Ateneo de Manila University Prof Emma Porio calls for climate action rooted in care at 2026 CSR Convention

Climate change is already reshaping everyday life in the Philippines, hitting poor and vulnerable communities the hardest. This was the key message of Ateneo de Manila University Professor Emeritus Emma Porio, PhD, Professor Emeritus of Sociology at the Dr Rosita G Leong School of Social Sciences (RGLSOSS) during her presentation at the 2026 CSR Convention in Cebu.

Speaking on “Crafting Climate and Disaster Resilience in the Philippines,” Prof Porio stressed that climate change is not just an environmental issue, but a social and governance crisis. Floods, typhoons, and other extreme events deepen poverty, disrupt education and health systems, and widen inequality—losses that are often borne by informal households and go uncounted in official data.

Citing the IPCC 2022 Report, she explained how climate risks are intensified by existing inequalities and further compounded by crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic. In the Philippines, cities can lose up to 30 percent of GDP from major flooding, while underinvestment in nutrition, education, and adaptive capacity leaves communities exposed to repeated disasters.

Prof Porio also warned of cascading disasters, where climate shocks combine with poor planning, environmental degradation, and weak governance. She emphasized the need to move beyond reactive disaster response toward anticipatory resilience, including early warning systems, resilient infrastructure, and social protection.

In closing, she called for climate action with care—an approach grounded in ethics, community participation, and shared responsibility. Building resilience, she said, means not only adapting faster, but caring better for people, systems, and the environment we depend on.