GOOD EVENING.

MADAME IRENE MARCOS ARANETA; OUR SECRETARY GILBERT TEODORO AND, OF COURSE, AMBASSADOR NIKKI TEODORO; SECRETARY BIENVENIDO LAGUESMA OF THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT; OUR CHAMPIONS IN THE SENATE: SENATOR LOREN LEGARDA, AND SENATOR CYNTHIA VILLAR, OUR STAUNCH SUPPORTER IN TERMS OF THE BUDGET OF THE DENR AS WELL; EXCELLENCIES; AND NUMBERS OF THE DIPLOMATIC CORE; OUR PARTNERS IN THE DEVELOPMENT SECTOR; THE PRIVATE SECTOR; AND OTHER COLLEAGUES IN GOVERNMENT; THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR JOINING US HERE TONIGHT.

I’M GOING TO JUST GO VERY BRIEFLY AND HOPE THAT YOU WILL GET A GLIMPSE OF WHAT WE’RE DOING AT THE DENR AND HAVE BEEN DOING THIS PAST YEAR AND A HALF.

I ESPECIALLY WISH TO THANK ALL OF YOU FOR MAKING IT ON A SATURDAY. AND I KNOW THAT THIS IS A LITTLE BIT OF A FEAT AND A TREK ACROSS TOWN BUT PLEASE BE ASSURED THAT THIS IS DEEPLY APPRECIATED.

YEARS AGO, I ENCOUNTERED WHAT AT FIRST SEEMED TO BE A MOVING PVC PIPE ON A SHELL-COVERED ROAD PARALLEL TO A SANDY BEACH. UPON CLOSE INSPECTION, I REALIZED IT WAS, IN FACT, A HERMIT CRAB THAT HAD CHOSEN THE STURDY, INDESTRUCTIBLE, RESILIENT, AND LIGHTWEIGHT PVC PIPE AS ITS NEW HOME.  INSTANTLY, THE FAMOUS LINE FROM JURASSIC PARK, “LIFE FINDS A WAY,” CAME TO MIND. HOWEVER, UPON FURTHER REFLECTION, WE NEED REALLY GOOD THINK ABOUT HOW MUCH MAN HAS ALTERED NATURE AND HOW ALL-NATURAL SYSTEMS ARE INTERCONNECTED IN MANY WAYS. WHETHER WE CHOOSE TO HELP IT OR NOT, LIFE MAY INDEED FIND A WAY- ESPECIALLY FOR SPECIES THAT HAVE BEEN AROUND FOR MANY MILLIONS OF YEARS. SOME, HOWEVER, ARE NOT AS FORTUNATE. IT IS IN UNDERSTANDING OF OUR POWER TO KNOW AND CARE, THAT THESE NATURAL CONNECTIONS CAN EITHER BE SUPPORTED FOR GOOD OR FOR NOT GOOD AND THAT WE CAN ACTUALLY MAKE TRULY IMPACTFUL CHANGE.

IT IS WELL KNOWN THAT THE PHILIPPINES IS RICH IN NATURAL RESOURCES. MANY BELIEVE, IN FACT, THAT THE DENR CARRIES A CONFLICTING MANDATE IN THIS REGARD. ON ONE HAND, WE ARE TASKED WITH THE PROTECTION, PRESERVATION, RESTORATION, AND REGENERATION OF OUR NATURAL SYSTEMS. ON THE OTHER, WE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR REGULATION OF EXTRACTION AND UTILIZATION. I BELIEVE THIS VIEW IS OVERSIMPLIFIED AND MISLEADING. PHILIPPINE ECOSYSTEMS AND BIODIVERSITY—INCLUDING FORESTS, WATER SOURCES, MINERALSS, AND CORAL REEFS, FOR EXAMPLE—FORM A COMPLEX WEB OF INTERCONNECTED SYSTEMS THAT ARE INEXTRICABLY LINKED AND ARE IMPACTED BY ALL HUMAN CHOICES. WHATEVER WE DO, OUR ACTIONS AND AMBITIONS SPAN THE TRANSECT FROM RIDGE TO REEF TO SHELF.

UNDERSTANDING THESE CRITICAL INTERDEPENDENCIES WILL DETERMINE THE SURVIVAL OF THESE ECOSYSTEMS, AS THEY DETERMINE THE SURVIVAL OF OURSELVES AS WELL. WE NEED TO STRIKE A BALANCE BETWEEN OUR CHANGING ENVIRONMENT, CLIMATE RESILIENCE, AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT.

UNDER THIS ADMINISTRATION, THE DENR, WITH THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE GEOSPATIAL DATABASE OFFICE AND THE OFFICE FOR INTEGRATED ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE, IS NOW ABLE TO ESTABLISH CLEAR BASELINES FOR OUR NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE. WHAT YOU ARE SEEING HERE IS ACTUALLY A MAPPING SYSTEM THAT ALLOWS US TO LOOK AT UNUSED FISH PONDS AND IDENTIFY THEM FOR CONVERSION TO MANGROVE AREAS.

