GIVEN ITS geographical location along the Pacific Ring of Fire, the Philippines faces some of the most severe impacts of climate change. These effects are especially felt along the country’s coast, where rising sea levels and regular typhoons accelerate the erosion of the country’s shorelines—heightening the risk of displacement for coastal communities.

Additionally, the country remains one of the most climate-vulnerable nations, ranking first among 193 countries in the World Risk Index (WRI) for the third consecutive year in 2024.

In response to these growing hazards, the Coastal Cities at Risk in the Philippines (CCARPH) project was launched in 2018 with the aim to strengthen resiliency through collaborative solutions that directly address the threats of climate change.

Focused on institutionalizing disaster response in a vulnerable nation, CCARPH has since worked to strengthen climate and disaster resilience in the country’s coastal cities through active initiatives and partnerships within vulnerable communities.

Shaping resilient shores

At its core, the CCARPH project works to ensure that coastal cities—such as Metro Manila, Iloilo, and Naga, among others—can mitigate, respond, and adapt to disasters hitting the country through integrated, extensive, and transdisciplinary research.

Spearheaded by the Ateneo de Manila University and Manila Observatory, the project works closely with its partners from the National Resilience Council, International Development Research Centre, local government units (LGUs), and the private sector to develop science-based solutions focused on building resilient urban communities.

When asked about the inspiration behind the undertaking, Project Leader and Principal Investigator for CCARPH Emma Porio, PhD emphasized that while climate hazards are unavoidable, communities can mitigate their impact by minimizing vulnerability and exposure, as well as strengthening recovery capacity.

Porio highlighted the University’s role in empowering communities through action research, public-private partnerships, and the development of tools and materials that inspire engagement and deepen public understanding of climate change’s complexities.

“We need to change the way we frame the relationship of climate, environment, economy, development, and social transformation,” she asserted. “We need to naturalize the social sciences. Maski (even) social scientist, dapat titingnan mo ang (they should look at) impacts of human action to ecosystem health, to the environment, or the impact of infrastructure to the people.”

Porio stressed the need to “socialize and humanize” natural sciences and ecosystems in order to make complex figures and data more comprehensible.

A path toward climate action

To make this humanized narrative possible, CCARPH has launched initiatives and informative media on its website and social media in an attempt to fill information gaps that persist among the general public.

Among these efforts is the CCARPH Resilience Toolkit, a digital repository of research, case studies, and resources that local government units, stakeholders, and other professionals can use to make informed decisions on disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation.

Through initiatives like the Toolkit, the project places actionable science at the forefront of its initiatives with the hope of bridging socio-cultural and technical divides in the country’s disaster response and mitigation efforts.

Aside from establishing guidelines and research on climate resiliency, CCARPH also puts a premium on implementing their findings in actual communities vulnerable to such phenomena through partnerships.

According to National Resiliency Council Resilience Analyst Joy Rocamora, the project aims to find impactful solutions through cross-sector collaborations. An example of this is CCARPH’s collaboration with the Adopt-a-City program, where private sectors are given the opportunity to provide funding, technical support, and resources to LGUs for climate resilience initiatives.

These initiatives align with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and Ateneo’s vision to become a Laudato Si’ University by 2030. They promote integral ecology by combining local knowledge with science and technology, grounding resilience strategies in both global expertise and traditional practices.

Furthermore, the project also aims to bridge the “science-policy-practice nexus” by providing tailored solutions for local communities. This holistic approach allows CCARPH to address dynamic challenges in disaster risk reduction and climate adaptation while developing and implementing strategies to the unique needs of the  country’s different regions.

Turning the tide

Despite its progress in advancing resilience initiatives in its partner cities, CCARPH still faces mounting challenges in implementing initiatives in local communities.

Rocamora pointed out that communities were hesitant to adopt new strategies due to their preference for traditional practices, which may be counterproductive to their campaign due to the misconceptions that are the basis for some.

Moreover, she revealed that outdated models and ineffective risk communication have been hampering efforts in climate resilience due to gaps between what people experience on the ground and what scientists like her see in their databases.

“Climate work is very heavy, and not just in the workload. It feels heavy. If you see the losses, the damages, sometimes you just want to give up,” she added.

Recognizing such challenges, Porio stressed that resilience is not just bouncing back but “bouncing forward together.” She explained that this entails fostering a multisectoral involvement toward science-based, sustainable, and long-lasting solutions.

To achieve this, Porio stated that the first step is to find ways to be of service and to take action within that capacity. Actions consisting of seemingly small changes, such as growing one’s own produce and reducing water and energy consumption, can add up to become a significant collective impact.

Ultimately, building resilience requires a collaborative, multi-stakeholder approach that brings together local and national governments, non-governmental organizations, communities, and scientists.

“Kapag hindi tayo kapit-bisig, walang mangyari. (If we do not work together, nothing will happen.) We’ll continue destroying this earth.” Porio emphasized.

Only by adopting a more holistic approach, where climate action is a shared responsibility among all citizens, can communities be empowered to drive development and social transformation—creating a Philippines that is not only more resilient but also inclusive and sustainable.