Atty. Gay Christine Cortes-Lopez, CPA, JD, LLM, an alumna of Class 2025 of the Master of Laws program of the Graduate School of Law, is proposing to define just how much the cost of carbon emissions is. Bringing her research to the legal arena, Lopez pushed for a bill on building a legal framework toward quantifying how much carbon emissions actually cost.
With carbon emissions as the leading culprit for climate change, which severely affects global south countries like the Philippines, Lopez’s pitch can provide a sound scientific and legal basis for determining the price of carbon emissions in the archipelago, aligning with UN Sustainable Development Goals on affordable and clean energy; decent work and economic growth; and industry, innovation, and infrastructure.
The proposal anchors itself on the desire for a healthful ecology and the commitment to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The proposal, if passed, will help promote compliance with environmental standards.
Cortes-Lopez also proposed multi-sectoral initiatives to educate the citizenry on carbon emissions and climate change.
Cortes-Lopez, who is currently enrolled in the Doctor of Civil Law program, was mentored by Atty. Manuel Peter P. Solis, PhD, a legal academic and policy expert with interdisciplinary experience in climate law and governance, renewable energy, sustainability, and international environmental law.
During the submission of the proposal at the Senate of the Philippines, Cortes-Lopez was joined by GSL officials, namely, Dean Atty. Jacqueline O. Lopez-Kaw, DCL, Regent fr. Dexter A. Austria, O.P., SThD, and Secretary Leidy May Alnajes, MA.