WE ARE ABLE TO ALSO VISUALIZE THE COMPLEX, INTERCONNECTED NATURE OF ALL THE SYSTEMS, PROVIDING US WITH TOOLS AND EVIDENCE FOR BETTER DECISION-MAKING AND ENFORCEMENT. THE GDO’S CATALOG OF OUR NATURAL RESOURCES – THE FIRST IN THE HISTORY OF OUR COUNTRY – INCLUDES LANDS, FORESTS, WATER, MINERALS, AND AIR AS WELL, ALLOWING US TO APPLY MITIGATION HIERARCHY PRINCIPLES IN THE FULFILLMENT OF OUR MANDATE. THIS UNDERSTANDING AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF BASELINES ENABLE US TO ACCURATELY MEASURE IMPACTS OF OUR PROJECTS AND DECISIONS, AS WELL AS ACCOMPLISHMENTS FROM THE BEGINNING OF THIS ADMINISTRATION AND ALLOWING US TO SUPPORT THE NEWLY-PASSED LAW, OUR AUTHORS OF WHICH ARE HERE THIS EVENING SENATOR LEGARDA AND OF COURSE JOINED BY SENATOR VILLAR. WE SUPPORT THE PHILIPPINE ECOSYSTEM AND NATURAL CAPITAL ACCOUNTING SYSTEM. MORE WORK IS AHEAD AS WE WILL SOON BE GAINING GREATER ACCESS TO BOTH HISTORICAL AND CURRENT SPACE-BASED INFORMATION AND WE WILL BE APPLYING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TO PROJECT TRENDS INTO THE FUTURE.

BEYOND THESE, ALLOW ME PLEASE TO SHARE WITH YOU VERY BRIEFLY JUST A FEW OF THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN THE PAST FEW YEARS.

THE PHILIPPINES IS ONE OF THE 18 MEGADIVERSE COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD, HAVING MORE THAN 52,000 SPECIES, HALF OF WHICH ARE ENDEMIC OR FOUND NOWHERE ELSE ON EARTH, AND ABOUT 2,000 OF WHICH ARE CRITICALLY ENDANGERED OR VULNERABLE.

WITH NEW FUNDING AND DIRECTION, WE ARE NOW FOCUSING FOR THE FIRST TIME ON THE PRESERVATION OF FOUR CRITICALLY ENDANGERED SPECIES: THE TAMARAW, PHILIPPINE EAGLE, PALAWAN COCKATOO, AND THE DUGONG, AND ENDANGERED MARINE TURTLES.

WHAT YOU ARE SEEING HERE IS ACTUALLY A RELEASE THAT OCCURRED ONLY YESTERDAY. IT IS A TRANSLOCATION OF PHILIPPINE EAGLES FROM MINDANAO TO THE PROVINCE OF LEYTE TO RE-ESTABLISH THE HISTORICAL EAGLE CORRIDOR OF THE PHILIPPINES.

WE WISH TO THANK OUR COLLEAGUES FROM THE AUSTRALIAN EMBASSY FOR THE PARTICULAR SUPPORT THAT IT HAS BEEN GIVEN. A BIG HAND PLEASE. TO THE PHILIPPINE EAGLE FOUNDATION, TO THE ENERGY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION, MR. FEDERICO LOPEZ IS HERE AS WELL, FOR ALL THE SUPPORT THAT HAS BEEN GIVEN FOR BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION.

WE ARE ALSO NOW ESTABLISHING, FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE THE FOUNDING OF THE DEPARTMENT, SIX NEW MARITIME SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH STATIONS IN THE COUNTRY’S MAJOR MARINE BIOGEORAPHIC REGIONS.

THE FIRST OF MANY AND MORE, HOPEFULLY, INCLUDING ONE IN THE CENTER OF THE CENTER OF MARINE SHORE FISH BIODIVERSITY, ONE THATS SITS AT THE APEX OF THE CORAL TRIANGLE, THE VERDE ISLAND PASSAGE. THIS IMAGE OF A NUDIBRANCH WAS IN FACT TAKEN JUST A FEW DAYS AGO BY MR. MAX BELLO, THE COLLEAGUE OF SYLVIA EARLE, A GLOBAL CHAMPION FOR THE OCEANS, THAT WAS TAKEN IN EL NIDO RESORTS AND THERE ARE MANY MORE DIFFERENTLY COLORED NUDIBRANCHS JUST FROM THAT ONE SAME SPOT.

THESE NEW STATIONS WILL CREATE GREATER DOMAIN AWARENESS, INCREASE OUR KNOWLEDGE OF OUR COASTAL AND MARINE NATURAL RESOURCES AND STRENGTHEN OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE PHILIPPINES NOT JUST AS A SMALL COUNTRY, BUT AS A LARGE BLUE NATION.

