By: Reigh John Bench Almendras
Ms. Depasucat discussed the details of climate change during the event of The Letran Polticivs entitled ‘Kilos Para sa Kinabukasan: Empowering Transformative Climate Action in Combating Disaster Vulnerability in the Philippines.’ Photo Courtesy: Julia Iris Eguillano /The LANCE.
The premiere Political Science organization of Letran-Manila, The Letran Politicvs, conducts ‘Kilos Para sa Kinabukasan: Empowering Transformative Climate Action in Combating Disaster Vulnerability in the Philippines’ on Saturday, Nov. 23, at the St. Thomas Hall.
The event is in partnership with the Letran Engineering Society (LES), the Letran Legal Management Society (LLMS), and the National Service Training Program (NSTP). Representatives from the Letran Senior High School Student Council also participated in the event.
In her opening remarks, Ms. Sofia Niña Cornejo, the organization’s vice president, calls the initiative an ‘answer to the call to act on climate change.’
The event, which focuses on empowering climate action and addressing the country’s disaster vulnerability, was held as The Letran Politicvs strives to align its initiatives with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by the United Nations (UN) in 2015.
With her expertise on the contemporary situation of climate change, the organization invited Ms. Hope Depasucat, Weather Specialist 1 of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA).
On climate change
With the increasing temperature in the Philippines and the world, the seminar centered on dissecting the causality, implications, and prospective measures against climate change.
In her discussion, Ms. Depasucat discussed the details of climate change, which, according to PAGASA, is the long term impact of changes in environmental activities.
In its recent data, PAGASA has been monitoring the frequency of typhoons in the country, with 16 entering the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR)this year and six typhoons in the month of November alone.
The weather bureau also reported higher temperatures during dry seasons which led to class cancellations due to extreme heat waves, back in April 2024.
Following a series of typhoons in recent months, the Sierra Madre mountain range in the eastern portion of Luzon reached mainstream media with its perceived capacity to mitigate incoming typhoons in the country.
When asked about the capacity of Sierra Madre in ‘weakening’ typhoons, Ms. Depasucat highlighted that it is more of ‘influencing’ the rainfall, as typhoons usually pours most of its rains in the mountains before it crosses over communities in Luzon, causing the weakend effect.
“Usually, bumubuhos na ang ulan sa Sierra Madre bago pa siya dumaan over Luzon, kaya the answer is both a yes and a no in terms of influencing typhoons.” Ms. Depasucat stated.
Ms. Depasucat also clarified that the storm signals raised in PAGASA’s bulletins and those being aired by the media refer to the intensity of winds and not the amount of rainfall over the areas it covers.
“To clarify, what we are referring to in storm signals is the wind, not the rain.” she added.
In an interview with The LANCE, Mr. Cris Soltes, a student from 4th Year Political Science, shared that the event is insightful, for it touches policy recommendations relevant to climate change.
“It is important, for when it comes to addressing climate change, we are provided with (pieces of) information that are updated and relevant to our specialization.” Soltes said.