The Link between Education and Climate Change Vulnerability in the Philippines: Evidence from a Regional Panel

The effects of climate change are being felt disproportionately in the world’s poorest countries and among those groups of people least able to cope. The Philippines, a storm-lashed nation, is one country having high climate change vulnerability and low resilience. A number of researches have suggested investments on adaptation which place strong emphasis on reducing vulnerability to climate change. Focusing on climate risk vulnerability in the Philippines, this study examines the effect of one particular type of government intervention: increasing the level of education. In this study, the effect of education on vulnerability to climate change is examined using official Philippine statistics from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), Labor Force Survey (LFS), National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB). Using a panel data model assuming fixed cross-sectional effects, the study establishes that at the community level, the proportion of household heads with at least secondary education is a significant factor that reduces climate risk vulnerability (measured by a transformation of number of deaths), controlling for other factors such as number of disasters, gross regional domestic product (GRDP), population growth and population density.