06/09/2026
LAUDATO SI’ IN ACTION: Our Common Home, Our Common Responsibility
The Season of Creation 2026, the 1st Laudato Si’ Congress, and the 10th Philippine National Biodiversity Meeting (BIOME 10) in Aklan were more than a series of conferences. They became a powerful reminder of a truth that science, faith, and lived experience increasingly affirm: life on this planet exists as one interconnected whole.
From the discussions on clean air, rivers and watersheds, soil biodiversity, mangroves and coastal greenbelts, beach forests, groundwater, climate change, waste and environmental remediation, to the Mass of Creation and community activities along the Nabaoy River, one realization became unmistakable: the health of people cannot be separated from the health of the planet.
The air we breathe, the water we drink, the soil that produces our food, the forests and mangroves that protect our communities, the rivers that sustain farms and settlements, and the seas that provide livelihood are not separate systems. They are parts of one living web. Damage one part, and sooner or later the consequences reach us all.
This is the essence of Laudato Si’ and Planetary Health: everything is connected.
And because everything is connected, caring for our common home cannot be left only to scientists, environmentalists, government agencies, churches, universities, or advocacy organizations. Every institution, every community, every worker, and every citizen has a role to play. Protecting nature is ultimately about protecting human life itself—and preserving the possibility of a decent life for generations still to come.
Our deepest appreciation and maraming salamat to the organizers and convenors, particularly Raymond J. Sucgang of PNRI-DOST, whose leadership and tireless work helped bring together this remarkable convergence of science, faith, education, public service, and community action. We likewise thank the Diocese of Kalibo–Ministry of Ecology, Aklan State University–Makato, Pacifictech, Partnership for Clean Air, the participating local governments, schools, parishes, community organizations, and all partner institutions that made these gatherings possible.
Our gratitude goes equally to the scientists, researchers, academics, technical experts, environmental advocates, religious leaders, students, teachers, community leaders, farmers, workers, volunteers, and ordinary citizens who shared their knowledge, experience, labor, and hopes. The success of this gathering came not merely from papers and presentations, but from the meeting of scientific knowledge with the wisdom and lived realities of communities.
For the All U.P. Workers Union, we are deeply honored to have been invited to become part of this undertaking. Environmental protection is also a workers’ concern. Workers and their families breathe the same air, drink from the same watersheds, suffer from floods and extreme heat, depend upon the same food systems, and inherit the consequences of environmental destruction. There can be no genuine social justice without environmental justice.
We also extend our heartfelt gratitude to Staff Regent Rey Espanto, the members the AUPWU National Executive Board for their support, and to our AUPWU UP Iloilo and UP Diliman Chapters for sending their respective delegates and helping ensure that the voice of workers was present in this important conversation.
The Congress may have ended, but its real measure will be what we do afterward.
Laudato Si’ must not remain merely an encyclical we quote, nor Planetary Health simply a concept we discuss. They must become choices we make, policies we demand, communities we defend, and responsibilities we personally accept.
Because ultimately, there is no separate “environment” somewhere outside us.
This is our air.
This is our water.
This is our land.
This is our common home.
And its fate is inseparable from our own.
Maraming salamat, Aklan. Padayon pa gid sa pagkilos para sa buhay, kalikasan, at sa mga susunod pang salinlahi.
