#ClimateWalk: Because justice demands it

Nine days of  walking in solidarity with the global call for climate justice brought us face-to-face with many people who experienced the wrath of several typhoons that have passed through the Philippines in recent years.

One unforgettable conversation I have had was with Araceli Pulgar. She is a 58-year-old woman who has lived almost her entire life in Barangay Silangang Malicboy in Pagbilao, Quezon Province.

Their family’s main source of income comes from organic farming in a humble land near their area.

When I shared with her the reason why we are traveling by foot from Manila all the way to Super Typhoon Yolanda’s ground zero in Tacloban, she started telling me her own story about their experience when Typhoons Frank (2008) and Glenda (2014) hit the country. 

“Sobrang lakas ng tama (The typhoons were very strong),” she said with strong emotions, almost teary-eyed. 

Extreme rainfall destroyed their coconuts and other fruit-bearing trees, and veggie crops. Even their greenhouses were devastated. They were left with almost nothing.

She said, almost resignedly, “May unos na darating, kinabukasan tahimik. Makaka-recover pa rin naman. Ang tao ay parang wala nang disiplina, wala nang pakialam sa environment.” (When disaster strikes, it will be silent the following day. We’ll be able to recover. It’s as if people don’t care about the environment.)

She also said there were those times when she felt so helpless, thinking that this is already a fact of life that should be accepted.

Then she mentioned the Pagbilao coal-fired power plant.

According to Mrs Pulgar, the coal-fired power plant emits poisonous smoke, damaging the air they breathe. She and her neighbors believe the power plant is responsible for the many health problems that arose, specifically among pregnant women and children.

She ended her story with this: “Dapat maging curious tayo sa environment at ang tao ay magkaroon ng bahagi sa pangangalaga sa kalikasan.” (We should be curious about the environment. We should be involved in taking care of it.)

Her strong words echo loud and clear as I likewise share her burden. It is my hope that by walking and re-telling her story – and those like her who live in the shadow of dirty coal plants – we may be able to create an uproar to demand accountability from those who have been historically responsible for the buildup of greenhouse gases that cause global warming. They should be able to help communities too adapt to the warming climate. 

It just may be the means to elicit drastic cuts in emissions by these big polluters – giving justice to ordinary folks like Pulgar who demand it in this changing climate. – Rappler.com 

Albert Lozada is one of the Climate Walkers and a full-time staff at Greenpeace.

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