Extreme Temperatures in Tuguegarao City, Philippines
YSEALI Global Environmental Issues: Pre-Departure Paper
John Kit S. Masigan
Tuguegarao Cityis the city capital ofCagayan,Philippinesand the regional capital of Region 02 (Cagayan Valley Region). It is recognized as theCenter of Excellence in Education, Commerce, Trade and Culture. Furthermore, Tuguegarao is recorded as the hottest city in the Philippines at present, escalating an average temperature of 38°C during March and April.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said that the hottest temperature recorded in Philippine history is 42.2 degrees Celsius in Tuguegarao City on May 11, 1969 followed by 40.4 degrees Celsius in Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija on May 11, 2012 and another recorded temperature of 39 degree Celsius in Tuguegarao on April 24, 2014.
However, the cold spell being felt in the country in the month of January does not spare even Tuguegarao City. During early mornings, late afternoons and evenings, most residents would wear bonnets and thick sweaters and jackets, a scene hitting 13.9 degree Celsius which is almost unimaginable in a city known for experiencing the hottest temperature in the country.
We experience these extreme temperatures because Tuguegarao lies in a valley encircled by mountains that prevent the heat or cold from dispersing.
With vast transactions in trade and increasing residential settlements, Tuguegarao City has been destructively urbanized in which extreme temperatures gear toward danger and damage. These inevitable complications are mainly caused bypoor household environmental management system, increasing tricycle emission, and lack of awareness among residents.
As a teacher, I’ve always considered environmental education as my advocacy. I personally find interest in crafting creative pedagogies to introduce these pressing environmental problems to the residents of Tuguegarao, especially the young, and teach them practical ways to prevent and combat the worsening effect of our habits which may be unknown to have harmed the environment.
With utmost zeal to participate in this Fellowship Program, I know that the experiences will help deepen my understanding on the causes and effects of extreme temperatures in my city and be able to benchmark on the best practices of the United States of America so that I can develop a more relevant, creative and sustainable projects on environmental education real time.
Furthermore, this will be an opportune time to create linkages among YSEALI Fellows in the ASEAN Region which will propel us to celebrate, inspire and affirm each other’s prior accomplishments and be able to synergize our future initiatives for the environment.
Since I started teaching in 2014, I’ve always chased for an opportunity to reinvent my creativity and re-envision my advocacy on environmental education. Through this enriching Academic Fellows Program, I believe that there’s no better journey towards self-discovery than YSEALI.