MANILA, 28 October 2020 — Representatives from Indigenous Peoples (IP) communities will gather virtually to discuss the role of environmental sustainability in enhancing resilience to future shocks on the 24th episode of “Stories for a Better Normal: Pandemic and Climate Change Pathways,” dedicated to celebrate the Indigenous Peoples’ Month.
 
The episode, hosted by House Deputy Speaker Loren Legarda, will air on Thursday, 29 October 2020, 10:00 AM via Facebook Live at facebook.com/CCCPhl and facebook.com/conglorenlegarda.
 
Joining the online conversation are: Waway L. Saway, member of Talaandig in Bukidnon and Head of the Family Food Security Cycle program of Hineleban Foundation; and Delia Pauden, Cluster head of Ati in Antique and Aklan.
 
In previous episodes, the online series tackled food gardening and saving seeds, permaculture, good nutrition and diet, planting native trees, practical sustainability, narrating risk to resilience stories through books, tree pest and disease management, reviving indigenous textiles and crafts, transforming waste into wages, and championing sustainable urban mobility.
 
This upcoming episode will be an avenue to raise awareness on  interventions needed from all sectors to safeguard our vulnerable rural livelihoods, including culture-based livelihoods of our IPs.
 
By virtue of Presidential Proclamation No. 1906 signed in 2009, the month of October was declared as National Indigenous Peoples’ Month in the Philippines to put preferential attention on the importance of recognizing and protecting the rights of indigenous cultural communities geared towards national unity and development. This year also commemorates the 23rd year of Republic Act No. 8371, or the Indigenous Peoples' Rights Act (IPRA) of 1997.
 
The number of IPs in the Philippines remains unknown, but it estimated to be between 10% to 20% of the 110 million national population. Mostly subsistence farmers, herders, fishers, and hunters, the IPs have millennia of collective knowledge about the ecology of the surroundings.
 
This upcoming episode will bring focus to the cultural wealth and heritage of indigenous Filipinos and the need to preserve indigenous knowledge, systems, and practices.
 
As an online discussion to promote health, environmental consciousness, and climate-adaptive practices, "Stories for a Better Normal" aims to change the mindset of individuals, families, and communities by demonstrating ways in which a ‘better normal’ can be realized within our communities.
 
This online discussion is organized in partnership between the Office of Deputy Speaker Legarda and the Climate Change Commission, with support from the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities, The Climate Reality Project-Philippines and Mother Earth Foundation.