Who inspires you?
These Filipino environmental planners surely will!
Urban planners on spotlight
In recent years, environmental planning is emerging as a trendy profession in the Philippines.
Urban planners are on spotlight as knowledge celebrities.
The increased interest in urban planning may be a result of the following:
- suffering caused by poor urban planning to Filipino workers, including worsening traffic, housing, and transportation conditions in Metro Manila,
- inquiry on resilience strategies for local governments vulnerable to natural hazards
- Onset of climate change action in the global setting
To support the continued interest in Filipino environmental planning, I feature notable Filipino environmental planners who can definitely inspire both aspiring Filipino environmental planners and present Filipino environmental planners.
Personal criteria for selection of featured Filipino environmental planners
These environmental planners satisfy at least two of the following criteria:
- A registered Environmental Planner (required)
- Writes about environmental planning consistently
- Appeared in the first 10 pages of Google Search Results using the keywords “Filipino environmental planner”
- Environmental planners I personally admire and have worked with
Of course, the list is incomplete!
Send me your suggestions for additional notable Filipino environmental planners!
Notable Filipino Environmental Planners
Prof Meliton Juanico
Prof. Meliton Juanico is a recognized mentor for many Filipino Environmental Planners, as he is a long-time professor of land use planning at the UP Department of Geography.
Dr Juanico is also continuously involved in the planning processes of many Philippine LGUs. I worked with him in 2018 in updating the CLUP of the Municipality of Tiwi, Province of Albay.
Prof. Juanico also writes for the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
Arch EnP. Felino Palafox Jr
Philippine urban planning is almost synonymous with Arch. Jun Palafox.
With four decades of international urban planning experience, everyone listens when Arch Jun speaks about interventions in Metro Manila urban planning.
Palafox Associates also has grand planning projects in its portfolio.
Arch Jun also writes for the Manila Times. I personally appreciate his list of the Top 10 Cities of the World for its inspirational value.
PRC Environmental Planning Board: Josefina Ramos, Lirio Abuyuan, Corazon Cruz
If you are a Licensed Environmental Planner of recent years or are planning to take the board exam, you should know them!
The Board of Environmental Planning “supervise(s) the registration, licensure and practice of environmental planning” and “prepare(s) the contents of licensure examination.”
Arch. EnP. Paulo Alcazaren
Architect Alcazaren first comes to mind when sidewalks are in the conversation.
His “party-list,” the MADAFAKAS, represents an integral need of Philippine cities: walkability.
Architect Alcazaren also features beautiful photos on his personal Facebook profile. He also writes for the Philippine Star particularly on city observations.
Prof. Ernesto Serote
Prof. Serote is to environmental planners as Mark Twain is to literature.
He is the “Guru of Philippine Local Planning,” persevering to help in building the capacity of Philippine local governments.
His book “Property, Patrimony and Territory” is the primary basis for the Rationalized Planning System Sourcebook, one of the Bibles of Filipino Environmental Planning.
Arch EnP. Nathaniel “Dinky” von Einsiedel
Arch Dinky is the Founding Chairman of ASSURE, an alliance of professionals involved in rebuilding Typhoon Haiyan-affected towns and cities in the Philippines.
He was also the First Commissioner for Planning of the former Metropolitan Manila Commission.
As Principal Urban Planner of Consultants for Comprehensive Environmental Planning (CONCEP) Inc., Architect Dinky was also involved in the production of the Public Parks and Open Green Spaces Guidebook.
Some of his remarkable interviews are about the new Filipino city and public green spaces.
Read: Developing pocket green parks in the Philippines
Related Articles:
EnP David Garcia
EnP David Garcia is one of the most enthusiastic proponents of digital cartography in social media.
His “Hundred Largest Islands of the World,” is both art and science.
Being the Mapmaker, EnP Garcia also advocates for “open, accessible, and free” public map data.