I AM ALSO VERY HAPPY TO INFORM YOU THAT WE WILL BE LAUNCHING IN JULY THE FIRST RESULTS OF OUR MAPPING PROJECT WITH THE PHILIPPINE SPACE AGENCY TO CREATE A NATIONAL MAP FOR MANGROVES. AND THIS IS THE FIRST TIME THAT WE WILL BE ABLE TO SHARE THAT WITH YOU. AS MANY OF OUR PROJECTS, THIS IS A WORK-IN-PROGRESS AND WE WILL CONTINUE TO PERFECT IT OVER TIME.

I ALSO WISH TO SHARE WITH YOU THAT AFTER A LONG HIATUS, THE DENR IS ONCE AGAIN JOINING THE IUCN, THE INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR THE CONSERVATION OF NATURE. THIS WILL ASSIST US IN FOCUSING ON OUR EFFORTS TO REBUILD OUR CREDIBILITY AS A GLOBAL CHAMPION OF BIODIVERSITY.

FOREST PROTECTION, REHABILITATION, AND REGENERATION HAVE ALSO BEEN STRENGTHENED AND ENHANCED THROUGH THE NATIONAL GREENING AND INTENSIFIED FOREST PROTECTION PROGRAMS. WITHIN OUR 15 MILLION HECTARES OF CLASSIFIED FOREST LANDS, WE HAVE IDENTIFIED FOR THIS YEAR OVER 1.3 MILLION HECTARES OF POTENTIAL VIEWS OF AREAS FOR FORESTRY. THE GOAL OF THE DEPARTMENT IS TO INCREASE FOREST COVER BY ADDING AT LEAST 3 MILLION HECTARES OF FOREST COVER TO THE COUNTRY BY 2028. THIS GROWTH WILL ALSO BE COMPLEMENTED BY THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE PHILIPPINE CARBON MARKET AND THE SIGNING OF NEW CARBON CREDIT PROJECT AGREEMENTS.

THROUGH THE EO22 OF THIS ADMINISTRATION, FOR THE FIRST TIME IN PHILIPPINE HISTORY, WE NOW HAVE A CONSOLIDATED WATER RESOURCE SECTOR AND IT HAS ESTABLISHED THE WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT OFFICE. WE HAVE NOW MAPPED OVER 2,500 RIVERS IN 421 RIVER BASINS, 550 LAKES AND 435 DAMS. WITH LANDMARK AGREEMENTS BETWEEN THE NATIONAL IRRIGATION AUTHORITY AND THE DPWH, WE ARE NOW ABLE TO UTILIZE IDLE WATER RIGHTS AND BUILD AND REPURPOSE INFRASTRUCTURE TO SERVE MULTIPLE PURPOSES AND NEEDS.

WITH THIS NEW INTEGRATED APPROACH BETWEEN DIFFERENT GOVERNMENT AGENCIES, THE DEPARTMENT TARGETS TO DELIVER WATER TO AN ADDITIONAL 15 MILLION PEOPLE, INCLUDING 100,000 IN THE MOST ISOLATED, INCLUDING ISLAND BARANGAYS. ACCESS TO WATER IS CRUCIAL TO PUBLIC HEALTH, AGRICULTURE, INDUSTRY, AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, AND THIS IS NOW MAIN PART OF THE DENR’S MANDATE.

WE HAVE ALSO BEEN IDENTIFIED AS ONE OF THE MOST MINERALIZED COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD. WHILE CONFRONTING THE CHALLENGES OF RESPONSIBLE AND SUSTAINABLE MINING, WE HAVE BEEN ADOPTING NEW APPROACHES WITH INDUSTRY USING NEW SCIENCE ENGINEERING AND INNOVATION INCLUDING DIGITALIZATION OF SYSTEMS AND OPERATIONS. WE HAVE COMPLETED A NATIONWIDE INVENTORY OF ALL KNOWN MINERAL RESOURCES AND REVIVED THE POSSIBILITY OF GOVERNMENT-LED EXPLORATION IN THESE AREAS. WHILE WE ARE STREAMLINING OUR PROCESSES, WE ARE ALSO ENGAGING INDUSTRY AND URGING INDUSTRY TO SET NEW STANDARDS FOR CLIMATE RESILIENCE AND COMMUNITY-RESPONSIVE ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY.

THE PHILIPPINES IS ALSO ONE OF THE FEW COUNTRIES TO HAVE BOTH A COMPLETE NATIONAL ADAPTATION PLAN AND NATIONALLY DETERMINED CONTRIBUTIONS IMPLEMENTATION PLAN.

