DENR, DAP launch biodiversity mgm’t course

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the Development Academy of the Philippines have launched a degree program called Master in Public Management – Major in Biodiversity Conservation and Management (MPM-MBCM). A memorandum of understanding was signed June 15 by Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Gozun and DAP president Dr. Eduardo T. Gonzales at the DENR compound in Quezon City.

Gozun, in a speech during the launching, said she is a firm believer in investing for the development and academic enrichment of DENR staff. Thirty DENR employees will be granted scholarship. They will compose the initial cadre of officers who will manage the country’s biodversity conservation sites.

"All of us are stakeholders in protecting our natural resources, and that every Filipino must know the importance of the remaining biodiversity in the country by helping in the protection of their habitat," Gozun said.

The MPM-MBCM is a one-year degree program under the collaborative effort of DENR and DAP. It is aimed at addressing the need of the DENR, NGOs, and other institutions to develop professional biodiversity conservation managers who will be the principal stewards of the protected areas in the country and the ASEAN region.

It supports the Millenium Development Goals of the World Summit for Sustainable Development (WSSD) to reduce biodiversity loss by 2010.

Graduates are expected to generate relevant and innovative strategies towards ensuring that resources are conserved for the present and future needs of the human population.

Experts in biodiversity conservation and management are needed in the country as the Philippines is considered one of 18 mega-diversity countries and has the highest biodiversity in the world per unit area. Unfortunately, it is considered one of the hottest hotspots because of habitat loss due to habitat destruction, overexploitation, chemical or environmental pollution, and biological pollution.

Graduates from this degree program can effectively contribute to the management of approximately 13,500 species of floral diversity and 1,084 species of terrestial vertebrates in Philippine forests; 1,616 and 3,308 species of flora and fauna, respectively, in wetlands; 4,951 species of marine plants and animals, 1,210 species of plants relative to agriculture as well as the 290 sites under the protected area statue like natural parks, bird sanctuaries, wildlife sanctuaries, and wilderness areas.