Building green: Transforming challenges into opportunities

Building green: Transforming challenges into opportunities | Daily Tribune

When we think of climate change, we often imagine typhoons, floods or droughts. Yet the fight also happens in quieter, everyday places — inside our homes, offices, schools and even the malls and hospitals we frequent. On this National Green Building Day, we are reminded that the way we design, build and live in these spaces can either deepen the crisis or help solve it.

Globally, buildings are among the largest users of energy and sources of greenhouse gas emissions. The Philippines is no exception. In 2020, our energy sector — driven largely by the power demands of residences, commercial establishments and government facilities — released nearly 100 teragrams of carbon dioxide equivalent, our single largest source of emissions. Daunting, yes, but it presents enormous opportunity.

Commercial buildings — offices, malls and hotels — consume vast amounts of electricity for cooling, lighting and operations. Yet with smart design they can showcase renewable energy, efficiency and circular business models. Government structures — barangay halls, schools, hospitals — set the tone for communities. Poorly designed, they drain budgets and lock in inefficiency. Built well, they demonstrate resilience and good governance. Housing projects, meanwhile, strike at the heart of Filipino life. For families in informal settlements, a house is survival. Too often, conventional construction produces homes that overheat, flood and burden families. With foresight, housing can uplift entire communities — especially when built with sustainable local materials like treated bamboo, modular systems and culturally rooted designs.

The lesson is clear: buildings are never just structures. They form communities, and communities shape the country. What we build is not only infrastructure but an ecosystem — of energy, water, transport, waste and livelihoods. Designed carelessly, this ecosystem amplifies vulnerability and depletes resources. Designed wisely, it strengthens resilience, reduces emissions and respects the environment. The warning is equally clear: the Philippines must build not merely to minimize losses, but to forge a robust ecosystem that prepares the economy to take off and soar — rather than chain it to costly cycles of loss and rebuilding in the era of climate change.

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., as chair of the Climate Change Commission (CCC), has made climate-resilient housing and infrastructure a national priority. Through the National Adaptation Plan and the Nationally Determined Contribution Implementation Plan, the CCC has placed sustainability at the core of development policy. But turning vision into reality demands a whole-of-nation effort. Agencies such as the National Housing Authority, the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development, the Department of Public Works and Highways, and the Department of Transportation must integrate climate realities — heavier rainfall, frequent floods, rising heat — into every project. Housing and infrastructure must be planned as part of one resilient system that serves both people and planet.

Local governments carry equal responsibility. They are on the frontlines of climate risk and the stewards of community development. Enforcing zoning, updating codes, and grounding land-use plans in science and hazard data are essential. LGUs can lead by ensuring public facilities — schools, barangay halls, markets — are not liabilities but living examples of resilience and sustainability.

The building industry also has a decisive role. Architects, engineers and developers must see themselves as ecosystem builders, not just contractors. Innovation is key: treated bamboo, modular construction, recycled materials and adaptive design can deliver affordability while protecting ecosystems.

Here, Congress and the Senate can provide enabling legislation. Bamboo and other sustainable materials must no longer be relegated to decorative use. With updated standards, incentives and research support, they can become mainstream — powering an affordable, regenerative and climate-resilient economy. This is a movement whose time has come: a response to the climate crisis and a pathway to inclusive, sustainable growth.

The opportunity extends beyond our borders. Across Asia and the Pacific, disasters strike with growing intensity, fueling demand for resilient, low-cost communities. With leadership from government, investment from the private sector, and support from legislators, the Philippines can position itself as a hub of sustainable construction — exporting expertise, creating green jobs, and contributing solutions for the region.

At its core, this is about more than construction. It is about nation-building through ecosystem building. Homes, schools, markets and offices are not isolated structures; they are interconnected systems that shape resilience, drive the economy and safeguard dignity. Poor design locks in inequity. Good design fosters inclusion, respects resources and anchors growth. The built environment reflects who we are as a people — and who we aspire to become.

On this National Green Building Day, let us recognize that the foundation has been laid. Now we must build not only smarter and stronger, but also more respectful of the environment that sustains us. Let us commit to bold investments, forward-looking legislation, whole-of-nation collaboration, and industry leadership that make green building the standard, not the exception. Only then can every Filipino home and community contribute not just to shelter, but to the larger project of building a safer, more resilient, and more prosperous Philippines — for ourselves, for our neighbors in Asia and the Pacific, and for generations yet to come.