Von Hernandez is a leading environmental activist from the Philippines. He was Executive Director of Greenpeace Southeast Asia (GPSEA) from 2008 to 2014, where he led the environmental group's programs and operations in the Southeast Asian region. Prior to that, he served as Campaigns Director for the organization, and was responsible for driving the group's campaigns in Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines on a number of issues including climate change, forests,

sustainable agriculture Sustainable agriculture is farming in sustainable ways meeting society's present food and textile needs, without compromising the ability for current or future generations to meet their needs. It can be based on an understanding of ecosystem ser ...

and toxics pollution. Currently, he serves as Development Director for Greenpeace International.

History

An environmental activist for more than 20 years, Von initiated and led a number of campaigns in the Philippines including the approval of landmark laws like the Ecological Waste Management Act and the Clean Air Act. He also spearheaded campaigns to rehabilitate the

Pasig River The Pasig River ( fil, Ilog Pasig) is a water body in the Philippines that connects Laguna de Bay to Manila Bay. Stretching for , it bisects the Philippine capital of Manila and its surrounding urban area into northern and southern halves. Its ...

as well as efforts to clean up toxic sites in former US military bases in the country. He founded and spearheaded various environmental coalitions at the national and international levels including the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA), Waste Not Asia, Lakbay Kalikasan, the Ecowaste coalition, and the Sagip Pasig Movement. Von Hernandez is a former literature professor and well-known environmental activist from the Philippines. He has spoken up against the processing of imported garbage, when waste incinerators pump out clouds of dioxin and other harmful chemicals. The Philippines was the first nation in the world to ban

waste incineration Incineration is a waste treatment process that involves the combustion of substances contained in waste materials. Industrial plants for waste incineration are commonly referred to as waste-to-energy facilities. Incineration and other high ...

nationwide, in 1999. Hernandez now works with Greenpeace Southeast Asia, serving as its executive director.

Education

Von Hernandez graduated from the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; fil, Pamantasan ng Pilipinas Unibersidad ng Pilipinas) is a state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by Republic Act No. 9500 (UP Charter of 20 ...

, with a bachelor's degree in English. He recently completed his Master in Public Management (MPM) degree from the National University of Singapore. The MPM is a prestigious program designed for senior managers by the

Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy The Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKY School) is an autonomous postgraduate school of the National University of Singapore (NUS), named after the late former Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew. History The Lee Kuan Yew School of ...

, and which includes spending a full semester at the

Harvard Kennedy School of Government The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...

Awards

* 2003

Goldman Environmental Prize The Goldman Environmental Prize is a prize awarded annually to grassroots environmental activists, one from each of the world's six geographic regions: Africa, Asia, Europe, Islands and Island Nations, North America, and South and Central America. ...

. In 2003, Von was awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize for his work which led to the first national ban on waste incineration. The Goldman Prize is considered to be the equivalent of the

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...

for grassroots environmental activists. Being the first Prize recipient from the Philippines, '' Asia Inc.'' magazine named him as one of Asia's young movers and shakers in 2004. In 2007, he was also included in ''Time'' magazine's

Heroes of the Environment Heroes of the Environment was a list of a year's most notable environmentalists chosen and compiled by ''Time'' magazine. The award was established in 2007. * Heroes of the Environment (2007). *Heroes of the Environment (2008). *Heroes of the Envi ...

, joining other innovative and influential protectors of the environment like

Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. Gore was the Democratic no ...

and

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Chemistry, Physics, Physiolog ...

laureate

Wangari Maathai Wangarĩ Muta Maathai (; 1 April 1940 – 25 September 2011) was a Kenyan social, environmental and a political activist and the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize. As a beneficiary of the Kennedy Airlift, she studied in the Un ...

. More recently, Von was listed among the top 20 most trusted Filipinos by Reader's Digest in its nationwide Trust Poll in 2010. * ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...

'' magazine's list of "

" October 2007.Von Hernandez - Heroes of the Environment - TIME - October 2007
(Retrieved on 2007-10-24)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hernandez, Von Filipino academics Filipino environmentalists Year of birth missing (living people) Living people People associated with Greenpeace University of the Philippines alumni National University of Singapore alumni Goldman Environmental Prize awardees