UP Haring Ibon

16/11/2021

What does the winning artwork on COP26 say about the plastic issue in the Philippines?

COP26 ended last November 12 offering both a promising and a bleak future. While the country's delegates presented a hopeful GHG reduction of 75% by 2030 and commitments on some areas concerning environmental protection, there are still controversial matters requiring clarity and aspects that needs further reviewing.

(Read: https://www.philstar.com/headlines/climate-and-environment/2021/11/11/2140530/philippines-highlights-concrete-climate-efforts-cop26-groups-say-govt-should-do-more)

On-ground, responding to the ecological crisis somehow feels beyond the reach of common Filipino people. Changes in lifestyle may be adopted but opportunities for transition are still mainly limited. Artist Bricx Ma****lo Dumas creatively expressed the same thought with his realist artwork which commendably won this year's COP26 digital art competition.

"Wala namang tayong better solutions if nag-f-feed ‘yung companies ng plastic sa atin (We will not have better solutions if companies keep feeding us plastic.),” he said in a Rappler interview.

(See the artwork here: https://www.facebook.com/rapplerdotcom/photos/a.317154781638645/5128139387206803)

While there's the lack of support for small-scale economies to adopt sustainable technologies, existing structural poverty also ties majority of the population into a "sachet economy." Accountability seems elusive for giant corporations who continue unrestrained to profit from single-use plastic packaging, contributing to most of the plastic waste in the country. In 2020 Brand Audit, three (3) corporations, namely Universal Robina Corporation (URC), Nestle, and Colgate-Palmolive, account for almost 50% of this waste. Also in the picture are other foreign giants such as the Indonesian company Mayorah Indah, the British multinational Unilever, and the American P&G.

(Access the PH Brand Audit Report 2020 here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/19NUwtc4RH7aK-xz_tJslvj4qYR-IfPo5/view)

The message of environmental justice and political ecology thus remains strong in the context of the Philippines. In the global fight for the environment and climate, corporate accountability must be emphasized more while pouring all support for local economies and the people.

For more discussions on relevant environmental issues, join us in UP Haring Ibon! Sign-up through the form: tinyurl.com/JoinUPHI.

11/11/2021

What kind of bird on lockdown are you?

Are you a Philippine Pygmy Woodpecker that loves knocking at someone's door to have spontaneous hang outs, but is now confined at home trying to DIY woodwork?

UPHI regularly conduct birdwatching around campus before. We hope that the pandemic will end soon so that we can once again see our feathered friends!

"Hello Philippine Pygmy Woodpecker!"

"Haha it is like you just gave out my entire identity! I am from the Philippines, pygmy--meaning small, in fact (and lastly) I am the smallest woodpecker in this country! Haha. To be honest it is great to be upfront. Just present who you are and wear no other faces. That way people know where you fit in. Doesn't that just make life so much easier?"

09/11/2021

Mega-diverse countries house approximately 70% of the Earth’s terrestrial biological diversity. The World Conservation Monitoring Centre (WCMC) of the United Nations Environment Program has identified 17 mega-diverse countries - the Philippines is one the 17. Our country hosts over two-thirds of the Earth’s plant and animal species due to its geographical isolation, diverse collection of habitats, and high rates of endemic species.

“Thirty percent of the population, including 12 to 15 million indigenous peoples, resides in the uplands where most of the forests are located. These forests provide timber and non-timber products totaling $100 million in net benefits yearly. The Philippines is also one of the world’s hotspots with a large number of endangered and threatened species–making it a top global conservation priority area.”

Let us protect our planet. In the words go Gandhi, “Live simply, so that others may simply live.” Learn more about our advocacy! Sign-up through this link: tinyurl.com/JoinUPHI.






References:
*https://www.conservation.org/philippines/projects/protecting-biodiversity-in-the-philippines
*https://www.usaid.gov/philippines/energy-and-environment/bwiser
*https://www.iberdrola.com/environment/megadiverse-countries

27/10/2021

UP Haring Ibon lauds and supports the call-to-action of the more than 50 organizations and counting who are voicing out concerns on the country’s plastic crisis!

It is undeniable how deeply plastics have influenced our daily lives. We must tackle the plastic problem multisectorally, completely stop the reliance on single-use plastic products and instead adopt more environmentally-responsible alternatives.

Let's make our voices louder and invite more of our peers and friends in our campaign to !

Read the full statement here: https://act.gp/3vM7rQ1

26/10/2021

[Tinig Special Orientation]

We're holding Special Orientations! Answer this link to sign-up once more: tinyurl.com/JoinUPHI. You may message us through our page for more details. See you soon!

26/10/2021

The UP Diliman Biodiversity Management Handbook

"The TWGBM UPD is a multidisciplinary group created by former chancellor Michael L. Tan in July 2018. One of its tasks is to craft a set of policies and guidelines to help UPD administrative units in protecting the University’s biodiversity.

