Climbing Together: The Inspiring Journey of APCER & Hotspot 2025

Wazzup Pilipinas!? 

From the first handshake at the welcome reception to the last round of applause during the closing forum, APCER & Hotspot 2025 was not just another international conference—it was a summit of purpose, innovation, and collaboration.

For four days, Taipei became the hub of Asia-Pacific’s sustainability conversation. Delegates from more than 50 countries converged to share best practices, challenge conventions, and co-create solutions under the powerful theme: “Leading Circular Collaboration.”

Opening: A Warm Reception That Sparked Connections

The journey began with a warm, spirited reception—a gathering that radiated optimism and camaraderie. Experts, innovators, policymakers, and advocates connected over one shared conviction: that the circular economy is the pathway forward for a sustainable future.

Ross Flores Del Rosario, Founder of Wazzup Pilipinas and Director of the Bayanihan Para Sa Kalikasan Movement, joined the Philippine delegation at the event, capturing the energy of the moment in his social-media reflections:

“Breaking new grounds for sustainability in Taipei for APCER & Hotspot 2025! A gathering of passionate minds determined to make circular transformation happen in Asia-Pacific.”

“Proud to bring the Filipino spirit of bayanihan into the global conversation on sustainability. We climb together, we rise together.”

Immersive Site Visits: Seeing Circularity in Motion

On October 21, delegates experienced first-hand how circular economy principles are being applied across Taiwan’s industries.

From agriculture and food systems that turn waste into value, to high-tech and electronics sectors re-engineering materials for reuse, and architecture and construction projects turning reclaimed waste into sustainable design—each stop offered proof that circular transformation is not just theory, but practice in motion.

As one participant from the Philippine delegation remarked:

“Taiwan has made circularity visible. You don’t just hear about it—you touch it, you see it working.”

Forum Days: Two Full Days of Insight and Impact

The next two days, October 22–23, were devoted to deep and dynamic discussions. Topics ranged from policy frameworks and ESG integration, to circular finance, supply-chain transparency, and digital product passports.

During these sessions, Ross Del Rosario highlighted the need for regional inclusivity and shared learning, noting that:

“For the Philippines, events like APCER & Hotspot 2025 are more than educational—they’re transformative. They allow us to connect with leaders, adapt global strategies, and localize solutions that fit our communities.”

The Taiwanese government also unveiled its Circular Economy Roadmap, aiming to triple the nation’s circularity rate by 2030—a landmark initiative that inspired other countries to follow suit.

Parallel Momentum: The China Productivity Center (CPC) Connection

Running alongside the APCER & Hotspot 2025 program, the China Productivity Center (CPC) hosted complementary workshops and side events on digital circular economy solutions and green productivity frameworks.

These simultaneous activities highlighted the synergy between circular innovation and productivity optimization, emphasizing that sustainable transformation must be as efficient as it is visionary.

The CPC’s involvement extended the event’s influence beyond policy into implementation—bridging circular thinking with actionable industry tools and technology.

Ross reflected on this alignment in one of his posts:

“Productivity and sustainability are not opposites—they’re partners. What we’re learning from CPC and APCER is that true progress happens when innovation, efficiency, and compassion for the planet work hand in hand.”

The Filipino Footprint: Bayanihan on a Global Stage

The Philippine delegation’s presence in Taipei underscored the nation’s growing role in the regional sustainability movement. As Director of Bayanihan Para Sa Kalikasan Movement (BKM) and Green Party of the Philippines leader, Ross Del Rosario saw the event as a milestone for cross-border collaboration:

“This is more than attendance—it’s representation. It’s our chance to show that the Filipino approach to sustainability is rooted in bayanihan—collective effort for the common good.”

Through Wazzup Pilipinas, Ross amplified stories from the event, inspiring Filipino readers and environmental advocates back home. His posts connected the summit’s global themes with local realities, sparking dialogue on how circular practices can take root in Philippine industries and communities.

The Peak: Collaboration and Hope

As the summit drew to a close, the air buzzed with optimism. Delegates from government, academia, and the private sector shared one resounding sentiment: the climb doesn’t end here.

Each photo now uploaded to the official event gallery captures not just faces and moments, but a collective ascent—proof of what’s possible when ideas, passion, and partnership converge.

Ross Del Rosario summed it up best in his final reflection post:

“We all have our mountains to climb. APCER & Hotspot 2025 reminded me that the climb is easier when we climb together—for the planet, for our people, for our shared tomorrow.”

Conclusion: The Ascent Continues

The journey of APCER & Hotspot 2025—woven with dialogues, discoveries, and digital innovation—represents a pivotal moment in the Asia-Pacific’s march toward sustainability.

