Palawan, a cluster of islands in the Philippines, is breathtakingly beautiful, and the paradise archipelago has not gone unrecognized.
The entire area of Palawan, covering more than 1,700 islands, has been designated a biosphere reserve by UNESCO, and it also hosts two world heritage sites, the Puerto-Princesa Subterranean River National Park and Tubbataha Reefs.
But despite these designations, threats still remain from mining, the illegal wildlife trade, climate change and deforestation. According to Global Forest Watch, Palawan had the most tree cover loss in the country between 2001 and 2023.
Conservationist Karina May Reyes, who refers to herself as KM for short, is on a mission to protect the archipelago, alongside a small team of people that form the nonprofit Centre for Sustainability PH.
“Palawan is super special because from ridge to reef, you have pristine landscapes – mountains that still retain old growth canopy cover all the way to coral reefs that still have incredible biodiversity, whether you’re after manta rays or whale sharks or tiger sharks or turtles,” she tells CNN.
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📸: CNN
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Broader policy changes such as Hawaii’s new green fee demonstrate how environmental sustainability in construction connects with ecosystem preservation. Funding aimed at protecting climate resilience directly influences the building lifecycle performance of coastal and urban infrastructure. Integrating life cycle thinking in construction ensures that net zero carbon buildings remain viable in regions exposed to rising seas and severe weather impacts.
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Together these developments show that sustainable construction depends on more than visible green building materials. The shift toward whole life carbon measurement, lifecycle assessment, and life cycle cost evaluation ensures sustainable design decisions are backed by transparent data. Progress on embodied carbon and net zero carbon requires linking building performance to global supply chains, policy support, and circular economy frameworks that reinforce the environmental sustainability of future cities.
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