Ex-DENR chief proposes area dev't to stabilize damaged villages
(Regina Lopez, the former Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) secretary, giving her talk during an environmental law seminar at the University of Santo Tomas (UST). Photo by Mildred Mira, Dapitan Post.)
Stabilization in environmentally-damaged villages in the country is needed in order to achieve true economic growth, a former Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) secretary asserted during an environmental law seminar held at the University of Santo Tomas.
Regina “Gina” Lopez, who ordered the cancellation of mining contracts in watershed areas during her ad interim appointment as Environment secretary, pointed out that area development is the best way to promote social justice by developing an area to help establish an economically-stable society for the people.
“Area development is when you take an area and you develop [that] area for the people of that area,” she said.
“We have to develop each islands so the people there don’t have to come to Manila, don’t have to become OFWs [so that] they can live with their families and take care of their families,” she added.
Lopez asserted the failure of the government in promoting social justice for allowing mining in the country despite its detrimental effects to the environment and the people.
She also clarified that true economic growth is not measured by profit and it should result in social justice of the people.
“The constitution advocates for social justice in many places and in the constitution, it is the duty of the state to intervene when the common good is disowning. We have failed our people big time,” she said.
“Every person in this country has a constitutional right to a clean and healthy ecology and mining violates that to the benefit of the few and disadvantaging thousands of others. It is not right at all,” she added.
Since she vacated her position, she established the Investments in Loving Organizations for Village Economies (iLOVE), an organization that helps on the area development in the country.
Protect the environment out of love
Lopez advised students to take action out of love since it pushes one’s initiative to find ways in protecting the environment.
“If you have love... [and] if you care for others, you will look for some way in the universe in which you are operating that the public will benefit,” she said.
The environmentalist also emphasized that education allows students to be exposed to the society.
“Education is not just being in a classroom […] At the end of the day, real education is when you make something happen outside [the classroom],” she said.
The seminar titled “Greeneration: Environmental Law Seminar” was organized by the UST Legal Management Society held at the UST Albertus Magnus Auditorium last November 8. M. MIRA
