Legarda urges ASEAN to redefine progress amid climate crisis

Speaking in Singapore as the 83rd Lee Kuan Yew Exchange Fellow, Philippine Senator Loren Legarda called on ASEAN countries to fundamentally rethink development in the climate era.

Legarda, the fifth Filipino awarded the fellowship since its 1991 inception, addressed the ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute’s Philippine Studies and Climate Change in Southeast Asia Programmes.

In her lecture, she praised Singapore’s foresight under Lee Kuan Yew, crediting the city-state’s progress to its early recognition of environmental and geographic constraints.

“True nation-building rests not only on physical infrastructure but on the architecture of governance, the stewardship of resources, visionary long-term planning, and ensuring the dignity of people,” Legarda said.

She contrasted this with the Philippines’ vulnerability, citing global risk indices that place the country consistently at the top of climate-exposed nations over the past three years.

“A single typhoon can erase billions in agricultural output, shatter infrastructure, and wipe out years of human development gains,” she said.

Despite these challenges, Legarda emphasized resilience, equity, and nature-based economic transformation as key to ASEAN’s future.

“We only have to shift these burdens so they can be shared more equitably, and we will be able to see massive productivity, love of people and country, and a flourishing nature-based economy,” she said.

Calling climate change “the governance challenge of our generation,” Legarda warned of the deep human toll from food insecurity, forced displacement, and ecological loss.

“Climate change will not limit us; it must compel us to think differently, act decisively, and transform profoundly,” she said.

She cited several Philippine environmental laws she has authored—including the Climate Change Act, Renewable Energy Act, Clean Air Act, Ecological Solid Waste Management Act, and the 2023 Philippine Ecosystem and Natural Capital Accounting System (PENCAS) Act—as models of integrating climate into national development.

“Legislation, at its core, is not only technical; it is moral,” Legarda said.

She acknowledged the country’s policy contradictions, including ongoing investments in polluting technologies and vehicle-centered infrastructure.

Still, she expressed confidence in the rising generation’s ability to pivot toward sustainable, circular economies.

“If all this chaos does not lead us to a future more geared towards a circular economy, reliant on nature instead of concrete and corruption, only then will I give up,” she said. “At this point, I am far from giving up.”

Legarda introduced pending Philippine bills focused on blue economy development, low-carbon transition, plastic taxation, coastal protection, and circular economy systems.

She emphasized their regional impact: “When the Philippines invests in our ecosystems, we also invest in the health of ASEAN’s shared seas and Asia-Pacific’s shared atmosphere.”

Legarda urged ASEAN to harmonize standards on circular economy practices, disaster response, and resilient infrastructure.

“This requires a shift in governance itself—one that moves away from fragmentation to coherence, from short-term gains to long-term stewardship, from rebuilding after disasters to designing from a position of strength at the start,” she said.

She concluded by challenging ASEAN to match Singapore’s vision and discipline across the region.

“Progress must be redefined, not by what we extract, but by what we sustain; not by the wealth of a few, but by the dignity of all,” she said. “Let our legacy be nothing less than transformation and transcendence.”

Legarda’s fellowship program, which runs from Sept. 11 to 14, 2025, is hosted by the Lee Kuan Yew Exchange Fellowship in partnership with Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The non-political, nonprofit program honors the legacy of Singapore’s first prime minister by recognizing global leaders committed to sustainable development and international cooperation.