In the face of global challenges brought about by the New Globalization, Filipinos must learn how to navigate it through local actions.

This is the overarching message of this year’s Development Policy Research Month (DPRM) led by state think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS). Pursuant to Presidential Proclamation 247 signed in September 2002, the DPRM is celebrated every September to promote nationwide awareness of the importance of policy research in crafting evidence-based policies, plans, and programs.

We are facing a new kind of globalization that is fraught with complex, interrelated challenges. These challenges include the uncertainty from global restructuring, worsening inequality, underprovision of global public goods leading to “public bads” (such as environmental degradation, terrorism, spread of diseases, and human rights abuses), and erosion of social cohesion due to the proliferation of disinformation, among other factors. These challenges, if not managed well, can undermine the ability of the Philippines to sustain its rapid economic growth and attain its long-term development vision “AmBisyon Natin 2040” of a Matatag, Maginhawa, at Panatag na Buhay” and targets under the Sustainable Development Goals. Nevertheless, we can effectively navigate this new globalization. We can deal with its challenges and harness the opportunities it brings through relevant and timely local actions that are guided by a shared vision of prosperity and inclusivity, collaborative partnerships, wider and deeper participation of all sectors of society, and adaptive, evidence-based policymaking.

The Philippine Institute for Development Studies dedicated the Fourth Annual Public Policy Conference (APPC) to the analysis of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (FIRe) and its emerging technologies. With the same theme as the DPRM, that is, “Harnessing the Fourth Industrial Revolution: Creating Our Future Today”, the event convened natural and social science experts and policy analysts from both public and private sectors to discuss the impacts of FIRe on various Philippine sectors, as well as the possible implications of FIRe for Philippine development policy and strategy. Such systematic analysis is critical to ensure that the country’s economic take-off is sustained in the long run and leads to even faster and more inclusive growth.

The Duterte administration’s proposal to shift to a federal system demands a bold response and clear action from organizations and individuals. On its part, PIDS dedicated the third APPC to initiate an informed and participatory discourse on the major issues surrounding federalism. Specifically, the APPC convened policy experts to discuss the political feasibility of federalism in the Philippines, the form and fiscal design of a federal government, as well as the implications of federalism given the country’s political, economic, social, and historical contexts.

For its second installment, PIDS repackaged the Annual Public Policy Conference (APPC) by organizing parallel sessions to discuss the conference theme “Risks, Shocks, Building Resilience”. The sessions delved on the issues affecting the resilience of the macroeconomic, agriculture, urban environment, and health sectors. The new format reflects the state think tank’s commitment to promote a systems approach in analyzing the impacts of risks and devising appropriate solutions to address them.