Davao City, Dipolog City, and Quezon City have been named national finalists representing the Philippines in the World Wide Fund for Nature’s (WWF) One Planet City Challenge (OPCC).
The three Philippine finalists were picked by WWF from among 16 local cities to join other global finalists from 280 cities from 50 countries participating in the 2021-2022 leg of the environmental awards for climate action.
The friendly global competition that encourages cities around the globe to present their best practices and holistic plans to mitigate climate change was founded in 2011.
Since its inception ten years ago, close to 600 cities from 53 countries on 5 continents have already participated in the challenge.
One Planet Cities Project Manager for WWF-Philippines Imee Bellen hopes that more Philippine cities will participate in OPCC in the near future.
“We are always welcome to showcase inspiring transformative urban solutions to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change.”
“The cities’ plans would not come to life if it wasn’t for the collective action of its residents. However, we as individuals can still make a difference on our own,” Atty. Angela Ibay, Head of Climate and Energy Programme of WWF-Philippines said.
“Even the most trivial habits, such as reducing energy consumption, can have a long-lasting impact on the community and nature,” Atty. Ibay added.
The One Planet City Challenge is a friendly global competition initiated by WWF to recognize cities for their climate actions and ambitions and assess whether they align with the goals set forth in the Paris Agreement in limiting climate change to 1.5 °C.
The OPCC global finalists will be evaluated by an international jury panel of experts, and winners will be announced from May to June 2022.
The cities of Davao, Dipolog, and Quezon are also participating in the OPCC’s We Love Cities campaign, which aims to bridge and foster better communication between city officials and the citizens they represent on climate and sustainability issues.
In 2020, Muntinlupa, Batangas, and Santa Rosa cities represented the Philippines in the global finals of the WWF’s One Planet City Challenge (OPCC). In the same year, the City of Batangas in the Philippines was hailed the World’s Most Loved City by WWF in the We Love Cities campaign.
SEND CHEERS in the comments below to the three Philippine cities who have been named national finalists in the World Wide Fund for Nature’s (WWF) One Planet City Challenge (OPCC)!
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