The COVID-19 pandemic, like any disaster, is at a critical juncture that opens an opportunity to shift policy aimed to reduce disaster risks. The presence of the Delta variant necessitated this policy shift in pandemic response efforts given its high transmissibility compared to the previously reported COVID-19 variants. With the Philippine government admitting that widespread and sweeping lockdown measures do not work in this context, will the shift towards targeted curbs be effective in bringing down infections?
For the 13th lecture series organised by the Philippine Geographical Society, MS Geography student Timothy James Cipriano attempts to make sense of this policy shift and bring several points of reflection regarding its implementation in Metro Manila in relation to the bigger question on space and disaster governance. It underscores how the framing of public health crisis by the State is shaping its pandemic response, and whether it perpetuates everyday conditions of communities with a higher intensity.
TJ Cipriano currently works as a research assistant for a flood research project funded by the Water Center at the University of Pennsylvania. He previously worked as a researcher at the UP Resilience Institute and NOAH Center. Mr Cipriano's research interests relate to hazards and disasters, environmental studies, and disease geographies. He is also a member of the Advocates for Science and Technology for the People (AGHAM) and the Alliance of STEM Graduate Students and Workers – UP Diliman.
The talk is on Friday, 29 October 2021 at 5:30PM. To participate, register using this link.
This lecture series is co-sponsored by the UP Department of Geography.
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