MANILA, 01 September 2021 — The Climate Change Commission joined Watsons Philippines’ 1st Do Good Webinar, which highlighted the need to shift towards sustainability amid a worsening climate crisis.
 
“The world today is in an emergency,” said Watsons Public Relations and Sustainability Director Viki Encarnacion during the webinar, which is part of the retailer’s Look Good, Do Good, Feel Great Sustainability Campaign.
 
“Climate change is not just an issue for the future, it’s an urgent issue today. And we need everyone’s help in making responsible, sustainable choices,” she added.
 
“Zooming out from the day-to-day concerns and threats of COVID, and refocusing on the extreme weather conditions that we experience and also see around the world, it is clear that runaway climate change is already here. We’ve seen the devastating droughts, wildfires, heatwaves, and also flooding and landslides across the U.S., in Europe, Africa, and Asia-Pacific and the Philippines,” said Commissioner Rachel Herrera, who presented sustainability frameworks and measures on behalf of the CCC.
 
“We are already feeling climate impacts all over the world. By word of the world’s scientists, many of these impacts are already irreversible due to the planet’s rapid warming,” Herrera added.
 
“As climate scientists have pointed out, we have a goal to limit warming to 1.5˚C goal, which can only be achieved if we do a massive shift to sustainability in consumption,” she emphasized.
 
During her discussion, Herrera highlighted the importance of collective movement towards sustainability, and of individual actions that add up, including reducing food waste, reducing plastic use, and repairing and refilling instead of buying new, among others.
 
“We have all contributed to global warming and even environmental degradation; but in the same way, we are all part or stakeholders in the solution,” she added.
 
“The problem is too enormous, and we need everyone to get involved,” Encarnacion added. For its part, Watsons also highlighted its commitments under its sustainability vision.
 
“With this current crisis, we place full support for the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals set up a few years ago. As the world’s largest international health and beauty retailer, we feel a strong sense of responsibility to help create a better world through our global operations,” Encarnacion said.
 
“We also aim to fight climate change with forest protection and clean ocean initiatives, and to reduce our environmental footprint,” she added.
 
Watsons’ commitment, according to Encarnacion, includes reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40%, reducing electricity intensity by 30%, and targeting to offset 2,250 tons of carbon dioxide emissions.