Various health and environmental challenges have continued to undermine countries and their capacity to respond in crisis and emergencies. For instance, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the limited capacity of countries to effectively address such issues. The complexity of health and environmental challenges affects both the security of states and the welfare of its people. This underscores the importance of fostering cooperation with states in the region to address these emerging challenges with the same urgency as conventional security threats.  

In the case of the Philippines, the convergence of these challenges has increasingly exposed its citizens to multifaceted non-traditional risks. The continuing pandemic has resulted in global social and economic disruption, with the Philippines as one of the worst-affected countries in Southeast Asia. It has also exposed the frailty of the Philippine healthcare system and revealed its grave weaknesses brought by decades of socio-economic and political upheavals that have had direct and indirect effects on the health of Filipinos. These challenges further delay the country’s efforts towards sustainable economic recovery and resiliency against the global health crisis.  

Aside from the consequences of the current pandemic, the international community also continues to grapple with the impact of climate change. Towards the end of 2021, the Philippines was struck by super typhoon, named Rai and locally known as Odette, which left billions of pesos in damages and thousands of families homeless.  While typhoons are generally common, the past several years saw an increase in its intensity putting the country’s most vulnerable sectors in harm’s way. These can be attributed to the observable increase in greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere, and due to its continuous accumulation has exacerbated the environmental challenges in the country. Sustainable and equitable interventions are needed to reduce the challenges that the country encounters every year. 

The upcoming May 2022 national elections draw anticipation for a new administration that will prioritize the country’s health and environmental policies by acknowledging the factors attributing to prevailing and worsening conditions and by strengthening the management and mitigation mechanisms to address potential impact on the country.  

In light of this, the Stratbase ADR Institute organized a virtual town hall discussion (vTHD) entitled “Convergence of Health and Environment in Shaping the Strategic Policy Agenda of the Next Administration.” This was an opportunity for experts and key stakeholders to present their studies and recommendations for the policy agenda of the next administration. Through this event, the Institute aimed to contribute to the growing discussions on the national election and integrate issues on health and environment as part of the key policy concerns of the next administration.  

Program

Opening Remarks
Prof. Victor Andres “Dindo” Manhit
President, Stratbase ADR Institute

Policy Recommendations for the Next Administration

Stratbase ADRi Strategic Agenda for the Next President: Non-Traditional Security Threats to Peace and Security in the Indo-Pacific 
Dr. Mely Caballero-Anthony  
Professor and Head of the Centre for Non-Traditional Security (NTS) Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS)  

Stratbase ADRi Strategic Agenda for the Next President: Beyond Health Measures: Towards A Genuine People’s Health Agenda 
Katharina Berza 
Director for Advocacy Public Information Research and Documentation Department (APIRD), Council for Health and Development 

Stratbase ADRi Strategic Agenda for the Next President: Accelerating Resilience and Climate Change Adaptation: Strengthening the Philippines’ Contribution to Limit Global Warming and Cope with its Impacts 
Dr. Toby Melissa Monsod 
Professor, School of Economics, University of the Philippines 

Stakeholder Perspective

Dr. Alma Salvador  
Co-convenor of the Department of Political Science-Working Group on Security Sector Reform;  Associate Professor, Ateneo de Manila University   

Ms. Maria Fatima Garcia-Lorenzo 
President, Philippine Alliance of Patient Organizations 
Executive Director, Kythe Foundation, Inc. 
Convenor, UHC Watch 

Mr. Renato Redentor Constantino 
Executive Director, Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC) 

Closing Remarks 
Mr. Francesco “Paco” A. Pangalangan  
Executive Director, Stratbase ADR Institute 

Host and Moderator
Ms. Clarisse Dacanay 
Program Manager, Stratbase ADR Institute