THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) expressed its gratitude for the Australian government’s continued support of the professional development of its workforce through the conduct of a tree planting activity at the La Mesa Watershed Reserve (LMWR) in Quezon City recently.

Analiza Rebuelta-Teh, DENR Undersecretary for Finance, Information Systems and Climate Change, said that it is only fitting that the Australian government must be given due recognition since the scholarships it granted have helped shape Filipino scholars into becoming innovators, especially in formulating policies on conservation and sustainable use of the country’s natural resources.

Teh and Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Hae Kyong Yu together with the over 100 DENR employees, have planted some 100 two-year-old Narra saplings within the two-hectare LMWR Arboretum Park maintained by the DENR-National Capital Region.

Key officials from other government agencies and the Philippine-Australian Alumni communities also attended the event dubbed as “Australia Alumni Family Day.”

“More than enriching knowledge and competencies, this has resulted in the personal and professional growth of our workforce,” Teh said, pointing out that the DENR is not the only beneficiary of these opportunities “but also the very public it serves.”

At present, the scholarships and training sponsored by the Australian government have produced 60 postgraduate degree holders (five PhDs and 55 masteral degrees), including 100 participants in foreign and local training.

The scholarship and training programs offered cover areas such as human resource management and development, geographic information science, natural hazards, marine science, mineral resources, remote sensing, groundwater management, environmental law, public policy, and public administration.

For her part, Ambassador Yu said the event underscores the two countries’ mutual priorities on climate action, stressing that the tree planting activity brought attention to the important issue of environmental challenges.

She added that the activity “catches what is so wonderful and fantastic about the Australian-Philippine relationship” as it likewise celebrated Australian Day and World Environmental Education Day on Jan. 26.

“As true friends, partners, and in fact, neighbors in this region, we know what it means to celebrate,” she said.

Ambassador Yu further disclosed that the Australian Government has invested AU$18 million through the SHIELD (Strengthening Institutions and Empowering Localities Against Disasters and Climate Change) Programme to help the most vulnerable provinces in the Philippines deal with disasters that are driven by climate change.

The La Mesa Watershed Reserve has a total area of 2,659 hectares, around 75 percent of which is watershed and 25 percent is basin area.

The DENR has rehabilitated approximately 1,000 hectares of forestland within the reserve.