The country's resiliency and adaptation to the challenges pose by climate change will be on top of the administration's national agenda, President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. assured.

Speaking at the 2022 Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Multi-Stakeholder Forum on Oct. 5, Marcos vowed to ensure environmental initiatives to combat climate change will be undertaken under his watch.

"I know it is only (the) beginning of a challenging but most important task of protecting the only earth and home that we know. As your president, I assure you that our environment and our country's resiliency and adaptation to the new norms of climate change are on top of the national agenda," he said.

"We ensure that the initiatives we will take will enable us to become smarter, more responsible, more sustainable in all that we do," he added.

The President further said that he hopes the forum, which gathered the "country's big movers and shakers," will generate fruitful discussions that will harmonize the policy agency of the DENR.

"Along with the outcomes of this forum, I expect that we will be able to accelerate the DENR's mission of mobilizing our capacities and resources to preserve, conserve, and manage our environment," he said.

"I also expect this forum to lay down the strategic direction to maximize the use of the country's natural wealth and to promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth," he added.

He also expressed confidence that the dialogues among the stakeholders will identify each sector's unique and shared challenges, bolster cooperation, and gather information and priorities for possible inclusion in the DENR's policy agenda which will eventually be included in the multiyear roadmap for programs, activities and projects.

He further hopes that the participants will maximize this opportunity to share the knowledge and experience on how different stakeholders can collaborate with the DENR and other national government agencies in crafting and implementing policies and programs towards climate disaster resilience and sustainable development.

"The road ahead will be long and will be tough but we must stay strong and accept that it will be a battle that we all must wage and even more importantly it is a battle that we must win," Marcos said.

"May this three-day forum bring about substantial outcomes that will focus on enriching not only our natural resources but our country's national wealth," Marcos added.

The three-day forum aims to enable inclusive dialogues across all DENR stakeholders; share stakeholders’ experiences of working with different national government agencies; foster partnership among stakeholders; and identify multi-stakeholder initiatives that apply science, technology and innovation to achieve unique values across different sectors.