Climate Action and Biodiversity Conservation Partners Meet for TRANSCEND Project Implementation Alignment
The TRANSCEND Project brought together government agencies, partner organizations, and civil society to exchange lessons, align priorities, and chart the next steps toward a more climate-resilient and biodiversity-friendly Philippines.
On June 30, the GIZ-implemented project “Transformative Actions for Climate and Ecological Protection and Development (TRANSCEND)” convened members of its Technical Working Groups (TWGs) to discuss project implementation updates and ways forward. For two days, representatives from partner national and local government agencies, implementing organizations, and civil society organizations (CSOs) shared implementation experiences, best practices, challenges, and next steps in advancing climate action and biodiversity conservation.
In his opening remarks, Secretary Robert E.A. Borje of the Climate Change Commission highlighted the importance of stronger coordination among the different technical working groups to achieve the project's vision. According to him, "Climate change and biodiversity loss do not operate within sectoral or institutional boundaries, and neither can our solutions." Joining virtually, the DENR Undersecretary for Finance, Information Systems, and Climate Change Analiza Rebuelta-Teh sent a video message to the project stakeholders, reiterating the need to translate plans into concrete actions on the ground.
On behalf of the German Embassy Manila, Mr. Mathias Kruse, Deputy Head of Mission, expressed the embassy's continued support for the country's climate and biodiversity goals through the TRANSCEND Project. Meanwhile, Immanuel Gebhardt, GIZ Country Director for the Philippines and the Pacific Islands, underscored the importance of co-creation to ensure that interventions can be scaled up by both local and national governments beyond the project's duration.
The TWGs, composed of national and local government partners, project leads, CSOs, academe, and partner organizations, reviewed progress across project outputs and identified strategic next steps. Knowledge-sharing sessions highlighted implementation experiences from local government partners, key updates from each TWG, and cross-cutting priorities, including Transport Measurement, Reporting and Verification (MRV), Enhanced Local Climate Change Action Plans, safeguard monitoring, climate and biodiversity policy scoping, and the Gender Action Plan under the National Adaptation Plan.
