Five Filipinos Join Southeast Asia’s Elite Media Delegates in Malaysia for Planetary Health Workshop

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

In a time when the planet’s survival hangs in the balance, five Filipino media professionals have been chosen to represent the Philippines on the global stage. They will fly to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, as part of a prestigious gathering of 30 journalists from across Southeast Asia—an elite cohort tasked with reshaping how the world reports on the intertwined crises of health, climate, and power.

The Capacity Development and Training Workshop Series for Media Professionals, hosted by the Sunway Centre for Planetary Health at Sunway University, has a singular mission: to empower journalists with the tools to cut through misinformation, challenge power structures, and expose the stories that will determine the future of humanity.

This year’s installment, “Planetary Health and Power: Covering the Intergovernmental Agenda,” is not merely another workshop. It is a frontline intervention in the fight for truth at a time when global negotiations often unfold behind closed doors, leaving billions in the dark.

The Filipino Five

The Philippines, a nation acutely vulnerable to the consequences of climate change yet fiercely resilient in the face of adversity, sends a formidable delegation:

1. Xer Jason Ocampo – Content Coordinator/Fact-Checker, MindaNews, Davao City

A watchdog of accuracy in a region often battered by both storms and disinformation, Ocampo brings a sharp eye for truth-telling. His fact-checking expertise ensures that climate narratives are anchored on reality, not rhetoric.

2. Joshua Mendoza – Reporter, Climate Tracker Asia, Manila

Mendoza is part of a youth-powered movement monitoring climate negotiations across Asia. His work highlights how global policies ripple into the lives of ordinary Filipinos, especially those living on the margins.

3. Ross Flores Del Rosario – Editor in Chief, Wazzup Pilipinas, Rizal

A veteran of both international journalism and grassroots advocacy, Del Rosario bridges local stories with global conversations. As founder of one of the Philippines’ most recognized community and lifestyle blogs, he brings with him not just a platform, but a mission: to ensure Filipinos are never left behind in the planetary discourse.

4. Rachel Ganancial – Information Officer/Writer, Philippine Information Agency, Quezon City

Ganancial represents the government’s communication arm, a vital voice in linking policy to the people. Her role ensures the country’s narratives are woven into both local and international awareness.

5. Shaina Mariella Aguilar – Writer/Program and Community Manager, FYT Media, Quezon City

From storytelling to community engagement, Aguilar exemplifies new-age journalism—where information is not just broadcast, but built in partnership with audiences.

Together, these five voices form a cross-section of Philippine media: community-based, youth-driven, institutional, independent, and digital. Their perspectives, shaped by different landscapes of experience, converge on a single responsibility—reporting on the global negotiations that will decide the health of our people and the fate of our planet.

Journalism at the Crossroads of Power and Planet

The workshop unfolds at a critical time. Across the globe, tipping points loom: ice sheets collapsing, diseases spreading with rising heat, ecosystems unraveling under relentless exploitation. At the same time, governments and corporations convene in boardrooms and summits, drafting agreements that could either protect the future or mortgage it away.

In such spaces, the role of the journalist is both shield and sword. Reporters must decode jargon-heavy negotiations, pierce through layers of greenwashing, and hold power to account. As the organizers put it:

“This is where planetary health meets power. And this is where journalism must rise to meet history.”

The workshop is not merely about skill-building. It is a call to arms—an acknowledgment that journalism is not neutral when survival is at stake. Every headline, every exposé, every investigative report has the power to influence policies, mobilize communities, and save lives.

The Philippines at the Forefront

That the Philippines is well-represented in this gathering is no coincidence. The country stands as ground zero for the climate crisis—battered by super typhoons, sea-level rise, and public health emergencies worsened by ecological decline. Filipino journalists have long chronicled stories of survival and resistance, from small island communities fighting erosion to urban centers grappling with smog and heat waves.

By sending five delegates into this international arena, the Philippines asserts its place as both a frontline witness and a frontline voice. It is a reminder that the battle for planetary health is not abstract. For Filipinos, it is lived daily—etched into flooded streets, lost harvests, and the resilience of communities who refuse to surrender.

Toward a Future Worth Reporting

As the workshop unfolds in Kuala Lumpur, the Filipino Five will stand shoulder to shoulder with peers from India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, and Pakistan. Together, they will form a network of media professionals equipped not only to cover the headlines but to shape them—ensuring that what happens in intergovernmental chambers reverberates where it matters most: the lives of ordinary people.

For Ross Flores Del Rosario and his fellow delegates, this is more than an invitation. It is an obligation—to turn training into action, stories into movements, and reporting into history-making.

Because when the planet itself is the beat, there is no deadline more urgent than now.

Inside the Negotiation Room: Journalists Prepare to Cover Planetary Health and Power at Workshop 3/2025

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When the doors of intergovernmental negotiations close, decisions are made that will define humanity’s future—on climate, health, biodiversity, and survival itself. These spaces—UN climate summits, biodiversity COPs, and the World Health Assembly—are where power collides with science, where compromise is often struck in language few outside the negotiation hall understand. Yet what happens inside must be brought out clearly, accurately, and urgently to the people most affected.