EnP Mia Quimpo
EnP Quimpo is currently Head of TRACTEBEL Philippines Urban Business Line; EnP Mia is a also former National President of the Philippine Institute of Environmental Planners.
EnP Mia recently contributed a reimagination of Metro Manila where everything is within reach.
Read: What the Dream EDSAs of Urban Planners and Architects Look Like
Dr. Primitivo Cal
Dr. Cal is a former dean of UP School of Urban and Regional Planning. He was also Undersecretary for Transportation during the Ramos Administration.
In 2017, he was featured by Rappler for an interview about the Philippine Land Transportation and Traffic Code.
Dr. Arturo Corpuz
Dr. Corpuz is a member of the Board of Directors of Ayala Land Inc.
Dr. Corpuz has also been recognized as a Most Outstanding Environmental Planner.
His paper on land use policy and human development is an essential reading for local government planners.
Arch./EnP. Armando Alli
The 2018 Most Outstanding Environmental Planner, I worked with Architect “Boy” Alli during my employment as Research Assistant at OIDCI. Then, he was a consultant for the C5 Transport System Project.
Arch. Alli often shares relevant files about the architecture profession through his managed Facebook groups. These files are now accessible on his own website.
Prof. Roque Magno
Sir “Popoy” is a long-time academic in the field of urban and regional planning in the Philippines.
He is a former commissioner of the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board and a former assistant secretary of the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources.
I knew of Prof. Magno because of his book “The History of Urban and Regional Planning in the Philippines,” which I hope to get a copy soon.
List of Requirements for the Environmental Planning Licensure Exam
Col. Celestino F. Desamito, Jr. (Ret.)
Col. Desamito was the 2016 Most Outstanding Environmental Planner. He is a Director of the Philippine Institute of Environmental Planners for 2019-2020.
NEDA Regional Development Council XII calls Col. Desamito “the People’s Veterinarian.”
Col. Desamito is also member of the Provincial Land Use Committee of the Province of South Cotabato.
EnP Ragene Palma
Most recent passers of the Environmental Planning Board Exam (including myself!) consider EnP Jean as an online mentor.
Her EnP Board Exam Review Series is the “holy grail” for self-reviewers of the Board Exam.
EnP Jean has also written about the importance of urban planning in the Philippines.
EnP Ermin Lucino
EnP Lucino is the City Planning and Development Coordinator of the City of Santa Rosa, Laguna. And aptly, his blog is titled as such: cityplanningcoordinator.blog.
I connected with EnP Lucino through LinkedIn, where he shares first-hand experience. It is great to read about the alignment and relationship of national and local plans directly from a local government unit planner.
Top resources, all in one page!
Honorable Mention
The persons in the section are remarkable professionals involved in urban planning-related activities.
I include them here because I also admire their work, but I am uncertain if they are registered environmental planners.
Dr. Jose Rizal
One of the Philippine national heroes was also an environmental planner by practice.
Manila Bulletin reported in 2014 how Dr Jose Rizal “helped plan the now sprawling city in Zamboanga” by helping build fish pens, establishing a water system, and turning the town into a green space.
The Development Academy of the Philippines published “Parangal Kay Gat Jose P. Rizal: Bayaning Environmental Planner” in 2011, a book featuring how Pepe’s exile was a time for Dapitan’s planning.
Dr. Robert Siy
Dr. Siy is an advocate for sustainable mobility.
His articles on the Manila Times greatly manifest this advocacy.
He is a seasoned transport planner and a former Director at the Asian Development Bank.
Read: 4 Major Themes from Ideal EDSAs of 9 Urban Planners and Architects
Add a Filipino Environmental Planner you admire to the list!
Who should be added to the list?
Send me your suggestions for additional notable Filipino Environmental Planners.
How to become a Filipino Environmental Planner?
Read next!
- Comprehensive Land Use Plans (CLUP): Frequently Asked Questions (UPDATED February 2023!)
- How much do contracts for CLUP and CDP cost?
- Using climate data in city planning