With the China Productivity Center’s parallel initiatives reinforcing the productivity dimension, and Filipino advocates like Ross Del Rosario amplifying the spirit of bayanihan, the event stands as a beacon of what’s achievable through collaboration.

Because in the end, as Ross wrote:

“When we climb together, we elevate not just our view—but the ground beneath our feet.”

Power, Politics, and a Planet on the Brink: Asian Journalists Confront the Planetary Health Crisis

Wazzup Pilipinas!? 

Sunway University, Malaysia – A crucial two-day Capacity Development and Training Workshop dramatically sharpened the skills of Asian media professionals, plunging them into the high-stakes intersection of climate, health, and global power. Highlighting the Philippines' critical role on the climate frontline, the training featured a significant delegation of Filipino journalists, including Ross Flores Del Rosario, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of the well-known platform, Wazzup Pilipinas.

The "Planetary Health and Power" workshop, held on September 3 and 4, 2025, in Kuala Lumpur, was organized to help thirty journalists from across Asia effectively cover how health, climate, and global governance intersect. The core message was clear: the planetary health crisis is not just an environmental story—it is a brutal narrative of power, finance, and profound governance failure.

Filipino Voices Amplify the Crisis

The presence of five participants from the Philippines, a nation severely impacted by extreme weather and climate finance issues, underscored the urgency of the workshop's objectives. Ross Flores Del Rosario of Wazzup Pilipinas, alongside four other Filipino journalists, received training designed to translate complex multilateral discussions into accessible, human-centered stories.

The workshop emphasized the need to challenge the dominance of Global North perspectives, amplify local and Indigenous voices, and use accessible languages (like Tagalog or Urdu) to make climate stories resonate with regional audiences. For outlets like Wazzup Pilipinas, this focus is vital for connecting remote UN negotiations to the tangible, lived experiences of Filipino communities and addressing domestic issues like fast-spreading misinformation.

The Unseen Battle: Finance as the Defining Issue of Trust 

A central discovery of the workshop was that the battleground for climate action is in the fine print of financial commitments, where finance emerged as the defining issue of trust.

The Debt Trap: Climate funds, often announced with high ambition, are frequently delayed, fragmented, or tied to conditional loans that dangerously deepen debt burdens for developing nations.

Following the Money: Journalists were urged to track financial flows and expose the disparity between what is pledged, what is disbursed, and who ultimately benefits. This is considered essential for holding both donors and recipient governments accountable.

Fossil Fuel's Shadow: The crisis is political, reflecting failures in governance, equity, and accountability. The colossal sum of USD 7 trillion in annual fossil fuel subsidies—equal to 7 percent of global GDP—was highlighted as a clear example of incoherent governance that journalism must expose.

Health: The Urgent and Powerful Narrative Bridge 

Health was identified as the most potent, relatable entry point for reporting on the planetary crisis. Framing stories through the lens of health instantly connects abstract policy to lived human experience.

Connecting Crises: Extreme heat, pollution, food insecurity, and displacement all manifest as health emergencies. Journalists were encouraged to frame planetary health as an issue of justice and wellbeing, not solely environment or science.

Mental Health as a Climate Story: The emerging issues of eco-anxiety and PTSD after disasters remain under-researched, with stigma being a major barrier. Storytelling plays a key role in destigmatizing mental health, linking it to systemic inaction, and engaging professionals to raise awareness.

The Data Gap is the Story: The absence of reliable data on adaptation, mental health, and local impacts signals a form of neglect that itself warrants investigation.

The New Mandate: Scrutiny, Verification, and Accountability

The workshop's hands-on simulations reinforced a new mandate for Asian journalists, focusing on political and information integrity:

Continuous Scrutiny: COPs and summits should not be treated as one-off events, but as part of a long-term story requiring consistent scrutiny of policy implementation and financial follow-through.

Fighting Disinformation: Participants examined how to navigate misinformation and greenwashing without amplifying it. They were advised to investigate the financial and corporate influences behind false claims and to consult independent experts for verification.

Ethical Judgment: The simulation exercises, testing real-time reporting from conflicting sources (including government press releases and fossil fuel announcements), reinforced the importance of verification, critical evaluation, and avoiding the uncritical acceptance of government spin.

By deepening their understanding of how power, politics, and finance intersect with local realities, participants—including Ross Flores Del Rosario—left the workshop equipped to transform complex global processes into credible, impactful, and justice-oriented journalism.