That responsibility now rests on a select group of journalists from across South and Southeast Asia, handpicked to join Workshop 3/2025: Planetary Health and Power – Covering the Intergovernmental Agenda, a two-day intensive training hosted by the Sunway Centre for Planetary Health at Sunway University in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on September 3–4, 2025.

Wazzup Pilipinas founder, Ross Flores Del Rosario, is among the  media from the Philippines who were selected to attend this workshop.

The workshop—organized in partnership with the Global Strategic Communications Council, Global Climate and Health Alliance, Health Care Without Harm-Southeast Asia, and Internews, with sponsorship from InTent—is part of an ambitious Capacity Development and Training Workshop Series for Media Professionals (2025–2027). Its mission is clear: equip journalists to decode the opaque world of intergovernmental negotiations and translate them into stories that inform, engage, and hold leaders accountable.

Why This Workshop Matters

Professor Jemilah Mahmood, Executive Director of the Sunway Centre for Planetary Health, set the tone in her welcome note:

“This is more than a workshop—it’s an invitation to step inside the negotiation room, see how global systems really function, and bring those insights to the audiences who need them most.”

For too long, critical negotiations have been shielded by jargon, acronyms, and legalistic maneuvering that alienates the public. Journalists often struggle to penetrate these processes, leaving citizens disconnected from the very decisions that shape their lives—from financing climate resilience to protecting ecosystems, or regulating fossil fuels.

Workshop 3/2025 changes that. It is designed not as a lecture series, but as an immersive training: simulation exercises, insider briefings, and real-time analysis that reveal who holds influence, how narratives are shaped, and where the fault lines of global power run.

An Agenda Built on Power, Politics, and Storytelling

Across two packed days, participants will move from fundamentals to frontline practice.

Day One opens with framing sessions on planetary health and global governance, before plunging into the machinery of intergovernmental negotiations: “Behind the Acronyms,” “National Interests vs. Global Outcomes,” and “Power and Politics: Who Shapes the Narrative?” Veteran communicators like Shailendra Yashwant (CANSA) and policy experts from across Asia will guide discussions. The day culminates in a simulation exercise, throwing journalists directly into the dynamics of a mock negotiation.

Day Two shifts to forward-looking analysis: inside COP30 preparations, navigating processes from a Malaysian government perspective with MP Nik Nazmi bin Nik Ahmad, and tackling climate narrative battles—greenwashing, disinformation, and fossil fuel spin—with experts from the Global Strategic Communications Council. Sessions on storytelling, remote coverage, and crafting impactful narratives aim to sharpen journalists’ tools. The workshop closes with another high-stakes simulation—“Navigating the Noise”—before reflections on how journalists can carry these lessons into their reporting.

Every element reinforces one central goal: to turn media professionals into translators of power—those who can cut through complexity and bring planetary health back to the people.

Beyond Training: Building a Regional Network

Participation does not end with the workshop. Attendees automatically become part of the Asia Pacific Planetary Health Media Professionals Network, a collaborative community coordinated by Sunway Centre for Planetary Health.

This network will provide:

A shared resource library of research, reports, and workshop materials.

A WhatsApp community for exchanging tips, story leads, and breaking insights.

Quarterly webinars and peer-to-peer virtual cafés for ongoing learning.

A mandate for accountability: each participant must publish one to two original stories within three months of completing the training.

The aim is not symbolic membership but active collaboration, transforming scattered voices into a collective media force for planetary health across Asia-Pacific.

A Gathering of Influential Voices

The speaker lineup reflects the gravity of the issues at hand. Among them:

Dr. Revati Phalkey, Director of UNU-IIGH, bridging science and policy.

Shreeshan Venkatesh, Global Policy Lead at Climate Action Network, with insider knowledge of COP dynamics.

Shweta Narayan, Campaign Lead at Global Climate and Health Alliance, championing climate justice.

Gunjan Jain of GSCC, an expert in narrative framing and climate communications.

Railla Puno of Jade Dialogues, bringing Philippine expertise in climate law and policy.

Jaya Shreedhar, health journalist and physician, leading media training for decades.

This intergenerational mix of scientists, policymakers, communicators, and journalists ensures a multi-lens exploration of planetary health and global decision-making.

The Human Element: Journalists on the Frontlines

The participant roster itself underscores the workshop’s significance: reporters from India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, and the Philippines—all bringing stories from communities most vulnerable to planetary crises.

These are the five (5) Filipinos selected to fly to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to attend the CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT AND TRAINING WORKSHOP SERIES FOR MEDIA PROFESSIONALS. 

