Issue 20 — "There are days when you wake up and wonder whether what we’re doing is meaningful at all"

In 2013, in the devastating wake of Typhoon Haiyan, Yeb Saño began a two-week hunger fast. Saño, then a diplomat and the head of the Philippines delegation at the U.N. climate talks in Poland, had watched as one of the most powerful tropical storms in history obliterated his hometown of Tacloban. Just a few days after the typhoon, a weeping Saño declared to the delegates in Warsaw that he would not eat again until meaningful climate progress was made. But the fast, which Saño now also calls a hunger strike, was not just a political move.

Saño’s brother, who was in Tacloban at the time, had survived the storm and in the aftermath, helped gather the bodies of more than 70 people — friends, loved ones and neighbors. For those who survived, food was scarce and Saño felt it was powerful to stand with them, to act in solidarity with those most suffering from the consequences of climate change in the Philippines and around the world.

More than a decade later, as storms continue to devastate, wildfires burn through communities and environmental activists face increasing criminalization and violence, Saño’s role has changed, but his goal remains the same. As the executive director of Greenpeace Southeast Asia, he works with teams across Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines, often operating in countries with authoritarian governments — something Saño, himself, knows well. In 1971, during martial law, his activist parents were jailed and tortured under the dictatorship of President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. — the father of the current Philippine president.

When I recently spoke with Saño, in a near two-hour conversation, he frequently reminded me that he speaks from a place of privilege: He works for an international organization, he was once a climate diplomat and now he is, as he modestly put it — “the guy who attends conferences.” But Saño, who occupied an oil and gas platform just last year, is still very much an on-the-ground activist and through his interactions with grassroots organizers, understands the challenges activists face under repressive governments and the opportunities borne from even “unsuccessful” actions.

The Philippines has essentially had back-to-back authoritarian governments, first under President Rodrigo Duterte and now under the current administration of Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. For organizers, has anything changed from one administration to the next?

It’s hard to pinpoint the particular differences but, as many observers would point out, there was what I would consider a very severe, chilling effect during the Duterte time because of the sheer number of extrajudicial killings related to the anti-drug war. Now, I think in the context of grassroots activists and organizers, the military behaves the same, the police behave the same, the level of impunity goes beyond what is visible and the kind of patronage politics of the Philippines remains. It doesn’t change during a change of handover of power during elections. 

Some people would say we have some allies in government right now under the Marcos Jr. administration with some key personalities in his cabinet, for example, being quite sympathetic to environmental issues. But I’d say, the difference depends on which level you’re looking at. If you are a grassroots organizer, especially in rural areas, I don’t think the arm of the law — or, I should say, the illegal arm of the law — changes. In that context, I think that both are dangerous in many ways, because even if you have a collateral chilling effect with the massive anti-drug war during Duterte’s time, now, you have a feeling that the military can do what they wish without much scrutiny. So there’s a lot of political noise, but all of what happens on the ground, I’d say, remains the same. 

Thank you for reading this very short edition of Defender!

It arrives in your inbox a little late as I spoke with Yeb in October, a week before I boarded a plane to India. The trip was part work, part fun — actually, a lot of fun —and the work part, a story for a publication I adore, will be forthcoming early next year.I’ve been asked this a lot so I’ll anticipate the question: India was incredible — exciting, chaotic, interesting, beautiful — and in the best way, I am still processing everything I experienced.

I hope to share some photos and stories going forward but it’s likely I’ll be pretty quiet for the remainder of the year. Earlier this year, I took a hiatus from social media/limited excessive time spent on my laptop and the desire to be glued to a screen has not entirely returned. This December, I’m looking forward to being more present in-person rather than hunched over some screen. I hope you have the opportunity to do that, too.

As always, you can follow me on Instagram, Twitter, or as I make the migration, Bluesky.

Rage On. ❤️‍🔥