PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan – The Philippine government in partnership with the United States Agency for International development (USAID) embarked on the so-called Sustainable Intervention for Biodiversity, Oceans and Landscapes (SIBOL) project to enhance global efforts to preserve and protect the environment and contribute in significantly reducing the impact of climate change on people, communities and Earth.
SIBOL is a 5-year, P1.1 billion project spearheaded by the USAID and the Philippine government on its journey to self-reliance to achieve its goals of improving natural resource governance, stimulating public and private sector investments and reducing environmental crime leading to greater ecosystem stability and inclusive green growth.
Further, SIBOL activities envision a resilient Philippines in which communities, the private sector, and government collaboratively protect the country’s rich natural resources in terrestrial and marine landscapes from exploitation, overuse and climate change.
The said project works at both the national and local levels in partnership with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Agriculture–Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (DA-BFAR), the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development (PCSD) and the USAID.
All interventions under the SIBOL activities follow the planetary health approach that uses cutting edge science, coordinated and inclusive governance strategies, and powerful economic incentives to protect both biodiversity and the communities in and around the targeted terrestrial and marine landscapes.
Guided by the aforesaid principles, SIBOL activity’s consortium of natural resources management (NRM) and biodiversity conservation experts aimed to achieve results through 3 strategic approaches as it seeks to strengthen land and coastal resource management through the effective participation of communities and other under represented groups in governance structures.
Moreover, it also aims to strengthen governance by clarifying authorities and coordination where it will develop cutting edge decision-making tools to improve biodiversity and socio-economic monitoring and analysis.
It will also engage civil society and community participation in new ways that will promote positive environmental behavior.
However, the country’s ambitious greenhouse gas reduction targets compete with an equally ambitious infrastructure investment portfolio that is not always congruent with sustainable natural resources management. To address the said challenge, SIBOL will promote economic incentives grounded on economic valuation results and sustainable supply chain studies.
The USAID stated that better informed decision-making can increase the engagement of private sector entities and local communities in sustainable activities that contribute to overall green growth and natural wealth accumulation.
SIBOL also seeks to address threats to biodiversity practices and irresponsible tourism as well as address environmental crimes. It involves engaging with the enforcement community as well as relevant stakeholders who can provide valuable insight for improved law enforcement.
SIBOL also seeks to increase and improve the use of responsive technologies and evidence-based approaches to prevent and reduce environmental crimes.
