By: Berlyn E. Calarian-OJT
DIPOLOG CITY, Mar 17 (PIA) – Dipolog City made it as one of the national finalists for the World Wide Fund for Nature's (WWF) One Planet City Challenge (OPCC) 2021-2022 together with the cities of Davao and Quezon.
The finalists were chosen from among the Philippines' 16 qualifying cities.
The WWF's One Planet City Challenge is a friendly global competition that recognizes cities for their climate actions and objectives and assesses if they are in line with the Paris Agreement's aim of limiting climate temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
Climate change has a direct impact on cities and urban life, according to the United Nations Environment Programme.
Rising sea levels and more extreme weather events such as floods, droughts, and storms are all consequences of rising global temperatures, which have a particularly negative impact on coastal areas.
According to the recently released Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, cities are locations of concentrated risk to climate change with losses due to infrastructure damage, disruption in services, and impacted supply chains already occurring. Cities also said to provide a plethora of chances for accomplishing urgent climate action.
Cities are invited to submit their best practices and comprehensive plans to the OPCC in order to significantly mitigate the consequences of climate change and accelerate climate transformation.
According to the WWF-Philippines website, a total of 280 cities from 50 nations have signed up for the OPCC's 2021-2022 round. Nearly 600 cities from 53 nations across five continents have taken part in the challenge since its inception ten years ago.
Imee Bellen, project manager of WWF-Philippines' One Planet Cities believes more Philippine cities would join OPCC soon, saying that "inspiring revolutionary urban solutions to alleviate the negative effects of climate change are always invited to be displayed.”
Atty. Angela Ibay, head of WWF-Philippines' Climate and Energy Program, also urged citizens to assist cities in strengthening their capacity to respond to the climate issue.
"If it weren't for the inhabitants' collaborative action, the cities' goals would not come to reality," she stressed.
She further explained that without the collaborative action of the city's citizens, the city's plans would not come to reality.
"Individuals, on the other hand, can still make a difference. Even seemingly insignificant habits, such as lowering energy use, can have a long-term impact on the community and the environment."
The three Philippine finalists have also qualified to participate in the OPCC's We Love Cities initiative, which aims to improve communication between municipal authorities and the population they represent on climate and sustainability concerns.
An international judging panel comprised of renowned professionals in the field of urban sustainability from around the world will assess all OPCC finalists. The winners will be announced within May to June 2022. (RVC/EDT/PIA-Zamboanga del Norte/Berlyn E. Calarian-OJT with reports from PIC Zamboanga del Norte)
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