The "Planetary Health and Power" workshop was funded by InTent and organized by the Sunway Centre for Planetary Health (SCPH), in partnership with the Global Climate and Health Alliance (GCHA), the Global Strategic Communications Council (GSCC), Healthcare Without Harm-SE Asia, and Internews.

The Crayon Box Politics: How Philippine Democracy Became a Palette of Personalities Over Principles

Wazzup Pilipinas!? 

A grassroots political theory is reshaping how Filipinos understand—and challenge—their fragmented democracy

In the bustling halls of Philippine universities and the charged atmosphere of social media discourse, a deceptively simple metaphor has emerged as one of the most incisive critiques of the country's political system: Crayon Box Politics.

The concept is elegant in its clarity. Imagine opening a box of crayons—each stick a different color, each politician a distinct shade. They're individually vibrant, personally recognizable, but fundamentally disconnected from one another. There's no coherent palette, no unified vision. Just a collection of separate hues, each drawing its own picture, serving its own interests.

This, proponents argue, is the Philippines today.

From Metaphor to Movement

What began as an accessible way to explain Philippine political dysfunction has evolved into something more substantial. The theory has gained traction in academic circles, with universities now incorporating it into political science curricula and using it as a framework to analyze the country's electoral pathologies.

The diagnosis is stark: Filipinos vote for surnames and personalities—not for ideologies, party platforms, or coherent policy visions. The result is a political landscape where each color (politician) operates independently, wielding their personal brand for patronage, manipulation, and the fragmentation of the citizenry into competing loyalty camps.

The Architecture of Fragmentation

To understand Crayon Box Politics is to understand the structural weaknesses that have plagued Philippine democracy since its restoration in 1986.

The Personality-Driven System

Unlike established democracies where political parties represent distinct ideological traditions—conservative versus progressive, labor versus capital, nationalist versus internationalist—Philippine politics revolves almost entirely around personalities. Party-switching is rampant and largely consequence-free. Politicians migrate between parties like migratory birds, following not principle but power.

A senator might run under one party, switch to another after election, and campaign for a rival party's presidential candidate—all within a single term. Party affiliation signals not ideology but convenience, a temporary vehicle for electoral success rather than a long-term commitment to a governing philosophy.

The Surname Dynasty

The crayon colors are often hereditary. Political families—the Marcoses, Aquinos, Estradas, Binays, Dutertes—dominate the landscape across generations. According to research, political dynasties control a significant portion of elected positions at both local and national levels, creating a self-perpetuating aristocracy that treats public office as family property.

These dynasties each maintain their own "color"—their own brand, their own patronage networks, their own loyal constituencies. They don't need to build political parties with ideological coherence; their surname is the party, their family history the platform.

Patronage Over Policy

Each crayon operates through a patronage system that keeps voters dependent and fragmented. Infrastructure projects become personal gifts from politicians rather than systematic governance. Disaster relief arrives stamped with a politician's face. Educational scholarships are distributed through personal connections rather than merit-based systems.

This creates a transactional politics where citizens are transformed into clients, and governance becomes a series of personal favors rather than rights-based service delivery. The crayons don't work together to color a coherent national picture; each draws their own constituency, their own sphere of influence, their own fragmented reality.

The Consequences: A Nation Divided by Design

The effects of Crayon Box Politics are profound and multifaceted.

Policy Incoherence

Without ideological parties, there's no mechanism to develop, debate, and implement coherent long-term policy agendas. Each administration starts from scratch, often reversing or abandoning the previous government's initiatives not because of policy disagreements but because of personal rivalries.

Infrastructure plans change with every presidency. Education reforms are perpetually reinvented. Economic strategies shift wildly depending on who holds power. The nation lurches from one direction to another, unable to maintain the consistency needed for sustainable development.

Tribalized Citizenry

Citizens organize not around ideas but around personalities. Political discourse becomes less about debating the merits of universal healthcare versus market-based systems, and more about defending or attacking specific politicians. Social media becomes a battleground of personality cults, where criticism of a political figure is interpreted as personal betrayal by their followers.

This tribalization makes democratic deliberation nearly impossible. Instead of "I disagree with that policy because," political discourse devolves into "My candidate is better than yours." The crayons have successfully divided the box into warring factions, each clutching their chosen color.

Accountability Vacuum

When politicians aren't bound by party ideology or platform commitments, holding them accountable becomes nearly impossible. There's no party manifesto to measure performance against, no ideological consistency to demand. Politicians simply rebrand, switch parties, or leverage their personality cult to deflect criticism.

The crayon that fails simply gets a new wrapper.

