March, 06 2025

The partnership between WWF-Philippines and the University of the Philippines (UP) College of Law was formalized with a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signing at the Malcolm Hall in UP Diliman, Quezon City on March 6. The UP College of Law was represented by Law Dean Darlene Marie Berberabe, Associate Dean Hector Danny Uy, and the Institute of Government and Law Reform Assistant Director Atty. Celeste Cembrano-Mallari.

“Schools are thought leaders and must lead by example in tackling climate change. In this agreement, I hope to demonstrate a commitment to ethical and responsible environmental education,” says Berberabe. 

CBPI is WWF-Philippines’ flagship program that provides an actionable framework for organizations to operate in a climate-defined environment. Over the past few years, CBPI has been collaborating with corporate partners on reviewing emissions data and facilitating the development of decarbonization and climate adaptation roadmaps. 

The WWF engagement with the UP College of Law will be for six months and will aim to  baseline the UP College of Law’s carbon footprint looking into their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions  and help set science-based emissions reduction targets. This baseline study serves as an initial  step in the development of a comprehensive sustainability strategy for the UP College of Law.  

“We see that this partnership is an opportunity for the UP College of Law to set an ambitious climate target that is in line with what the world needs. We commend the UP College of Law for their leadership. Nothing is more powerful than walking-the-talk on climate action,” says Katherine Custodio, WWF-Philippines’ Executive Director. “The legal profession is critical in the advocacy for environment and climate. I really hope that this partnership will also lead to  a deeper engagement with UP Law,  reaching  more stakeholders and opening doors to other academic institutions.” 

WWF-Philippines Board of Trustees Chairman Atty. Anthony Charlemagne Yu was also present at the MOA signing and shared how important it is for future lawyers to get immersed in issues of the environment.

“Our law students today will eventually practice law in companies, and work in the Supreme Court or in other parts of the government. They will carry their experiences in school with them throughout their careers, so it's very important that we affect them at this early stage,” says Yu. “We’re hopeful that this partnership will not stop at the baseline study and planning, but that the learning  will flow down to the students so that they will become lawyers for the environment.”

By collaborating with higher education institutions, WWF-Philippines continues to work towards a whole-of-society approach to climate mitigation and adaptation.