‘We have the most beautiful country: 7,000 islands with coral reefs, mountains, rivers and forests with rare medicinal plants. We have the highest biodiversity on the planet. But our people are not benefiting from it. It is being destroyed because someone wants gold or nickel,’ says Gina Lopez in one long gulp, on a Skype interview from the Philippines.
Lopez, the country’s former environment secretary, has made it her mission to protect the immense biodiversity of the Philippines while, at the same time, promoting social justice – a daunting task in a country where big business calls the shots.