1. Xer Jason Ocampo 

Davao City, Philippines

Content Coordinator/Fact-Checker 

MindaNews

2. Joshua Mendoza

Manila, Philippines 

Reporter

Climate Tracker Asia

3. Ross Del Rosario 

Rizal, Philippines 

Editor in Chief 

Wazzup Pilipinas

4. Rachel Ganancial 

Quezon City, Philippines 

Information Officer / Writer 

Philippine Information Agency

5. Shaina Mariella Aguilar

Quezon City, Philippines 

Writer/Program and Community Manager

FYT Media

The organizers have selected 30 media practitioners from different countries of Southeast Asia (India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, and the Philippines). 

The workshop is dubbed as Planetary Health and Power: Covering the Intergovernmental Agenda, a focused two-day training workshop hosted by the Sunway Centre for Planetary Health at Sunway University. This workshop is designed to strengthen our ability to report on the global policy processes that shape our environment, our health, and our future.

Their presence symbolizes a shift: climate and health reporting is no longer peripheral, but central to public interest journalism. These journalists will return home not only with sharper skills but with the collective responsibility to hold governments accountable to science, justice, and survival.

A Defining Moment for Planetary Journalism

As the world hurtles toward planetary tipping points, the need for clear, courageous, and impactful reporting has never been greater. Workshop 3/2025 is more than professional training—it is a strategic intervention in the information ecosystem.

By equipping journalists with the tools to expose power plays, debunk greenwashing, and amplify health and climate justice, it ensures that intergovernmental negotiations do not remain cloaked in mystery, but are laid bare for the publics whose futures are at stake.

In the words of the organizers:

“This is where planetary health meets power. And this is where journalism must rise to meet history.”

Colorado’s Real-Life “Last of Us” Outbreak: The Horned Rabbits of Fort Collins

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The Horned Horror of Fort Collins: When Folklore Comes Alive

It starts with a whisper.

A neighbor swears they saw a rabbit with horns in their headlights. Another insists something with antlers scurried across their yard at midnight. By the third sighting, no one’s laughing. In Fort Collins, Colorado, a legend has clawed its way out of the dusty pages of folklore and into the real world.

The locals call them jackalopes. But these creatures are no taxidermist’s joke or roadside myth. They are real rabbits, twisted by an ancient virus into shapes that feel more nightmare than nature.

The Virus That Wears a Mask of Myth

Behind the terror lies Shope papilloma virus (SPV), a relative of human papillomavirus. Spread by mosquitoes and ticks, it doesn’t make rabbits sick in the way most viruses do—it rewrites their flesh.

The result? Wart-like tumors that sprout on their heads, ears, and eyelids, ballooning into grotesque antlers, black spikes, and curling tentacles of flesh. Some rabbits stumble blind, unable to eat. Others carry their deformities like a crown of thorns until the tumors turn cancerous and end them.

It is cruel. It is incurable. And in Fort Collins, it is spreading.

A Town Haunted by Its Own Rabbits

Imagine walking home at dusk, the Colorado sun bleeding into the horizon, when you spot movement in the brush. A rabbit hops into view. But instead of twitching ears, you see jagged horns jutting upward, tumor-cloaked eyes staring blindly back at you.

This isn’t science fiction. It’s daily life for residents of northern Colorado. Trail cameras catch their misshapen forms. Backyards echo with whispers of “zombie rabbits.” Parents warn children not to touch them.

The unsettling truth is that these rabbits aren’t dangerous to people. Wildlife officials stress it: humans cannot catch SPV. Pets are safe, too. The real carriers are the insects, tiny winged ferrymen ensuring the virus passes from one rabbit to the next.

But that knowledge doesn’t erase the horror of seeing one up close. “They look like something out of The Last of Us,” said one resident, shaking their head. “Except it’s not a TV show. It’s right here.”

Folklore Made Flesh

The myth of the jackalope has long haunted the American West—a rabbit with antlers, part trickster, part symbol of wilderness magic. For decades, it was a campfire joke, a postcard oddity, a creature of taxidermy hoaxes and tavern tall tales.

Now, with rabbits in Fort Collins growing horn-like tumors, the joke feels different. Less whimsical. More prophetic. The line between legend and biology has blurred. The jackalope has stepped out of myth, carried on the back of a virus older than memory.

Nature’s Dark Imagination

Scientists explain it calmly: outbreaks spike in summer, when mosquito numbers rise. Warmer, wetter conditions make it worse. Domestic rabbits can be treated, but the wild have no such luxury. There is no cure, no salvation, no intervention.

But stripped of clinical language, what’s left is chilling: an entire town living alongside horned, disfigured rabbits, animals twisted by forces unseen, wandering suburban streets like omens.

The Lasting Image

Somewhere tonight in Fort Collins, a child will press their face to a window and see it—a rabbit, stumbling under the weight of its tumors, its head crowned with grotesque horns. They’ll pull the curtain closed, unable to forget.

Because sometimes, horror doesn’t need to be written. It grows in the grass, hops across your lawn, and waits in the dark.

Fort Collins has its jackalopes now. Not whimsical, not mythical, but real—and more terrifying than legend ever promised.