LEGAZPI CITY, Philippines  (PNA) — The Provincial Government of Albay through its Center for Initiatives and Research on Climate Adaptation (CIRCA) and the Climate Change Academy of the Bicol University host on November 24-26 this year the Philippine Media Conference on Climate Change Adaptation in partnership with 11 other national government agencies, international organizations and private institutions in Legazpi City.

President Benigno Simeon Aquino III will keynote the media event and inaugurate the newly established Climate Change Academy of the Bicol University in Legazpi City. The academy, organized by CIRCA, is the first ever facility in the country and in Asia that offers specialized course on climate change and adaptation.

Albay Gov. Joey S. Salceda, the brains behind the initiative, said the conference aims to promote vital public awareness on climate vulnerabilities and extremes in development, and highlight the need to accelerate the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) at the local level.

The media summit, Salceda added, seeks to advocate the use of science-based analytical and planning tools on Climate Change Adaptation (CCA) and Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), provide updates on MDG Achievement Fund:1656, as well as identify new viable partnerships that will help address the deleterious concerns relative to climate change.

President Aquino has supported Albay’s DRR programs and has assured the release next year of an initial P500 million for pump stations aimed to solve flooding problems in Legazpi City. He approved the project last January 14 in his first visit to Albay inspecting disaster damage; the lone request made by Governor Salceda as chairman of the Albay Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council.

The inclusion of the initial P500 million outlay in the 2012 National Expenditure Program under the budget of the Department of Public Works and Highways was firmed up in a meeting of the RDC chairs with Public Works Secretary Babes Singson and his planning office chief, Asst. Secretary Cathy Cabral.

The President is also expected to switch on the giant 58-foot Green Christmas Tree fashioned out of re-cycled fuel drums and adorned with thousands of flickering solar powered led lights, symbolizing Albay’s campaign for environment protection. It will kick off the month long Green Christmas celebration, dubbed as the Karangahan Festival which also features Albay's ethnicity.

Supporting the media conference are the Climate Change Commission, Presidential Communications Operations Office, and Office of the Presidential Adviser for Environmental Protection, Office of the Presidential Adviser on Climate Change, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Science and Technology, and National Economic and Development Authority.