Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte on Friday vowed to create more “good, green jobs” for QCitizens by 2030.
Belmonte joined world leaders in calling concerted efforts to create 50 million “good, green jobs” by the end of the decade during the C40 World Mayors Summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Good green jobs provide opportunities for residents, and at the same time address the concurrent climate and inequality crisis as well as rising poverty, toward a global green, just and resilient recovery by 2030.
“Quezon City’s vision of a livable, green, and sustainable city is centered on building an economy that ensures equitable access to environmental goods now and in the future. We believe that creating jobs that sustain a healthy environment provides equal benefits to nature and people, especially the marginalized,” Belmonte said.
“Thus, programs on sustainable food consumption, clean energy, ecological transport, and circular economy, among others, are actively pursued, while climate financing to support more green investments and jobs are explored,” she added.
She said the city’s food security program, Grow QC, has provided relief to help residents recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and build resilience through nutrition and employment schemes.
Launched during the pandemic, Grow QC is a collective and multi-sectoral food security initiative that addresses food inefficiency that mostly affects vulnerable and indigent families.
It aims to increase the consumption of healthy, plant-based food, thus cutting emissions from inefficient supply chains while feeding the city’s population.
Grow QC, which was also one of the 2022 C40 Cities-Bloomberg Philanthropies awards finalists, has established 337 urban gardens and 10 model farms that created livelihood for 4,119 urban farmers, 258 displaced workers, and 298 vendors and jeepney drivers.