Youth ‘love letters’ remind candidates to champion climate, environment ahead of Earth Day

QUEZON CITY, Philippines, 22 April 2022 — Filipino youth on Thursday renewed their call for presidential aspirants to ensure climate justice and climate action is the next administration’s top agenda. The call came in the aftermath of Typhoon Agaton and ahead of  Earth Day, as Greenpeace and youth partners delivered ‘love letters’ from Filipinos across the country to 2022 presidential candidates’ headquarters in Metro Manila. 

This was one of the activities under the Love, 52 youth and elections campaign, led by youth organizations from various sectors, together with Greenpeace. The groups are calling on presidential candidates to protect communities and ensure that the country’s next generation will not experience the worst impacts of the climate crisis. The groups are also calling on candidates to stand for inclusive, transparent and inspired models of governance that are fully accountable to people, and which protect and strengthen democratic processes and institutions.

“This election poses a gross lack of discourse on the climate crisis — at a time when scientists around the world are standing up for climate justice,” said Love, 52 youth partner Cris Jamil Hertez, from the Better Normal Youth Movement. “Meanwhile, typhoons continue to claim lives, homes, and livelihood. We can’t keep playing catch-up with our climate; our future leaders must listen to the youth.”

“Our generation and future ones have the most to lose if our next leaders still choose to sit idly by,” said Love, 52 youth partner Carmela Adelantar, from the National Society of Parliamentarians, Inc. “They need to hold the world’s biggest polluters accountable for the crisis we’re facing, and come up with coherent plans that will at least help us stay alive beyond the next decade.”

“We no longer have time to wait. The next administration must place climate action as top priority agenda,” said Greenpeace campaigner Joanna Sustento. “The climate crisis is not just about the environment–it’s about food, water, lives, health, and the economy. They also need to ensure that democratic processes and institutions are protected and strengthened.”

Greenpeace believes that there needs to be stronger climate action at home. In particular, the Philippine government must:

•   Hold fossil fuel companies accountable for the climate crisis and call on other countries to do the same. It must also lead the call for a global phase out of fossil fuels toward a just transition to renewable energy.
•   Call on rich countries for more ambitious emissions reductions targets, more money for climate finance, and compensation for loss and damage.
•   Ensure rapid transition to renewable energy at home by phasing out coal, stopping fossil gas expansion and targeting 50% of RE in the energy mix by 2030. 
•   Ratchet up the country’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC). At the moment, the country has promised a 75% carbon emissions reduction from 2020 to 2030, but the unconditional target is only at 2.72%. 
•   Ensure the Climate Emergency Declaration is followed through with a coherent climate plan. The government must institute climate action as the central policy of the state, and must protect people and climate on the basis of climate justice. Climate action must also be at the heart of the country’s COVID recovery plan.

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Note to Editors: 

•   To learn more about the Love, 52 youth and elections campaign, please visit act.gp/love52
•   Due to unforeseen circumstances, the team was not able to physically deliver the letters to presidential candidate Norberto Gonzales. However, the first youth’s love letter for the 2022 elections was sent to him in February, and he has since signed it and sent a video message committing to climate justice.