Last November 15, 2014, Vigattin Radio was able to have as its special guests Mr. Leo Godfrey-Jao, information officer and representative from DOST(Project Noah), Mr. Allan Taulle the chief of staff of Assistant Secretary Raymind Liboro, Secretary Lucille Sering the executive director of Climate Change Commission, DJ Ramos one of the organizer of Hack-a-climate Manila, and Mr. Earl Valencia of IdeaSpace through phone patch.
They were asked what their opinions were of climate change. According to Mr. Leo Godfrey-Jao it is the changes from normal to extreme levels. According to DJ Ramos, the effect of climate change reflects on a person’s mood because of the temperature. The more the climate changes, the more it will affect the mood of a person. According to Secretary Sering it becomes a disaster despite what science is telling us, we don't do anything about it, having this law and having this consciousness so that when time comes we don't have to be afraid and it is something that we can adapt to. According to Mr. Allan Taulle, there is still a large need for more eco-friendly sustainable alternatives.
Exploring alternatives than what we have been used to is key. Climate change should be accepted that it is already there, so that it is easier for us to accept the alternatives. Adaptation and mitigation are the ways people use to face climate change. The national government focuses on what's needed in adaptation and the private sectors should contribute. The national government can provide a policy that can allow them to contribute.
According to Mr. Earl Valencia, the private sector is looking at early stage technologies: it could be apps, it could be hardware that could potentially help in energy, water, disaster sustainability, and that we should be supporting good examples like invest in wind turbine concept companies, power generation rumble strips, and flip management.
The Climate Change Commission has ClimEx.db, an app that was developed together with UP. After Sendong, they received a grant from UNDP. It is a database to those that are exposed to the areas that are risky, so they will know the priorities during evacuation and other things that need to be taken into consideration. As for Hack-a-climate project, its goal is to go a step higher than just software, mobile apps, etc. They will have partnership with NGOs, government and non-government companies that can take on more of the projects. It is prototyping what seems to be impossible to be possible. In Project Noah, they have technology from Indonesia which is called InaSAFE (Indonesia Scenario Assessment for Emergencies) this technology will help determine those who need to be evacuated before the typhoon comes. The number of females, males, senior citizens, and children will be seen so they will know who needs to be prioritized.
We are now aware that different government and non-government companies have their different ways to address our concerns about climate change. It is a matter of awareness of our today's changing world. Everyone, not just the people around us, are the ones who will do something, to keep thinking of ways we help alleviate the effects of climate change.
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