Green Initiative in the Philippines: Eco-town Framework Project

The municipality of San Vicente in the Philippines incorporates twenty-two islands and islets that are home to diverse wildlife and twenty-four distinct ethnolinguistic groups. The community farms rice that’s largely consumed locally, and fishermen can bring income into the community by selling their catch to external markets. Higher average temperatures and changes to precipitation could greatly impact both agriculture and fisheries. Those livelihoods are already being negatively impacted by climate change which layers decreased productivity, decreased income, increased poverty, food security, malnutrition, and decreased tourism opportunity on the region. With food security at risk, and the danger of enhanced risk of diseases such as malaria and dengue threatening public health, the Filipino government decided to pilot a program that could increase resilience in such communities.