RURBANISE Kumustahan sa Komunidad: Advancing Community-led Urban Resilience in the Philippines

Localizing Climate Resilience through Community Engagement

Community-led climate action is the cornerstone of Project RURBANISE.  To ensure local perspectives shape the resilience strategies, Technical Assistance Movement for People and Environment, Inc. (TAMPEI), in partnership with Homeless People’s Federation Philippines, Inc. (HPFPI), conducted the “Kumustahan sa Komunidad,” a series of orientation and engagement activities from July to August 2023.  This initiative spanned eight (8) different communities across the Philippines — two (2) in Cebu, and one (1) in each of the following locations: Iloilo, North Cotabato, Valenzuela City, Rodriguez in Rizal, Muntinlupa City, and Camarines Norte.  These sessions served as an inclusive community consultation, ensuring that pro-poor innovations are grounded in local reality.

During these orientations, the team sat down with community members to align on shared roles in the road ahead.  The team also conducted initial hazard assessments and held vital conversations to better understand local perceptions of the climate crisis and its effects.  

General Findings

While there was foundational awareness of climate change across the eight (8) communities, the topic could often feel too abstract.  The most meaningful discussions happened when climate change was localized — linked directly to the residents' lived experiences and specific local events.  A key takeaway for the team was the variation in terminology; what one community defines as a "disaster" or "flooding" may differ significantly from another’s perspective. Aligning these definitions is a critical step in the collaborative research process.

The Communities

The following summaries highlight the results of community-led risk dialogues across eight (8) sites.  These insights, paired with attached photos, showcase the diverse hazards residents face.

KABALAKA HOA, Brgy. Calumpang, Iloilo City, Iloilo - Riverfront Resilience

• Anticipatory Awareness:  Residents have identified the Batiano River as a future flood risk, directly linking local geography to the broader climate crisis.

• Institutional Cooperation: The community is informed about Barangay’s Disaster Risks Reduction and Management (DRRM) programs, and some participated in training.

• Data Readiness:  Leveraging prior HPFPI mapping, the site has a strong baseline of household-level data.

  
  

SMASH, Brgy. Paknaan, Mandaue City, Cebu - Relocation Complexities

• Relocation and Heightened Vulnerability:  Moved from "high-risk" riverbanks to a relocation site, the community now faces up to 3-meter deep flooding in a government catch basin even during non-rainy days.

• Compounding Hazards:  Following a 2017 fire – some of the residents not able to avail of the housing units made of interconnecting earth blocks (ICEB), an alternative construction material that allows for better thermal regulation – transitioned to concrete housing with firewalls.  While now fire-resistant, these structures have introduced new challenges of extreme indoor heat due to limited ventilation and heat-absorbing materials.

• Existing Baseline:  SMASH possesses an existing household data from prior mapping activities.

Atisan HOA, Brgy. Cansujong, Talisay City, Cebu - Coastal and Congestion Vulnerability

• Compound Coastal Risks:  As a high-density shoreline community, Atisan faces the dual threat of sea-level rise and land reclamation impacts.  Residents report a rapidly receding shoreline and increasing vulnerability to storm surges and tsunamis, directly threatening both housing security and sea-based livelihoods.

• Infrastructural and Evacuation Constraints:  The site’s narrow alleys and limited entry-exit points present significant logistical challenges for emergency evacuations.  These spatial constraints are exacerbated by frequent localized flooding caused by the lack of an integrated drainage system across the district.

• Information Preparedness and Political Barriers: The community has existing data from prior mapping.  While the community maintains a strong, collaborative relationship with the Barangay Council, leaders identify the city-level political landscape as a complex barrier to wider institutional support

HOA 1 Resettlement, Brgy. Singaw, Kidapawan City, Cotabato - Seismic Trauma

• Seismic and Emotional Impact:  The series of earthquakes in 2018 and 2019 caused significant structural damage and lasting trauma, making earthquake safety their top priority.

• Membership Constraints:  Low onsite residency and loss of contact with relocated members present a challenge for unified community action.

• Data Challenges:  The site lacks an established database, with no prior history of community mapping or household surveys.

ULHOA, Barangay Canumay East, Valenzuela City, NCR - Risky Infrastructure Upgrades

• Infrastructure Risks:  While past collaboration with the city government has successfully mitigated flooding, "reblocking" projects have posed new threats.  Residents anticipate that raising road levels may inadvertently divert floodwaters into low-lying homes.

• Spatial Conditions:  The community’s high density creates an "urban heat island" effect, aggravated by a lack of green spaces and a high concentration of concrete structures.  These conditions significantly elevate the risk of both extreme heat and rapid fire spread.

• Sanitation and Public Health Issues:  The community also faces critical sanitation gaps in specific households.

APSHAI, Barangay San Isidro, Rodriguez, Rizal - Post-Disaster Relocation

• Adaptive Risks:  Formally relocated following the infamous 2001 Payatas tragedy, the community transitioned from a high-risk dumpsite to a precarious upland settlement.  Despite early struggles with zero utility access, residents have demonstrated remarkable adaptation to their new environment over the years.

• Upland Hazards:  Residents face the threat of localized landslides in steep areas and structural vulnerability to strong winds during the typhoon season.

• Development Challenges:  While the community has successfully secured basic services over time, the rugged terrain continues to complicate safe housing construction and access to services outside the community.

Smart Tower, Muntinlupa City, NCR - Hidden Risks

• Local Disaster Discoveries:  While residents do not report “major disasters,” site visits revealed persistent, household-level flooding. This gap in perception suggests that frequent, smaller-scale risks have been normalized and remain "hidden" from official disaster counts.

• Waste and Drainage Problems:  The community faces significant waste management challenges, primarily from garbage drifting from elevated neighboring areas.

• Government Site Hurdles:  Being situated within the New Bilibid Prison compound, the "borrowed" land status complicates long-term planning.

CASIDHAI, Barangay Canapawan, Labo, Camarines Norte - Infrastructure Access

• Timberland Condition:  Situated on 8 hectares of protected timberland, the community relies entirely on an onsite watershed for its drinking and washing water. 

• Offsite Flooding Discoveries:  While the relocation site itself is on high ground, residents identified significant flooding risks affecting their members still living near the river. 

• Emergency Access Constraints:  The community’s remote location (90 minutes from the town center) poses a severe risk during emergencies. The lack of immediate access to healthcare acts as a critical vulnerability.

These Kumustahan sessions are more than a data-gathering exercise; they are the foundation for socially inclusive policies and pro-poor innovations.  By moving beyond superficial surveys, the team has centered its research on the lived experiences and differential vulnerabilities of each community.  Through these face-to-face dialogues, we have moved beyond technical observation to build a deep, personal connection with the people behind the gathered data. This facilitated the transition from “climate change” as an abstract concept to making it a local reality.

Our ultimate goal remains clear:  to transform these meaningful conversations into a higher quality of life, empowering residents to lead their journey toward climate adaptation and resilience.

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Research supported by CLARE is bridging critical gaps between science and action: developing new tools and supporting partner governments, communities, and the private sector to use evidence and innovation to drive effective solutions to the climate challenge, whilst building capacity of both those carrying out the research and those using the resulting evidence.

Read more about Project RURBANISE supported by CLARE:  https://clareprogramme.org/rurbanise.