Senator President Pro Tempore Loren Legarda calls on female leaders to lead efforts to address climate change

At the Women International Network for Disaster Risk Reduction (WIN DRR) launch at the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City, Senate President Pro Tempore Loren Legarda emphasized the critical role that gender equality plays in addressing environmental issues and urged the women leaders to make the goal of a sustainable future through climate change adaptation and disaster risk management the top of their priority lists.

“We are all impacted by climate change, but men and women are impacted differently. It does not respect gender. Due to ingrained gender stereotypes, cultural expectations, and societal roles, women are shown to be more vulnerable to the effects of climate change than males are” she explained.

Loren Legarda has emphasized that, in addition to being an environmental concern, climate change also poses serious threats to socio-economic and political stability, particularly in unstable and conflict-ridden regions. These regions saw an increase in gender-based violence against women, including human trafficking, sex assault linked to armed conflict, and child marriage.

Additionally, because women have less access to quality healthcare and services owing to catastrophes and climate change, this is a critical issue that Loren Legarda wants to address as soon as possible. She thinks that gender concerns need to be included in climate change policies at every step of planning, funding, and implementation.

Loren Legarda, a steadfast supporter of environmental protection and women's empowerment is the author of Republic Act 9729, often known as the Climate Change Act, which stipulates that at least one of the commissioners of the Climate Change Commission (CCC) must be a woman. This clause strives to include a gender perspective and gender-responsive strategies in climate change policies and programs.

Along with her lobbying, she also started several national information and education projects to support disaster risk reduction and climate adaptation. These included starting the Luntiang Pilipinas greening program and planning regional workshops for local government units.

There have already been many initiatives to mitigate the mounting climate change anxiety. Loren Legarda, however, cautioned the women leaders to present at the WIN DRR launch that much more has to be done because this year, the United States was identified as the 193rd most at-risk nation in the world according to the World Risk Index 2022.

“To save more lives, we need women leaders in crisis and catastrophe situations. We women leaders, whether in local or international organizations, can take the initiative to promote substantive change” she remarked.

With a forceful appeal to action, Loren Legarda concluded her speech by saying, "It is time to be brave, take responsibility, and create a more climate-resilient world. This involves taking decisive action and making fundamental changes to the way we live and interact with the environment. Together, we can work towards a vision of a future that is more robust and sustainable.”