THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has spearheaded a campaign to educate local government units (LGUs) on best practices in environmental protection and disaster preparedness.
“Project TRANSFORM puts LGUs at the center of community-based disaster resilience programs. The critical role of local stakeholders in environmental protection and climate action cannot be minimized,” DENR Secretary Maria Antonia Loyzaga said.
To develop Project TRANSFORM, the DENR partnered with the National Resilience Council, the First Philippine Holdings Corp., the Philippine Business for Social Progress, Peace and Equity Foundation, and the Zuellig Family Foundation.
TRANSFORM is an acronym for Transdisciplinary Approach for Resilience and Environmental Sustainability through Multi-stakeholder Engagement with the theme “From Science to Action: Transformative Pathways toward Resilience and Environmental Sustainability.”
The program provides a scientific and strategic mechanism among stakeholders, highlighting the importance of locally driven solutions as well as a participatory approach for achieving environmental sustainability and resilience.
Loyzaga cited the need to prioritize the development of individual and institutional capacities of the LGUs for evidence-informed decision-making, and to invest in increasing capacity for implementation of policies, plans and programs.
A strong multi-stakeholder collaboration, community-driven innovation and knowledge development and sharing would be the LGUs’ help to attain community resilience.
“While every LGU has its different exposure and vulnerability, all experience challenges on how to manage their water, forest and soil resources, and coastal and marine environments,” Loyzaga said.