Roger Cabiles

The right of the public to participate in addressing climate change and disasters are outlined in different international agreements such as the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development and the 2015 Paris Agreement.  This essay will discuss public participation as a right, particularly in the context of climate change and disaster laws and policies as well as critiques on this perspective to provide a holistic view on the advantages and consequences of harnessing public participation to address climate change impacts and disasters.

This paper will focus on the Philippine experience on legislating public participation as a right, a strategy and an approach to address climate change and disasters. To do this, the author will review the impacts of climate change and disasters and explore the vulnerabilities of the Southeast Asian nation to disasters. As a result of these impacts and vulnerabilities, the Philippine government enacted laws and policies such as the Philippine Development Plan, the Climate Change Act of 2009, the Philippine Disaster Reduction and Management Act of 2010, the People’s Survival Fund Act, and various National Government plans, programs and strategies in addressing climate change and disasters and at the same time highlight the need for public participation and engagement. This paper will review these laws, policies and programs in relation to the discussion of public participation as a right and approach and discuss challenges and opportunities in its implementation.

The last part of the paper will focus on options moving forward in enhancing public participation and engagement such as the need for stronger transparency and accountability mechanisms, institutionalising freedom of information and pushing for a Capability Approach in enhancing public participation and involvement.

Small-scale farmers play a significant role in the global food system. While the outcomes of Ecologically Sustainable Development(ESD) aim to be beneficial to humanity and the environment, small-scale farmers are pushed to adapt ESD approaches without enough support and still with their unresolved perennial issues. Though there are numerous researches on the relationship of the global food system, agriculture, climate change and ESD, studies on the role of small-scale farmers have been relatively underdeveloped. This paper reviews the role of small-scale farmers in the global food system and identifies the challenges and opportunities in the context of ESD. To do this, the author did an extensive review of literature covering the areas of small-scale farmers, the roles and challenges they face in the global food system as well as in ESD. The results revealed that small-scale farmers, most of whom are in middle to low-income countries, feed around 70% of the world population and are still experiencing persistent problems of lack of access to resources, unsecured land rights and adapting to climate change. Approaches in achieving ESD outcomes positively and negatively impact small-scale farmers as it affects how they utilise agricultural resources. However, governments should ensure equity and provide support in pursuing sustainable approaches. The review concludes with options to move forward rooted in ESD principles-increased participation of farmers in decision-making, sustainable education, sustainable resource use, responsible agriculture investment and nutrition-sensitive food systems.

Sustainability and sustainable development are concepts that have been widely discussed serving different purposes. Even before the widely-accepted definition of sustainable development by the Brundtland Commission in 1987, and more so after its conception, sustainability and its essence, approaches and goals both for humanity and the environment have always been challenged. This paper aims to discuss various definitions and origins of sustainability and sustainable development by reviewing scientific journals and academic articles. Moreover, this paper will present a brief comparative analysis of these definitions and will examine these in the context of the period they were conceptualised. By doing this, the author aims to provide an understanding of the purpose of such definitions and identify the underlying values each one holds. In concluding, this paper will try, not to define, but to provide basic yet essential components targeting the conceptualisation of sustainable development based on the relevant literature: Sustainability Worldview, Sustainability Label, Sustainability Outcomes, and Sustainability Action.