Anton Teope

2017-00567
Demo 1 - Sustainable Development Reflection Paper

Sustainability is Key

One of the solutions presented for Urbanization is sustainable development. Based on UNESCO, sustainable
development is when the development or action meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their own needs. This aspect has different dimensions which are society, environment,
culture, and economy with each dimension needing to be fulfilled or at least not impacted when something is done
and should be noted that these aspect are not treated separately bit as being intertwined or interrelated with each
other.

As shown in the presentations, there are 17 different goals by the United Nations that aims to solve many of
the problems in the world with sustainable development but student presentations like specificity and did not discuss
each aspect too in depth. I will go through specific ones, highlighting the benefits and possible problems it may have
in the Philippines.

The first sustainable development goal is the “end poverty in all its forms everywhere”. Based on the SDGs
website (2022), many of the solutions they have and they implement are workshops teaching people about trade and
business with an attempt to strengthen the commerce and business aspect of certain countries. This are helpful in
planting the seed for ideas and may even help those with the ideas grow but I do not believe this is enough. Based on
the info graphic they are provided, about 4 billion people are still not covered by social protection which makes it
very difficult for many to even get through this pandemic. It would be difficult to solve this problem specifically in
the Philippines because of the multiple factors that interconnect to it. More than 26 million Filipinos (2021) or about
23.7% have been registered as being in the lower class or being poor. This country has problems with dealing with
businesses with corruption plaguing the system. A lot of small time businesses could be taxed heavily if they do not
pay bribes. A lot of sectors like agriculture do not get the support it needs. There’s a huge lack good jobs and certain
programs that aided people and getting work such as the K-12 program were not successful. This problem would
need a large scale intervention that fixes multiple factors in the system and government.

For the second goal which is “zero hunger“, the lack of support in the agricultural industry would be a
problem. Over the year, we have also transformed our country from one that is more self sufficient and one that
exports its products to one that also imports a great amount. Rice, a staple in the Philippines, is something we would
think we can grow enough of ourselves but as of 2020, “the total volume of rice imported to the Philippines
amounted to around 2.23 million metric tons” (statista, 2020) with Vietnam one of the countries that supply us
(Rappler, 2021). This once again is a problem that could be solved by systematic intervention that solves multiple
problems in the government with the aim to benefit multiple sectors like agriculture. A shifting of priorities could be
a solution.

The third development goal which is to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all of all ages is also
a gold at the Philippines must strive towards especially considering that the pandemic and coronavirus impacted the
country greatly in the aspect of health and showed us how ill-prepared The country was to deal with the pandemic.
Additionally, the Philippines would not be considered a Country that has a high life expectancy and this is partially
due to our medical facilities and the access people have these facilities. High quality medical facilities are only
found in the city, specifically the national capital region, and are out of reach for many living in provinces or one of
the islands in the archipelago. When looking at the life expectancy compared to other countries, the Philippines has
an average life expectancy lower than that of many of our neighbors. With the life expectancy of only 71.23 years as
of 2019, we fall in comparison to that of Japan’s, which is about 84.36 years, to China, which is about 76.91 years,
and even to the US, which is about 78.79 years. Our healthcare system is very problematic and in a lot of cases
provide far too little help to be considered a benefit. In order to improve this, a shifting of priorities has to be done.

 The seventh goal which is to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all it’s a
pretty significant topic for a civil engineering major like myself. As of 2020, the energy mix of the Philippines is
composed coal (47%), natural gas (22%), oil based sources (6.2%), and the rest being renewable energy such as
hydro, geothermal, wind, and solar (24%) (International Trade Administration, 2020). Barely a quarter for energy
comes from renewable sources which is pretty strange considering that our country has New resources for wind
energy, geothermal energy, and Hydro energy due to our abundance in sources for these such as waterfalls and
geothermal vents. As a sidenote, nuclear energy is a viable option in the Philippines since it is relatively safe if
managed properly and releases very little nuclear radiation if the structure is built correctly. It also provides energy
with if you drawbacks if waste is disposed of properly. Going back to the topic, this is an aspect that has numerous
sides to it. It can be argued that the Philippines does not need to rush for greener energy especially considering that
large scale plants using green energy would be expensive especially for a developing country and when compared to
the US, it is likely that we will reach a point where we will be capable of utilizing green energy better. It is also
important to consider that many of the technologies associated with bring energy such as high quality solar panels
are not made in the Philippines and are produced by other countries meaning that manufacturing would need to
improve in the Philippines if you were to aid in the propagation of green energy. Greta Thunberg, an influential face
for climate change, as a pitch to stop the usage of coal and gas that is pretty unrealistic since these sources especially
in the Philippines powers more than half of the things in our lives from the electricity at home to food production. To
forcibly try to implement the change suddenly would you be in unimaginable consequences. I think it is wise
however to slowly introduce this the Philippines especially when you consider that the government cares very little
about this aspect and to sustainability in general. Environmental engineering is a concept focused on in many of our
courses in UP however The licensure exams for civil engineering does not include it. As I said earlier, this can be
solved by should the shifting of priorities and an improvement in the governmental system.

In order not to make this paper too long, the last point I would discuss is the 11th which is to make cities and
human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. According to Orion Support Incorporated (2022), about
35,000 people go missing in the Philippines each year with likely a large percentage of that being from kidnappings,
assaults, and likely even murders. As morbid as it may sound, it is already evident that Philippine cities and
provinces already left in the aspect of its safety. Another aspect that impacts the safety of certain areas is the road
laws and culture that is prominent in filipinos, where crosswalks seem to be optional. Another aspect is it
sustainability which is very poor. The Philippines tend to prioritize Motorized transportation over everything else
such as biking and walking, evident from the constant roadwork focus on improving the driving experience. In our
infrastructure, there is a notable difference between what we have and what other countries have like Singapore
where there is a big emphasis on fusing nature with building design. As I said in the previous paragraph this is the
result of a lack in priority.

To conclude, there are many ways in which sustainable development could be promoted in the Philippines
and that is due in the hearts of the Filipinos. Simple ways such as promoting non-motorized transportation like
biking and walking could be done to improve our situation. We can also promote the growth and propagation of
plants by getting some for indoor purposes or even outdoor displays such as plant boxes. Each small step we make
could make a big difference.

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