Senator Loren Legarda is calling for a new generation of climate resilience leaders—equipped not just with laws but with data, skills, and purpose—through a scholarship program launched Thursday at the Asian Institute of Management (AIM). Emphasizing that "normal was the problem," she challenged planners, scientists, and advocates to step up as climate champions in the face of worsening disasters.
"We are at a crossroads where climate change and disasters threaten our very existence. Typhoons ravage communities, droughts cripple livelihoods, and data reveals alarming trends," Legarda said during her keynote address at the Asian Institute of Management (AIM) on Thursday, 22 May.
"The scorching heat is a sign that our planet is in distress," she added.
Legarda led the ceremonial launch and signing of a Memorandum of Agreement for the Sustainable Leadership Learning for Climate and Disaster Risk Reduction (SLL-CDRR) Scholarship Program, in coordination with the Climate Change Commission and the AIM.
The program aims to produce a group of competent climate and disaster resilience leaders, equipping them with skills to transform policy into action, as well as data into concrete solutions.
It will be implemented by the CCC, in partnership with AIM, under the Executive Master in Disaster Risk and Crisis Management (EMDRCM) program and Master of Science in Data Science (MSDS) program.
For 2026, a total of 26 scholars will be supported by the program, initiated and supported by Legarda.
"Laws alone are not enough. We need you: planners, data scientists, advocates. We need you, the scholars who will bring resilience to the barangays, the data scientists who will turn analytics into action, the indigenous leaders who will bridge tradition and innovation," asserted the four-term senator.
"The pandemic taught us that a crisis accelerates understanding. We will not return to normal. Normal was the problem. Instead, let’s build a Philippines that thrives—a nation of climate champions."
Legarda, a trailblazer in climate legislation, has championed landmark laws and spearheaded the adoption of international agreements.
Among the pieces of legislation she passed are the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act, the Clean Air Act, the Climate Change Act, the People’s Survival Fund Act, the Green Jobs Act, and the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System Act.
She also shepherded in the Senate the country's ratification of the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol, and the adoption of the Paris Agreement.
Legarda has also been recognized by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction as a UNDRR Global Champion for Resilience, a UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Global 500 Laureate, and an ASEAN Biodiversity Hero, among other honors.