In Kalinga, a mountainous province in the North of the Philippines, an indigenous culture of resistance has safeguarded critical naturescapes since time immemorial. Covered by the 265,487-hectare North Central Cordillera biodiversity corridor, Kalinga’s landscapes are home to at least 319 floral and 150 faunal species, and headwaters to a broader watershed area that nurture pine, tropical, and mossy forests and irrigate heritage rice terraces and other agricultural lands. At

On World Environment Day, communities around the world continue to resist, adapt, and innovate in the face of the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. The Philippines stands as a striking example of all three. At the same time, the country is taking up the burden to accommodate various proposed solutions—large-scale renewable energy farms, forest carbon projects, and mining for energy transition minerals. At this critical moment, the C

(Koronadal, South Cotabato, May 15, 2026) With environmental impact reports on the controversial Tampakan Copper-Gold Project being withheld from the public, scientists, communities, civil society, and public officials gathered last May 13 to confront the interconnected ecological risks posed by the mine’s continued development. The project straddles the quadri-boundary of the provinces of South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani, and Davao del Sur. “Frontline communities an

Trade, as one of humanity’s oldest and most defining social activities (Curtin, 1984; Frank & Gills, 1993), has shaped and been shaped by power. Today, the global trading system is at a pivotal point. What we are witnessing is not a simple shift, but an active reconstruction, driven by state and corporate powers as they grapple with the converging crises of climate, supply chains, and geopolitical tension. The emerging strategy of “friendshoring” is presented as a pragmatic,

At least 51 percent of the total land area of titled indigenous territories are entangled in fossil fuels, mining, infrastructure, and agribusiness projects, threatening indigenous lives. These struggles weigh heavily on the minds of the next generation of leaders who will protect their land and way of life. This could not be more true in South Cotabato, where one community is staring down a coal mining project as they are trying to resolve a decades-long conflict with a coff

Catingas River, Sibuyan. Credit: Matthias Dans/LRC. By Matthias Dans Sibuyan Island is a sanctuary of vital watersheds and endemic biodiversity, globally renowned as the "Galapagos of Asia". But today, this fragile ecosystem faces an existential threat from the mining exploration activities of Altai Philippines Mining Corporation (APMC). For three years, the people of Sibuyan have bravely held the line through community barricades and legal petitions. Sibuyanons sought refuge

As the Philippines enters National Women’s Month this March, the environmental struggle in Dupax del Norte, Nueva Vizcaya, offers a stark reality check for women’s rights. The recent arrest and detention of the so-called DDN7, seven environmental defenders in Sitio Keon—six of whom are women—is not merely a legal dispute over a barricade. It is a scare tactic and a burden to the primary caregivers of the community and the fiercest guardians of the Casecnan watershed. The DDN

Legal and policy advocacy group Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center (LRC) today said the anomalous issuance of an exploration permit to British firm Woggle Corporation in Dupax del Norte, Nueva Vizcaya reflects a broader, systemic pattern of violations of the people’s right to prior consultations through local governments. In a position paper presented to the Senate Committees on Local Government and on Environment, Natural Resources, and Climate Change, LRC pointed out

At least 2.8 million hectares of deforestation-driving projects are potentially in conflict with more than half of Indigenous territories covered by Certificates of Ancestral Domain Titles (CADT), according to the latest report published by legal and policy advocacy group Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center (LRC). In its 2025 State of Indigenous Peoples Address Report (SIPA 2025), the Center found at least 51 percent of the total land area of CADTs are entangled in cla

(Manila, Philippines) The Roman Catholic Diocese of Bayombong together with communities in Nueva Vizcaya province elevated to the Supreme Court (SC) its Petition for Certiorari to nullify the illegal renewal of the Financial or Technical Assistance Agreement (FTAA) issued to OceanaGold Philippines, Inc. (OGPI) for allegedly violating the constitutional guarantee of local autonomy and failing to conduct prior consultations and environmental impact assessments among affected c