BAGUIO CITY(PIA)– The Philippines and Australia have forged stronger ties by sharing perspectives on reinventing cities to become sustainable and environmentally-friendly through a forum held on May 17, 2024 at the Forest Lodge in Baguio City.
The event which was part of the celebration of Philippine-Australian Friendship Day, highlighted the best practices of both countries, specifically in urban redevelopment and sustainability to adapt to the effects of climate change.
Australian Ambassador to the Philippines, HK Yu, stressed that there will be a huge partnership between the countries in the future, especially on global issues like climate change.
“We have seen our relationship being elevated to strategic partnership when the Prime Minister was here in September last year. Prime Minister Albanese and President Marcos signed a strategic partnership. That has actually a number of implications on how Australia and the Philippines work together in the future, and it is about the challenges being fixed globally, one of which is climate change,” she said.
“No country is spared on the impacts of climate change, and no country can fix it alone either, and for issues like this, we need our true friends, partners, and neighbors, and that’s why of many reasons, we chose Baguio to celebrate our Friendship Day,” Yu said.
Baguio City Mayor benjaim Magalong also pointed out that the forum plays a huge role in the development of both nations.
“Let us not forget that the true power of this forum lies not just in the ideas that we exchange with each other, but in the connections towards and the partnerships we form. It is my hope that through our discussions today, we will not only gain wonderful insights, but also bring the ground root for future collaborations and mutual supports within our nations,” he said.
The forum featured eco-friendly developers like ACEN Corporation that discussed Renewable Revolutions: The Journey towards a Clean Energy Future, PGAA Creative Design on Spaces Reimagined: Designing for Walkability, and Cylon on Waste to Resource: A Recycling Revolution.
Baguio City’s projects on sustainability and investment and creative strategies and opportunities were also discussed by City Planning, Development, and Sustainability Officer Donna Tabangin and Budget Officer Leticia Clemente. (JDP/CVBT-PIA CAR)
Architect Paulo Alcazaren of PGAA Creative Design discusses Spaces Reimagined: Designing for Walkability. He shares how urban areas could find ways to incorporate greener architecture and involve development of parks to motivate people to walk.
Architect Donna Tabangin, Baguio City Planning, Development and Sustainability Coordinator, presents sustainable projects laid out for Baguio City. One project is the incorporation of Children’s Street, in which the the city involves children on its urban development.
