The Provincial Government of Bohol (PGBh) welcomed officials from Environmental Science for Social Change (ESSC), a Jesuit research and training organization, during a courtesy visit at the Capitol on Friday.
The ESSC team, led by Executive Director Dr. Sylvia Miclat, discussed the Research and Advocacy for Climate Policy and Action (RACPA) projects that they are implementing in Nocnocan, a barangay located on a small island in Talibon, Bohol with a population of 2,000.
The RACPA projects aim to enhance the resilience and adaptive capacity of vulnerable communities to climate change impacts, especially disasters such as typhoons, storm surges, and floods. The projects also seek to influence policy and decision-making at the local and national levels to support climate action.
Representing Governor Aris Aumentado, Chief of Staff for Internal Affairs, Atty. Filipina Piollo joined the discussion and expressed the PGBh’s support for the ESSC’s initiatives.
She also lauded the efforts of the barangay officials and residents of Nocnocan for their active participation and cooperation in the projects.
As part of their advocacy, the ESSC plans to conduct a National Forum on Climate Policy and Action in November this year, where they will share their experiences and best practices from Nocnocan and other project sites.
They will also invite representatives from various sectors, such as government agencies, civil society organizations, academe, media, and private sector, to join the forum and exchange ideas on how to address the climate crisis.
In addition, the ESSC will also be visiting Indonesia in the coming weeks, accompanied by some of the beneficiaries of their projects.
They will learn from the Indonesian counterparts on how they are coping with similar challenges and opportunities in their context.
The courtesy visit signifies a commitment to addressing environmental and climate-related challenges as part of attaining the Strategic Change Agenda on environmental sustainability, which is one of the priority areas of the PGBh.