The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) launched the country’s first national Nature-based Solutions (NbS) policy on June 30, requiring the mixing of nature-based approaches into climate, biodiversity, and disaster risk reduction programs.
The DENR, with support from Forest Foundation Philippines, the Government of Canada, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the NbS Support Network, unveiled the policy throughout the 3-day USBONG: Transdisciplinary Forum on Nature-based Solutions.
The policy establishes a national framework for integrating nature-based approaches into government plans and programs, while strengthening coordination amongst government agencies, local governments, civil society organizations, communities, and the private sector.
The Philippines stays one in all the world’s most disaster-prone countries, facing frequent floods, droughts, typhoons, and earthquakes. These risks are expected to accentuate because the climate changes, in response to a joint climate risk profile by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the World Bank. ADB’s 2025 Asia-Pacific Climate Report also noted that about 75% of the region’s gross domestic product is dependent upon nature, making economies more vulnerable as ecosystems deteriorate.
“Existing programs and initiatives are already there across the country, in government agencies, local governments, civil society organizations, and communities. The challenge isn’t any longer creating recent initiatives. The challenge is connecting them,” Philippine Red Cross Disaster Risk Reduction Technical Officer Steven Laranjo said throughout the event.
“The challenge before us will not be simply adopting NbS. It’s strengthening, connecting, and integrating the local and indigenous practices that exist already across policy, governance, financing, and implementation systems. That’s the goal of USBONG,” University of the Philippines Los Baños Forestry Development Center Director Dixon T. Gevaña said.
The policy formalizes nature-based practices that communities have long implemented and requires DENR bureaus, regional offices, and native government partners to integrate NbS into their plans and programs. It also establishes a national framework for monitoring, financing, and capability constructing.
“The NbS policy unifies our efforts to attach and strengthen motion across sectors. It gives us a national standard for recognizing, supporting, and scaling nature-based approaches across our climate, biodiversity, and disaster risk reduction programs,” DENR Acting Secretary Juan Miguel T. Cuna said.
The policy encourages investments from local governments, communities, and the private sector while promoting diversified funding sources, including payment for ecosystem services, to support long-term implementation. It aligns with national laws, including the Climate Change Act and the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act, in addition to international commitments corresponding to the Paris Agreement and the National Adaptation Plan.
“For generations, Filipino communities and indigenous peoples have managed forests, restored coastlines, and stewarded the land long before it was called Nature-based Solutions,” shared Forest Foundation Philippines Deputy Executive Director Alaya de Leon.
Mr. Laranjo emphasized the necessity for long-term institutional support and inclusive governance.
“Policies must survive political cycles. Institutions must help construct projects. And governance must turn into inclusive reasonably than merely consultable,” Mr. Laranjo said.
“The number reminds us that while our aspirations are ambitious, our investments must still count. Farsighted conversations deepen this angle. Meaningful participation will not be about representation alone. It’s about shared power and shared responsibility. The presentation of the landscape approach challenged us to think beyond political boundaries,” he said.
The forum also marked the launch of the NbS Support Network after its founding members signed a memorandum of understanding with the DENR, with support from development partners, including the Government of Canada and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The network will provide technical guidance, support the design and implementation of NbS projects at national and native levels, convene stakeholders, promote knowledge sharing, and display high-integrity Nature-based Solutions on the bottom.
Through the Philippines-Canada Partnership on Nature-based Solutions for Climate Adaptation (PCP4NbS), Forest Foundation Philippines provides grants to community-based organizations to display NbS for climate resilience while advancing discussions on the biodiversity-climate-gender nexus. — Kaizzer Angela Marie V. Manuba