What are the environmental problems we face in the Philippines is probably the initial question we need to answer so we know what actions to take to resolve them.  Some problems include air and water pollution, deforestation, wildlife extinction, as well as the effects of global warming. It doesn't help us any that our location makes the Philippines prone to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and typhoons.

I think, we should all make an effort to understand the environmental problems and to think up of ways of mitigating the effects of these conditions.  For instance, our government should have a more intensive education awareness program and not only include environmental education in the curriculum, but require activities that will instill understanding of protection of our natural resources.  If our students specially the young ones learn about environmental protection in their schools, they will bring home the knowledge to their homes, to their families and communities. I know there are school organizations that focus on environmental protection and that is a good start.

We should also 'go local' in our environmental protection activities.  Each community, village or province has its own environmental concerns depending on its natural resources.  For instance, in my province, we have several lakes, in fact one of the largest in Southeast Asia is Laguna Lake (90,000+ hectares).  In my City, we have seven lakes and the largest is only 104 hectares. So in our City, the citizenry is actively protecting our lakes led by an NGO called Friends of the Seven Lakes Foundation.  Together with the Catholic Church?s Diocesan Ministry of Ecology, we are trying to raise awareness about the environment particularly that quality of the lake waters, which have been polluted many years back due to human interventions.

In the City of Manila, the place is densely populated and as a result, there is a lot of trash generated.  This trash ends up in streets and waterways which leads to flooding during the rainy season.  It may take a while, but people in Manila should think of ways in which trash can be reused and recycled and even minimized.  For instance, the government should build Materials Recovery Facilities where trash can end up.  

We should share our best practices.  One of the best ways of doing this is by attending forums and summits organized regionally, nationally and internationally. The United Nations Environment Programme, for example, conducts several environmental conferences every year. These events are usually subsidized and are great networking opportunities where participants share about their problems and ways they resolve them. 

In short, the government, the socio-civic organizations, the Church and most importantly, the citizens must work together to protect the environment for future generations.