECTIVES, AND CONTRIBUTIONS OF ALL THE MEMBERS OF SOCIETY BY RECOGNIZING EVERYONE’S CONTRIBUTIONS, PROGRAMS PROGRESS BECOMES MORE REALISTICALLY FELT BY ALL THE SECTORS.

AS USEC MITCH CUNA HAS SAID IN HIS INITIAL ADDRESS, THIS IS A JOB FOR MANY HANDS, NO ENTITY HAS A MONOPOLY OF SERVICE FOR THE PUBLIC GOOD.

IT IS OUR WISH TO MAKE THIS A WHOLE OF GOVERNMENT AND A WHOLE OF SOCIETY AGENDA.

WE ARE THEN OPTIMISTIC THAT WITH OUR PARTNERS, SUCH AS THOSE THAT ARE PRESENT TODAY AND WE HAVE ALL THE BIG CORPORATIONS AS WELL AS CIVIL SOCIETY GROUPS. IF I MAY JUST NAME THEM TO RECOGNIZE THEM: THE JOLLIBEE GROUP, THE SM GROUP, PRIME INFRA, MANILA WATER, W. BROWN AND COMPANY, WE HAVE DE LA SALLE UNIVERSITY, SAN BEDA, UNIVERSITY OF RIZAL SYSTEM AND AT LEAST 50 YOUTH ORGANIZATIONS THAT CAN HELP US POWER TRANSFORMATION IN A WAY THAT WILL STRENGTHEN

AND SECURE RIZALEÑOS TODAY AND EVEN MORE SO IN THE FUTURE.

LIKE EVERY RIZALEÑO, D-E-N-R CHERISHES AND PROTECTS RIZAL PROVINCE’S NATURAL WEALTH. LET US EMBARK ON THIS JOURNEY OF COLLECTIVE STEWARDSHIP AND INCLUSIVE GROWTH, ENSURING A BRIGHTER AND GREENER FUTURE FOR RIZAL AND BEYOND.

MARAMING SALAMAT PO SAINYO AT MAGANDANG UMAGA SA INYONG LAHAT. ###