The Academic Turn: From Street Theory to Scholarly Framework

What makes Crayon Box Politics particularly noteworthy is its journey from accessible metaphor to analytical framework. Philippine universities—institutions often criticized for being disconnected from grassroots political realities—have embraced the concept as a teaching tool and research lens.

Political science departments are using it to help students understand why Philippine democracy functions so differently from Western models, despite borrowing heavily from American institutional design. Sociology courses employ it to examine the interplay between patronage politics and social fragmentation. Communication studies analyze how personality-driven politics shapes media coverage and public discourse.

This academic adoption represents something significant: a recognition that homegrown frameworks might better explain local realities than imported theories. For decades, Philippine political analysis relied heavily on concepts developed for Western democracies, awkwardly retrofitted to fit a fundamentally different political culture. Crayon Box Politics emerged from local observation and speaks directly to local experience.

The Path Forward: Beyond the Box

The metaphor's proponents aren't content with diagnosis alone. They see it as a catalyst for transformation, a way to motivate citizens to demand systemic change rather than merely shuffling which crayon holds power.

The Call for True Party Politics

Reformers argue for genuine party-building—creating organizations bound by ideology and platform rather than personality. This would require:

Anti-dynasty legislation to break the hereditary transmission of power

Party-list reforms to strengthen programmatic representation

Electoral system changes to incentivize party loyalty over personal brand

Campaign finance reforms to reduce the advantage of entrenched political families

Civic Education and Critical Consciousness

Perhaps more fundamentally, Crayon Box Politics aims to shift voter consciousness. Citizens need to ask different questions: Not "Who do I like?" but "What do they stand for?" Not "What has this politician done for me personally?" but "What systems are they building for everyone?"

This requires massive civic education efforts, media literacy programs, and the cultivation of political discourse that prizes ideas over personalities.

Institutional Redesign

Some advocates push for more fundamental reforms: shifting toward a parliamentary system that structurally requires party discipline, implementing proportional representation to break the two-round presidential system's personality focus, or creating stronger checks on executive power that currently gets concentrated in individual hands.

The Resistance: Those Attached to Their Crayons

Not surprisingly, those who benefit from the current system—the political dynasties, the traditional elites, the patronage brokers—resist this analysis and the reforms it implies.

Critics of Crayon Box Politics argue that:

Personality-driven politics reflects Filipino cultural values of personal relationships (utang na loob, pakikisama)

Western-style party politics is alien to Philippine social structures

The system, however flawed, has maintained democratic stability in a tumultuous region

But as the concept's advocates note, this resistance is precisely why the metaphor matters. Those "attached to their crayons"—benefiting from the fragmented, personality-driven system—have every incentive to preserve it. The challenge is mobilizing citizens who have been divided by design to see their common interest in systemic transformation.

A Theory for the Times

Crayon Box Politics resonates because it captures something Filipinos instinctively understand about their political reality, giving language and structure to frustrations long felt but poorly articulated.

It explains why Philippine politics feels simultaneously familiar and dysfunctional—why elections generate enormous passion but minimal policy change, why corruption persists despite regular transitions of power, why the same families cycle through office generation after generation.

More importantly, it offers a framework for action. By diagnosing the problem as structural rather than merely the fault of individual "bad politicians," it points toward systemic solutions. The problem isn't finding the right crayon; it's redesigning the box entirely.

Para sa Bayan: For the Nation

The rallying cry of Crayon Box Politics advocates is simultaneously simple and profound: Para sa bayan. Para sa kinabukasan natin. For the nation. For our future.

It's a call to move beyond the transactional, fragmented politics of personal loyalty and patronage toward something more coherent and accountable. To demand that politicians organize around ideas rather than surnames, that parties represent ideologies rather than convenience, that governance serves the collective rather than the connected.

Padayon—the Visayan word for "continue" or "press on"—has become the movement's signature closing. It acknowledges that transformation won't happen overnight, that challenging entrenched systems requires sustained effort, that each generation must build on the work of the last.

The journey from metaphor to movement to meaningful reform remains long. The crayons won't relinquish their individual colors easily. The dynasties won't voluntarily dissolve their power. The patronage networks won't dismantle themselves.

But in universities across the archipelago, in social media discussions, in community organizing efforts, a new political consciousness is emerging—one that sees the crayon box for what it is and dares to imagine something better.

The question is whether this consciousness can translate into the institutional transformations necessary to move beyond personality politics toward a democracy of ideas, platforms, and accountability.

The crayons are still there, each with their own color, each guarding their own territory. But more Filipinos are beginning to see the box itself as the problem—and that recognition is the first step toward drawing a different future entirely.