PMCJ on Chrisiane Alcantar's Master's Thesis, "Articulating Climate Justice at the Grassroots in the Philippines”

Since 2009, the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice (PMCJ) articulated the climate crisis as the most urgent threat to life today. Poor and developing countries like the Philippines bear the brunt of its most harmful consequences, exacerbating the already impoverished economic and social inequalities. Building a broad climate justice has therefore not only been essential but necessary. Formed as a grassroots coalition championing a climate justice framework, PMCJ exposes the disproportionate burdens imposed on poor and marginalized communities by a handful of rich and powerful countries and corporations that profit from the continued destruction of the environment, climate, and the commons.

As the climate crisis intensifies and accelerates, climate justice movements must collectively evolve. To adapt, sustain participation, and respond effectively and urgently to the worsening climate, socio-economic, and political challenges, PMCJ undertook a 10-year impact evaluation in 2019 to reassess and expand its strategic trajectories. This highlighted key organizational strengths and challenges, reinforcing PMCJ’s commitment to movement-building. From that point, PMCJ tactical fights have integrated the intersecting frames of climate into the labor, gender, disaster, and food security issues, linked local experiences and struggles to the national and global campaigns to expand reach and influence, and amplified alternative models of development to resist capitalist co-optation. 

Alarmingly, the world witnessed the first breach of the 1.5 °C global temperature threshold in 2024. For countries like the Philippines, this signals a deepening climate catastrophe marked by more frequent and severe extreme weather events and rising sea levels. The urgency of this climate emergency has long been embedded in the organization’s work, making it proactive and anticipating challenges, as 2024 was also the year PMCJ initiated its Organizational Development (OD) project. 

The OD serves as a collective effort toward organizational consolidation, strengthening, and support for PMCJ objectives, building a resilient and responsive organization that withstands the challenges of changing, difficult times through robust, effective, and inclusive processes and structures. The OD assessment draws from surveys, key informant interviews, and a comprehensive review of internal and external materials. Using a thematic analysis approach, the report draws from the internal documents of PMCJ, external materials from publicly available sources, and insights from earlier evaluations.

One of the key supplementary materials and insights informing the OD process was Chrisiane Alcantar's Master's Thesis, "Articulating Climate Justice at the Grassroots in the Philippines." Chrisiane completed her Master of Science in Sustainable Development in 2021 at the University of St. Andrews, Scotland. Her study frames PMCJ as an example of transnational grassroots mobilisation, highlighting how climate justice movements evolve through international solidarity with frontline communities that lead and build solutions to the climate crisis. 

Grounded in grassroots perspectives, the study offers a critical reflection and leadership in the climate justice movement. It has been particularly useful to PMCJ, as the coalition represents various farmers, fisherfolk, indigenous peoples, women, youth, and other vulnerable communities from local and national organizations.  Her research affirmed PMCJ’s trajectory of intensifying the people’s struggle for climate justice and a just transition of society, providing evidence-based insights for strengthening internal strategy, leadership practices, and movement sustainability. 

Chrisiane’s documentation of differentiated climate impacts and participation in decision-making structures of the marginalized groups underscored the need for a stronger intersectional approach within organizations. This perspective recognizes the imperative not only to assert the survival of the Filipino people amid the climate crisis but also to establish the necessary system change for communities to thrive, not just survive, for generations to come.

For PMCJ, this study became a catalyst for deeper reflection on enhancing inclusive and participatory organizational practices, learning and adaptive capacity to changing political and ecological conditions, campaign escalation and influencing, and mobilizing resources – key elements integrated into the OD project. As Chrisiane’s study clearly demonstrates, intersectionality is critical in advancing a collective movement while remaining attentive to the distinct and layered experiences of each marginalized community in the pursuit of climate justice.

As PMCJ grew from forty to one hundred fifty member organizations, organizational development broadened the coalition’s reach and also deepened understanding of the demand and scale of the work needed to strengthen alliances and solidarity to bolster grassroots action. The study helped situate PMCJ within a broader ecosystem of movements, affirming that despite systemic barriers, grassroots resistance works. Communities continue to build alternative futures from below through leadership formation, protests, climate litigation, lobbying, and intervention in projects, policies, and financing at the local, national, and international levels. 

This practical resource is not only helpful for PMCJ but also serves as a guide for climate justice organizations in the Philippines to navigate challenges amid complex times, sustain impact, and improve grassroots-led climate justice work. 

Today, Chrisiane is one of PMCJ’s consultants supporting our development of knowledge products for the just transition campaign and policy advocacy on climate, energy, and circular economy. Her academic rigor and professional experience have been invaluable in sharpening PMCJ’s position and strategy. 

Importantly, Chrisiane’s voluntary consultancy with PMCJ also reflects the critical role of the Filipino diaspora in advancing climate justice struggles in the Philippines. As a member of the diaspora, her research and continued engagement demonstrate how Filipinos living abroad can meaningfully contribute to movements at home. From the Philippines to the world, PMCJ hopes that her example inspires more Filipinos in the diaspora to support, engage with, and undertake similar work in solidarity that strengthens people’s movements and advances climate justice in the Philippines and beyond.