PHL, Italy eye cooperation on climate change

Filipino and Italian officials are eyeing increased cooperation in various areas, including addressing the adverse effects of climate change, the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said. The two countries discussed areas of cooperation during the first Association of Southeast Asian Nations awareness forum in Rome from March 22 and 23, the DFA said in a news release.   “The two countries also aimed to increase their engagement in education, specifically in science, technology, engineering and mathematics and to address the adverse effects of climate change through hazard mapping,” the DFA said. Climate change According to the United States Environment Protection Agency (EPA), climate change refers to "any distinct change  in measures of climate lasting for a long period of time." The EPA said climate change refers to major, lasting changes in temperature, rainfall, snow, or wind patterns due to:

"The earth’s climate is changing. In most places, average temperatures  are rising. Scientists have observed  a warming trend beginning around the late 1800s," the EPA said. The EPA noted that the most rapid warming of the earth's climate has occurred in recent decades, adding that it is likely the result of human activities.