By Ruby Bernardo, ACT Philippines
This article was adapted from Ms. Bernardo’s speech at the 2^nd edition of the Educators Stand for Climate Justice and a Just Transition conference in Bangkok, Thailand.

Who among you are convinced, based on our discussions in this conference, that as teacher-unionists we are not safe nor exempt from the climate crisis? Who among you are now 100% sure that you can do something about it not as individuals but collectively as a union? Yes! Yes and Yes! That’s powerful! This is why we also need to set the just transition agenda among our unions in Southeast Asia.

Just transition aims to place justice and equity at the heart of our economy’s greening process. It strives to integrate environmental sustainability with concerns for human and labour rights, ensuring that as we work towards a low-carbon economy and a liveable future, we also safeguard decent work and human rights so that NO ONE IS LEFT BEHIND. Because the actions we need to pursue to tackle climate change must also address the structural inequalities it is already exacerbating.

As teacher-unionists, we know that the actions we need to address climate change are not actually new to us because they are at the very core of our work in the trade union movement. Our work as unionists and teachers commits us to advocate for the needs of our students and help shape their futures. This commitment is also at the core of our involvement in the climate justice movement, which fundamentally benefits the next generation. Therefore, our role as educators in this movement is to consciously direct these efforts towards one goal — to save people and the planet. It is important to recognize that we have the power to effect broader and systemic change. The strength of our union, which has been historically demonstrated, shows that collective action can lead to significant change. We need to empower ourselves through education and recognize that schools are the heart of our communities. Teachers should be at the frontlines of moulding public opinion and engaging in transformative actions. We must also listen to and learn from the most marginalised in our societies, incorporate science with indigenous knowledge and let them lead the way. By holding firm in solidarity and supporting these voices, we uphold the true spirit and power of our union to advance a just transition agenda in our schools, communities, and nations.

Let me share a few contemporary examples in the Philippines where our involvement as unionists in just transition issues is necessary. Our transport workers recently organised a mass strike owing to the impending government phaseout of the jeepney, a common and affordable form of public transportation. However, most jeepneys are also outdated and run on fossil fuels—the government’s justification for the Public Utility Vehicle Modernisation Program, which supposedly aims to reform the country’s transport system to become “climate-friendly.” But in a country where transportation is privatised, this initiative risks putting nearly 45,000 jeepney drivers out of work and can potentially double transportation fares for the Filipino commuting public because jeepney drivers are being asked to purchase new vehicles that cost as much as 2.8 million pesos ($50,000) each, an amount that is simply too high and unjust for a struggling transport worker. Transportation modernisation, in this instance, has been reduced to mere vehicle change instead of a comprehensive overhaul of the commuting experience while also affording transport providers a dignified livelihood. The government has used climate change as a justification for its modernisation program, which compels me to ask: Does climate action really have to conflict with the livelihood and economic security of those already being impacted by climate change? As a teacher-unionist, I know this to be untrue and why we need a just transition. Now.

This summer, nearly 7,000 schools in the Philippines had to suspend in-person classes and shift to flexible learning options due to extreme heat, affecting over 3.6 million students. Due to the heatwaves, many teachers and students have suffered from dizziness and headaches in poorly ventilated and overcrowded classrooms. We had numerous students rushed to school clinics due to nosebleeds and fainting. In a country with a fragile healthcare system, heatwaves also add more pressure on our healthcare facilities and personnel. These are not new issues; they reflect longstanding problems within our educational and health system, which are now being amplified by climate change.

As many of you know, the Philippines is among the most dangerous countries in the world for environmental defenders and activists, creating a significant barrier for teachers and students advocating for climate justice. Hence, I would like to take this opportunity to honour the environmental defenders who have been harassed and murdered by military forces in my country. In March, our ACT Coordinator and Center for Environmental Concerns Philippines Eco Dangla and “Jak” Tiong were abducted by state forces in a province in the northern Philippines, who also founded the Pangasinan People’s Strike for the Environment in 2021. Unfortunately, the repression of environmental defenders in our country has become the new normal, just like climate disasters.

In conclusion, what we need to put into discourse and action for a just transition agenda in our unions:

1. We need quality climate education across level – I know how that this is an uphill battle just like all the advocacies and issues we are fighting for, it’s like changing the world but we must do it! We need to continue what we are doing in pushing for the capacity of education systems to engage in climate change.
2. We need to be involved in policymaking; we need to recognise that we are part of climate stakeholders. We need to ensure social protection, health and safety as a traditional union principle, rights at work, knowing that teachers’ working conditions also affect students’ learning conditions.
3. We need to be involved in climate action! We need to make sure that our society prioritises people’s lives over profit! Let us not remain silent when our governments are spending more money on fossil fuel subsidies than education!

Finally, addressing the climate crisis and achieving justice cannot occur without challenging the underlying economic system — we must confront capitalism itself. We are in this crisis because of the systemic structures of inequality fuelling climate change and global injustice. We need structural change to address the climate crisis! We always say the cliché that the youth are the hope of the future but as the moulders of future generations, we can also be part of this hope if we start to act today and demand climate justice and advance a just transition.