Already, the Convention for International Trade of Endangered Species has listed 46 wildlife species in the Philippines that are rare, threatened or endangered. Among those in the list are the Philippine eagle, tamaraw, Philippine tarsier, Panay flying fox, Cebu black shama, and Mindanao gymure.

Global warming also favors spread of disease. Greenpeace Philippines said climate change could amplify the spread and transmission of vector-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue fever in tropical and subtropical regions because of changes in water distribution, rising temperature and the proliferation of microorganisms.

Food production is also at risk. "The numbers and ranges of agricultural pests will likely increase, while growing ranges for many crops will shift," Worldwatch warns.

The Laguna-based International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) said global warming can reduce rice yields. An IRRI study showed that rice plants could benefit from higher level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, but an increase in temperature would "nullify any yield increase."

"Global warming is more disastrous to the agricultural industry of the Philippines and its neighboring Asian countries than in other parts of the world," said Dr. David Street of the US Argonne National Laboratory.

In a bid to slow global warming, scientists have suggested the curtailment of fossil fuels to reduce carbon dioxide emission. Global warming could also be slowed down, they believed, by curbing the rate of deforestation and increasing carbon sinks through the help of oceans which extract carbon dioxide from the air and convert it into carbonates.

In addition, other experts urged limited production of greenhouses gases. Industrial countries, responsible for most carbon dioxide releases, have committed to abide by the provisions of the 1992 Framework Convention on Climate Change. (Europe, Japan, and North America - with roughly 15 percent of the world's current population - are estimated to account for two-thirds of the carbon dioxide now in the atmosphere.)

Think globally; act locally, so they say. "We can pledge to do our part to conserve energy and pollute less," the Worldwatch suggests. "Whether at home, on our commute to work or school, or at the store, there are things we can do to lessen our impact on climate change."

"The issue is not stopping global warming - this will almost certainly not be possible within most of our lifetimes," notes Worldwatch's Christopher Flavin. "Rather, the challenge is to slow the production of greenhouse gases immediately, so as to avoid the most sudden and catastrophic climate changes. If trends continues unabated, only radical, draconian measures would be sufficient to save the climate later on."

Henrylito Tacio is an award winning science journalist who also writes for the Reader's Digest