Quezon City – President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s fourth State of the Nation Address pays lip service to accomplishments that remain unrealized. While the government’s commitment to societal change and climate action may be expressed through policies, the real challenge lies in how these policies are implemented. As 350 Pilipinas reflects on his speech and the recent midterm elections, it calls on the administration to integrate climate action and implement tangible, climate-resilient solutions into the Philippines’ long-term strategies—emphasizing the need for community-owned energy systems rooted in grassroots planning, where people are not merely recipients of aid, but active architects of their own energy future.
Fread De Mesa, National Coordinator says:
The recent ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) marks a historic moment in the global struggle for climate justice—affirming that major polluters must be held accountable for the harm caused by their emissions. But it also casts a sharper light on the responsibilities of national governments, particularly those of vulnerable countries like the Philippines, to ensure that any climate finance or reparations received truly benefit those most affected.
It is disappointing that the President failed to acknowledge this landmark ruling, especially as the country continues to bear the brunt of climate impacts. His recent statements urging the public to simply adapt to typhoons—without addressing the root causes of the climate crisis or outlining a science-based development strategy—miss the mark. True leadership means not only demanding justice on the world stage but also ensuring transparency, accountability, and just transition at home.
The ICJ ruling strengthens the Philippines’ hand in climate diplomacy, but it also raises the bar for how we use that leverage. We must translate international wins into local action—prioritizing community-led solutions, institutional reforms, and climate policies that serve both people and planet.
On Energy
The administration continues to boast of its investments in renewable energy, highlighting solar, wind, and natural gas as part of its portfolio of new and cleaner energy technologies. President Marcos acknowledged that around three million households in the country still lack access to electricity and pledged to electrify an additional one million households using solar power systems within his last presidential years.
Despite this, fossil gas—referred to by the President as natural gas—remains classified by the administration as a clean energy source. This framing, however, downplays the reality that fossil gas is neither renewable nor harmless. In truth, it is a fossil fuel which, when burned, releases significant amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Such claims expose the long journey the administration still faces in moving toward a truly sustainable and climate-aligned energy agenda.
During Marcos Jr.’s address, he stated that the lifeline subsidy will now include households listed under the DSWD’s Listahanan program who consume less than 100 kWh per month. While such subsidies may offer temporary relief, it is important to note that the Philippines’ continued reliance on fossil fuels including fossil gas, places the burden of importation costs on consumers, driving up electricity prices. This, combined with the consumption of harmful energy sources misrepresented as “clean,” effectively channels subsidies toward dirty energy. 350 Pilipinas call on the administration to ensure community ownership and control over renewable energy sources that do not trap communities in systems of dependence. Energy justice means freedom from monopolies, not mere discounts from them.
Reportedly, the administration claims that 2.5 million households have gained access to electricity within the first half of its incumbency and committed nearly 200 power plants to be completed under his term. With the large number of power plants to be completed, it opens avenues to discuss the power plants being built can live to its promises, where almost 90% of are reportedly to be powered by renewable energy sources — around 7.8 gigawatts (GW) from solar, 2.3 GW from wind, and 400 megawatts (MW) from battery storage.
This puts greater pressure on the administration to demonstrate how it can consistently commit to its renewable energy investments, channel these efforts into communities without electricity, and simultaneously shift away from coal and fossil fuel dependence. At the same time, it signals a potentially significant move toward cleaner, more affordable, reliable, and secure energy.
The need for greater energy access requires the establishment of competitive power industry conditions, which can be enabled by Renewable Energy (RE). While existing Philippine laws can support our transition based on varying consumer energy needs, priority must be given to fully utilizing the mechanisms under the Renewable Energy Act of 2008 (RA 9513), including the Green Energy Option Program (GEOP). Although the fourth SONA placed emphasis solely on the Department of Energy’s Net Metering Program, 350 Pilipinas calls on the administration to align its efforts with other available mechanisms. Most importantly, a diverse range of options must be made available to address specific energy needs.
RE bridges the gap in terms of efficiency and access because its decentralized character is more compatible to our geography; modularity means potential for the indigenous renewable energy source per region providing consistency, resiliency, and flexibility. On top of that it is better for the climate. Electrification should not mean dependence on dirty and extractive power systems. Ownership and control can be put directly into the hands of communities, where these decentralized community-owned solar projects have been evident to an increasing number of communities that energy access can be clean, equitable, and democratic.
On Clean Air and Transport
The local government units (LGUs) were directed by the President to adopt car-free Sundays to promote healthier lifestyles, citing examples from Metro Manila, Baguio, Cebu, Iloilo, and Davao. While the initiative was framed in the SONA primarily as a health measure, 350 Pilipinas emphasizes car-free’s role in tactical urbanism, promoting low-carbon zones, active transport like biking and walking, and sustainable public transit. The President has also mentioned a number of infrastructure projects in his pipeline under the Build Better More program regarding transportation, such as road extensions and widening; building more bridges, airports, and sea ports; and finally using train cars that were purchased but have not yet been utilized by the public 10 years ago. The above seems impressive. But effective, efficient, and safe transport system can only be achieved if the administration, together with the DPWH and DoTR, prioritizes the interests of those people who are actually using these infrastructures in their everyday lives, such as the pedestrians, public transport commuters, and transport workers, and not those who are sitting in their private luxury cars while idly gazing at those who are struggling to get home to their families. 350 Pilipinas urges said agencies to closely coordinate with various key stakeholders and sectors and to apply their valuable recommendations in both urban and rural development.
On Education
In his speech, the President has recognized the urgent state of our classrooms where investments in education are long overdue. However, he did not fully recognize the broader education crisis, including feasible support to institutions and teachers’ salaries, but focused on digitalization and hybridization of public schools.
Building conducive learning environments means creating spaces that are safe, sustainable, and prepared for the climate crisis. During the summer of 2025, the majority of public schools suspended face-to-face classes due to rising temperatures, which negatively impacted students’ learning and endangered their health and safety. Learning spaces must now be powered by clean energy, such as solar rooftop systems or other renewable energy solutions. This is the way forward. Learning spaces need to be integrated with this new modality to keep up, while also reducing the burden placed on families and teachers. This includes building classrooms and facilities that can support the necessary technology and safely electrify these spaces.
Many existing public school classrooms do not have access to electricity and are forced to source from other rooms which have it, using interconnected or “octopus” extension cords that are prone to short-circuit and over-loading, which threatens the safety of students, faculties, and facilities. If the government is pushing for adopting technology in learning, the standard for building classrooms should be updated to be energy ready, efficient, and climate-resilient.
350 Pilipinas calls to envision energy that is renewable, community-owned, and climate-resilient with planning that starts from the grassroots–systems where the people are not just recipients of aid, but architects of their own energy future.