Good Building Design and Construction in the Philippines experience in tragedy recovery during impacts of hazards in the Philippines and Indonesia. Olaf Neusser, is a disaster risk consultant for GTZ and has provided support for the assessment of building culture in Leyte and Samar through the effects of local catastrophe in the area. As the Philippines lies within the Pacific Ring of Fire where earthquakes and eruptions are more likely to occur as well as being at the edge of the Pacific Ocean where violent storms are likely to develop, proper construction philosophies and strategic location must be assessed so it can resist external forces. The book has
Geography of the Philippines The boundaries of the Philippine archipelago are described in Article III of the Treaty of Paris (1898), as comprising an irregular polygon. A box enclosing that polygon would have corners at 20°N 116°E, 20°N 127°E, 4.75°N 127°E, 4.75°N 116°E. The center of this box would lie at 121.5 E, 12.375 N. That point lies roughly in the center of the Tablas Strait between the islands of Tablas and Mindoro. "Republic Act No. 9522", "An Act to Define the Baselines of the Territorial Sea of the Philippines", describes an irregular polygon which fits within a box with its center at 121°44'47.45"E