The handbook contains information on the environmental condition of UPD and discusses the three principles that UPD must adhere to in managing its biodiversity. Issues discussed under these principles range from university planning and habitat management to wildlife protection and waste management."

Link to the full article: https://upd.edu.ph/upd-launches-biodiversity-handbook/

Link to the handbook:https://upd.edu.ph/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/UP-Diliman-Biodiversity-Management-Handbook.pdf

*Image from the Technical Working Group on Biodiversity Management

26/10/2021

Happening now!

Official launch of the UP Diliman Biodiversity Management Handbook brought to you by the Office of the Chancellor through the Technical Working Group for Bio...

22/10/2021

As part of our advocacy to bring people closer to nature, we organize birdwatching events on campus. Birds easily spark joy because of their colorful plumage and beautiful calls. Through birdwatching, birds teach us to care for the environment and to appreciate biodiversity.

Learn more about our advocacy at the Applicants’ Orientation on October 23 (7 PM). Please fill up this link if you are interested: tinyurl.com/JoinUPHI. See you at the orientation tomorrow!

21/10/2021

The transition to more sustainable waste management systems is an immediate necessity that every country should adapt—forthrightly address.

After China and Indonesia, the Philippines ranks as the world’s third biggest polluter with 2.7 million metric tonnes of plastic waste generated each year. Though RA 9003, the Philippine Ecological Solid Waste Management Law, ordered the closing of all “open” dumpsites in February 2004, these informal dump sites are still being used by our collection systems. 70% of Filipinos are unable to access disposal facilities and sanitary landfills. Without access to the said facilities, waste is improperly disposed of and will eventually make its way into our oceans.

“According to a 2018 report by WWF, up to 74 percent of plastic in the Philippines that ends up in the ocean is from waste that has already been collected.

The report said that 386,000 tonnes of waste are leaked into the ocean every year because of hauler dumping—where private hauler companies unload their trucks into water bodies on the way to proper disposal sites in order to cut costs—and because of poorly located dumps situated near waterways.”

The time to act and affect good change is now. Learn more about our advocacy at the Applicants’ Orientation on October 23, 2021 at 7 PM.

Sign-up through this link: tinyurl.com/JoinUPHI.





References:
*https://ap.fftc.org.tw/article/588
*https://www.eco-business.com/news/why-plastic-clogged-philippines-must-face-up-to-dearth-of-waste-disposal-and-recycling/
*https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/business%20functions/sustainability/our%20insights/saving%20the%20ocean%20from%20plastic%20waste/stemming%20the%20tide%20full%20report.ashx

21/10/2021

We believe that the youth are the catalyst for change to a greener future. UP Haring Ibon members visit schools to promote environmental awareness through activities like storytelling and interactive lectures.

Let's act now! Learn more about our advocacy at the Applicants’ Orientation on October 23 (7 PM). Please fill up this link if you are interested: tinyurl.com/JoinUPHI.

See you at the orientation!

19/10/2021

with UP Haring Ibon | The Philippines committed a 75% GHG emissions reduction by 2030. It's an admirable target, but considering the risks that may come from the conditionality of around 72% of the targets, how are we going to reach it?

"In order to adapt to and mitigate climate change, the Philippines passed the Climate Change Act in 2009, requiring local governments to develop a local climate change action plan, or LCCAP. However, only 160 of 1,700 LGUs had LCCAPs in place as of July 2016.

The Climate Change Commission (CCC) is the principal policy-making organisation on climate change issues, as established by the Philippine Climate Change Act. The CCC announced in April 2021 that, as part of its commitment to the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, it was revising its objective to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 75% by 2030, up from a target of 70% set four years before."

(https://www.futurelearn.com/info/futurelearn-international/climate-change-philippines)

"In the Philippines, there are now a number of assisted climate change adaptation programmes and projects that are being implemented. Among these are the Millennium Development Goals Fund 1656: Strengthening the Philippines Institutional Capacity to Adapt to Climate Change funded by the Government of Spain, the Philippine Climate Change Adaptation Project (which aims to develop the resiliency and test adaptation strategies that will develop the resiliency of farms and natural resource management to the effects of climate change) funded by the Global Environmental Facility(GEF) through the World Bank, the Adaptation to Climate Change and Conservation of Biodiversity Project and the National Framework Strategy on Climate Change (envisioned to develop the adaptation capacity of communities), both funded by the GTZ, Germany."

(https://www.pagasa.dost.gov.ph/information/climate-change-in-the-philippines)

We need to take serious action when it comes to the climate crisis. But we cannot do it by abiding with the same business-as-usual, corporate rules of financial capture.

Learn more about our advocacy at the Applicants’ Orientation on October 23, 2021 at 7 PM. Please fill up this link if you are interested: tinyurl.com/JoinUPHI. See you at the orientation!