WE ARE WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH OTHER DEPARTMENTS INCLUDING THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY IN ORDER TO ENSURE A JUST TRANSITION TOWARDS A CLEAN ENERGY FUTURE. WE HAVE ALSO NOW PLANNED A NEW CLIMATE RESILIENCE STRATEGY AND HAVE GAINED RECOGNITION FOR OUR EFFORTS TO REPRESENT THE ASIA PACIFIC COUNTRIES ON THE NEW LOSS AND DAMAGE FUND BOARD. A JUST TRANSITION AND ADAPTATION REMAINS URGENT AND THE DENR IS WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH DSWD, DA, AND NEDA, AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS TO ACCELERATE THESE.

REALIZING THAT LOCAL GOVERNMENTS ARE AT THE FRONTLINES OF CLIMATE AND DISASTER RISK REDUCTION. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. WE ARE ALSO WORKING CLOSELY WITH THE DILG ON A PROJECT CALLED TRANSFORM OR TRANSDISCIPLINARY APPROACH FOR RESILIENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES. THIS IS A COMPREHENSIVE RISK MANAGEMENT APPROACH TO MULTI-STAKEHOLDER ENVIRONMENTAL AND NATURAL RESOURCES GOVERNANCE IN THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS.

LASTLY, AS WE LOOK TO ENHANCE THE PROGRAMS OF THE DENR AND BETTER FOCUS ON ACHIEVING ATTAINABLE OUTCOMES, THE DENR ALSO REALIZES THAT WE, TOO, MUST CHANGE. I WOULD LIKE TO BRIEFLY MENTION THE EFFORTS OF OUR HUMAN RESOURCES AND ORGANIZATIONAL TRANSFORMATION OFFICE TO STRENGTHEN AND RESHAPE OUR DEPARTMENT TO MAKE SURE IT IS FIT FOR PURPOSE.

I WAS RECENTLY TOLD BY FAMOUS GLOBAL CHAMPION OF THE OCEANS SYLVIA EARLE THAT WE MUST PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT LIKE OUR LIVES DEPEND ON IT BECAUSE, IN FACT, THEY DO.

TO OUR INTERNATIONAL PARTNERS FROM AUSTRALIA, JAPAN, CANADA, THAILAND, COLUMBIA, SOUTH KOREA, MALAYSIA, THE U.S., THE U.K., AND THE PRIVATE SECTOR AND OUR CSO PARTNERS – SOME OF WHO ARE HERE TONIGHT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH INDEED FOR THE SUPPORT THAT YOU HAVE GIVEN THE DEPARTMENT IN THE PAST YEAR AND A HALF.

I’D LIKE TO CITE ESPECIALLY THE SM GROUP WHO HAS BEEN WORKING WITH US FOR DISASTER RESILIENCE AND BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION FOR OUR PROJECT IN THE FUTURE. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MR. TESSY SY COSON AND MR. HANS SY. THE AYALA GROUP WHO ARE PARTNERS IN ACCELERATING CLIMATE ACTION AND ON OUR WORK IN MARINE SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH STATION IN EL NIDO; THE LOPEZ, METRO PACIFIC, SAN MIGUEL, ABOITIZ AND RAZON GROUPS WHO HAVE BEEN WORKING WITH US ON CLIMATE ACTION AND BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION, WATER SUPPLY SECURITY, AND SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT. AND LAST BUT NOT THE LEAST, OUR PARTNERS IN THE CIVIL SOCIETY: THE NATIONAL COMMISSION ON CULTURE AND ARTS, NATIONAL HISTORICAL COMMISSION AND THE NATIONAL MUSEUM, AS WELL, FOREST FOUNDATION PHILIPPINES, PLASTICS EXCHANGE, WWF, AND OUR REPRESENTATIVES FROM DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS, SUCH AS THE ADB AND THE UN SYSTEM, MARAMING MARAMING SALAMAT PO.

BEFORE I CLOSE, JUST A VERY QUICK NOTE TO INVITE YOU ALL TO SHARE WITH US AND TO JOIN US IN OUR HOSTING OF THE ASIA-PACIFIC MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE ON DISASTER RISK REDUCTION LATER IN OCTOBER THIS YEAR.

SECRETARY GIBO TEODORO, THROUGH THE DEPARTMENT OF NATIONAL DEFENSE AND THE DENR WILL CO-HOST THIS PARTICULAR CONFERENCE AND WE HOPE THAT WE WILL HAVE ALL HANDS ON DECK FROM ALL OF YOU HERE TO ENSURE OUR ASIA-PACIFIC REGION WORKS TOGETHER TOWARDS A RESILIENT FUTURE.

I KNOW THAT YOU ARE ONE WITH US IN BELIEVING THAT THIS IMAGE REPRESENT ALL OUR MISSION.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR BEING TOGETHER WITH US TODAY FOR ALL OUR TOMORROWS. MARAMING SALAMAT.