MANILA (October 29) — Development cannot be called progress when indigenous communities lose their homes and livelihoods without having a meaningful say in decisions affecting their land, Bishop Gerardo Alminaza of San Carlos said, challenging projects that put commercial expansion ahead of people’s rights.
Alminaza, president of Caritas Philippines, was among three individual awardees at the ninth Gawad Bayani ng Kalikasan on Oct. 24 at the University of the Philippines Diliman in Quezon City.
“Can we call something a real progress if the people whose homes, land, and lives are affected have little say in what happens to them?” he asked in his acceptance speech.
He cited the Ati community in Boracay and other indigenous groups facing displacement amid the expansion of hotels and businesses. Bishops from Western Visayas recently visited affected communities to listen to their concerns, he said.
For Alminaza, protecting the environment is inseparable from defending the people whose lives and livelihoods depend on it.
“We defend the Earth because we love life,” he said, rejecting the notion that environmental advocates oppose progress simply because they challenge development that damages the environment or harms communities.
He stressed that communities dependent on natural resources must have a meaningful role in decisions shaping their future, with their knowledge, participation and leadership recognized rather than sidelined.
Alminaza described this work as “Hayuma,” a Visayan term for repairing fishing nets. He used the image to call for collective action to defend rights, prevent harm and repair damage caused by displacement and exploitation.
He dedicated the award to environmental defenders and communities that continue to protect their rights despite significant risks.
“I receive this honor in solidarity with all environmental defenders and communities who continue this work, often at great cost,” he said. “I belong to you. Kapwa tayo.”
The Gawad Bayani ng Kalikasan is a biennial awards and lecture series honoring individuals and organizations working to protect the environment and defend people’s rights.
Alminaza’s challenge raises a question for development planners and decision-makers: whether projects that affect indigenous territories and community livelihoods give affected people a genuine voice in decisions—and whether their rights are protected when economic interests compete with their claims to land and resources.
