ASIA'S MOST INFLUENTIAL IMPACT

ANNA OPOSA

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND CHIEF MERMAID, SAVE PHILIPPINE SEAS

Mermaids are real and they’re here to save the Philippine seas—and Anna Oposa is one of them. As the co-founder and Chief Mermaid of Save Philippine Seas, Oposa is dedicated to conserving the country’s marine resources through education and various community-based projects.

Oposa has founded other leadership programmes and served different organisations that help preserve environmental resources. Her passion and dedication have been growing as her inspiration is right in front of her. “The youth leaders and community champions [whom I’ve had the privilege to work with] continue to inspire me, make me laugh, sometimes cry and give me hope,” she says.

Hope, in fact, has greatly helped lead her towards the many achievements of the programmes she has participated in. One of which is the training of nearly 300 youth leaders by the SEA Camp in the Philippines and across Southeast Asia. Oposa is hopeful that more can be achieved through existing projects by Save Philippine Seas.

Three new programmes are currently being conducted. Change the Current is a campaign dedicated to educating and encouraging seatizens (citizens), teachers and students to make a change for the sake of climate action. Another project is Earthucation which is a programme created to help the educators of the Philippines improve their capacity to educate their students about the environment. Lastly, the Haquathon and Marine Accelerator Program are programmes for the new leaders in the region to help develop projects that bring awareness to marine conservation issues.

HANS SY

CHAIRMAN OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE, SM PRIME HOLDINGS

Apart from leaving us with the country’s largest conglomerate, the late tycoon Henry Sy’s impact on his children is his heart for the Filipino people. All his children imbibed this, such as his son Hans, the scion in charge of SM Prime Holdings.

From his late father, Hans learnt the importance of fairness, integrity and hard work. From his mother, he acquired the virtues of humility and simplicity, learning as well that actions speak louder than words especially when it comes to helping others.

“I believe philanthropy, whether by an organisation or an individual, stems from having a sincere heart to do good for others, and to keep the good of others in mind,” Hans said.SM Foundation was established in 1983 by the Sy patriarch with his wife Felicidad and is committed to serve by supporting and empowering communities through education, healthcare, shelter, disaster response,