GUEST OF HONOR: Senator Loren Legarda, Chair of the Senate Committee on Climate Change, was Guest of Honor during the Training Workshop for National and Local Governments in Southeast and South Asia on Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation here in Manila. Stressing that Asia Pacific is more affected by natural hazards than other regions, Legarda enjoined government officials from Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Laos), Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Bhutan, and Nepal to double and expedite efforts on disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. “The tasks before national and local leaders are straightforward: We have to make our communities safer, more resilient, and even more ready to act when disaster strikes,” Legarda stressed.