Wazzup Pilipinas!?
In a powerful four-day event, from July 25 to 28, 2025, the Green Party of the Philippines (GPP) took a decisive step towards building a national environmental agenda rooted in local experiences with the "Mindanao Greens Environmental Forum". The assembly, themed "Mindanao Rising: Empowering Local Leaders for Environmental Action," was a dynamic project designed to unite political parties and stakeholders around a common goal of a just and inclusive green transition. It was held in Koronadal City on July 27, 2025, and included a series of consultations and activities.
The journey began with the arrival of participants in Cotabato City on the afternoon of July 25. Our Internal Vice President, Emmie Cordero, was there to welcome us at the airport and even took us around to explore a bit of Cotabato including a courtesy call to the office of the city Agriculturist at the People's Palace and lunch at the ramen place of the Kutawato Greenland Initiatives (KGI). The following day, July 26, 2025, was dedicated to a "Mangrove Day Mindanao-wide Planting Activity," a hands-on demonstration of environmental commitment. After a gathering at the city plaza where the old city hall is located, all roads lead to the mangrove planting site with all the five officers from Manila of the Green Party of the Philippines composed of Chairman David D'Angelo, President Jeph Ramos, External Vice President Ross Flores Del Rosario, Auditor Reach Penaflor and Communications Officer Ranne Tubig were present to participate in the mangrove planting activity. They all rode at the back of a pickup towards just one of the destinations of this huge activity joined by several stakeholders from not just the LGUs but also from youth organizations all eager to take part in this noble effort to save and protect our environment. Afterwards, another short stopover at the grandest mosque in Cotabato, and then the participants finally traveled to Koronadal City for an overnight stay in preparation for the main event, though the road trip going to our venue was also full of trivia as our resident from Cotabato, GPP's Internal Vice President, Emmie Cordero, shared lots of information about the places we passed by.
The core of the forum took place on July 27, a full day of activities at Villa Princessita in Koronadal City. The program was a strategic mix of presentations and interactive sessions, beginning with welcome remarks from Emmie Lee Cordero, Vice President for Internal Affairs of the GPP. Joseph Ramos, the National President, discussed the event's objectives and provided a national situationer, while GPP Chairperson David D’Angelo introduced the party to the attendees. Local situationers were delivered by convenors from various Mindanao regions like Paul Montecillo and Lexi Acosta, providing a stark look at the on-the-ground realities. The afternoon sessions included a presentation of "Green Survey and Project Study Presentation of Results" by Engr. Richard Penaflor, the GPP National Auditor. Engr. Penaflor is a respected Green Advocate and River Warrior, and a former Deputy Executive Director of the Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission (PRRC).
A critical component of the forum was the Focus Group Discussion (FGD), a qualitative research method designed to gather in-depth, nuanced information from the grassroots. Participants were divided into small groups of 10-15 people with similar backgrounds, arranged in a circular manner to foster open interaction. Facilitated by a trained moderator, the FGD aimed to explore participants' attitudes, perceptions, and experiences through three open-ended questions.
The FGD process was meticulous. Participants first individually wrote their answers on colored "meta-cards". The three questions were:
What are the environmental and social issues and challenges affecting you and your organizations in the Mindanao Region? (answered on an orange card)
What do you think are the solutions that need to be done by you and your organization? (answered on a pink card)
What intervention or assistance do you need from the GPP to solve these issues? (answered on a yellow card)
Following the individual responses, each participant shared their views with the group. The moderator's role was crucial in keeping the discussion focused and on topic. Finally, each team presented the outcome of their discussion in a plenary session, and all outputs were collected for further analysis to inform the GPP's action plans. The forum concluded with the election of Mindanao Officers for the Green Party of the Philippines and a commitment ceremony led by Chairman David D'Angelo.
To gauge the forum's success, participants were also asked to fill out an evaluation form. They rated various aspects of the event on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest. The areas for evaluation included the venue, food, program, speakers, and the overall team organization. The form also included open-ended questions asking what kept them involved, their biggest learning, and what aspects needed improvement. This dual-pronged approach of qualitative FGDs and quantitative evaluations ensured the GPP gathered comprehensive feedback to guide their future efforts.
Contact and refer to the Facebook page for more details and photos/videos from the forums and consultations:
The Green Party of the Philippines
Ross is known as the Pambansang Blogger ng Pilipinas - An Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Professional by profession and a Social Media Evangelist by heart.
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