women to assert themselves needs to be developed … Especially because when facing politicians … even with laws in place … much lobbying is still required”). Bador is cognizant of the complex power asymmetries that exclude Indigenous and rural women from influencing outcomes. Her reflection highlights how cultural hierarchies and gendered socialization constrain the political agency of vulnerable communities, illustrating that legal guarantees alone are insufficient without deliberate efforts to empower minorities by equipping them with the necessary tools and leverage to assert particular demands. Gains remain highly contingent on the political will of local officials and the ability of CSOs to sustain meaningful pressure, since bureaucratic systems routinely limit their participation and access to information during implementation. KABILIN roots its efforts in a decentralized approach that prioritizes lived experience and collective negotiation with local officials. This case exemplifies the kind of state–civil society relationship that can be improved, strengthened and institutionalized to progressively embody the principles of Upward Agenda Setting and Horizontal Accountability. Case Study 2. KAKASA: Community Accountability and Gendered Disaster Governance in Salcedo, Eastern Samar The women-led alliance Kababayen-an Kontra Kalamidad ug Sakuna(KAKASA) based in Salcedo municipality, Eastern Samar, demonstrates how feminist accountability can emerge from local expertise and collective care. Formed in response to recurring floods and storm surges, KAKASA organized local women to challenge the technical bias of local infrastructure planning and assert their role in disaster governance. When the LGU’s seawall project was being constructed, the alliance identified irregularities in material quality and design, which they knew—through years of experience living by the shoreline—would fail under strong tides and floods and endanger lives. Drawing on the technical knowledge of women engineers and the ecological insights of coastal residents, KAKASA mobilized a review of the project’s specifications, engaging directly with LGU engineers and barangay officials. The members took photos and gathered testimonies to substantiate their claims and pressure the LGU to act. Their intervention and lobbying resulted in design and material modifications, including reinforced foundations and drainage adjustments, that reflected lived experience. This process embodies Horizontal Accountability: Not willing to be reduced to passive recipients of state projects, communities evaluated and co-managed public works, redefining accountability as a shared civic responsibility. The assessments by the alliance became part of municipal audit documentation, setting a precedent for participatory verification of infrastructure quality moving forward. At the same time, KAKASA’s organizing illustrates Upward Agenda Setting in action. Beyond technical corrections, members also pushed the LGU to integrate gendered disaster planning, accounting for the unpaid care burdens that intensify during floods when women must secure food and child safety. Although there are still improvements to be made, their advocacy is slowly shaping the inclusion of care infrastructure, free medical check-ups for women, and safe shelters for women and children in the municipal disaster budget. If members cannot attend meetings, able members actively do roving consultations that reach housebound women, senior citizens and persons with disabilities or illness, going house-to-house to consolidate priorities which have and continue to inform local contingency plans. KAKASA leader Felisa Ramasta Castro states that their initiatives center the notion of dignity:“ Dignidad ng tao, iyon ang unahin”(“The dignity of people should come first”). These efforts not only improved the community’s disaster resilience but also redistributed power: Women’s everyday knowledge gained institutional legitimacy, and local officials recognized them as partners in evaluating risk and public spending. According to Castro, if KAKASA members are not invited to LGU consultations, they take the initiative to approach the LGU or still attend:“ Kami ang nagpupush na mayroong mga isyu”(“We, ourselves, assert that there are issues that need to be addressed”). She cites the example of pushing the LGU to prioritize mental health programs because of an increase in suicides among youth, which she notes is a care burden disproportionately placed on women that needs to be shared by the community to protect women’s mental health. Castro shares that the alliance acts with the mindset that “ Mayroon bang kaagarang solusyon kung sosolusyonan namin. … Tulong-tulong sa aming munisipyo”(“It is possible to find a timely solution if we choose to act on the issue. … We help each other in our municipality”). However, members have experienced and remain vulnerable to political retaliation, underscoring the need to formalize protections for CSOs and institutionalize community monitoring and audit mechanisms. KAKASA’s experience shows that genuine accountability is achieved through the collective authority of citizens to demand transparency, redefine expertise and shape the standards of safety and care. In doing so, they transform governance from compliance to co-responsibility—making gender justice a measure of resilience itself. Claiming Power and Reshaping Governance: A Feminist Framework for the Philippines 19