Despite over 25 years of leading campaigns in the uphill battle for the planet’s future, Von Hernandez knows that the battle is far from done. The good news is that neither is he.
"We have to turn off the tap instead of dealing with this problem bucket by bucket."
[ALUMNI-INFO TEXT="As an environmental campaigner, Von is not just passionate—he is effective as well. In the Philippines alone, his campaigns have led to the approval of landmark laws including the Ecological Waste Management Act, the Clean Air Act and the Renewable Energy Act. In addition, he has spearheaded initiatives to clean up polluted rivers and contaminated sites.
His influence does not end there. After being awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize in 2003, the Nobel Prize for grassroots environmental activists, he has since gone on to bigger stages. From leading campaigns as the executive director of Greenpeace Southeast Asia (GPSEA), he was later appointed the Global Development Director of Greenpeace International.
Now, he is the Global Coordinator of the Break Free from Plastic Movement, a collection of over 1,300 groups worldwide since its inception in September 2016. “Industry is set to quadruple the amount of plastics produced globally in the next three decades. This is insane," he warns. His activism journey was ignited when he witnessed firsthand the aftermath of typhoon Thelma on the Philippine city of Ormoc in 1991. “I was not an environmentalist then. The death and devastation I saw and witnessed made an indelible mark on my life. I came to that place as a volunteer. I left as an activist.”"][/ALUMNI-INFO]
[ALUMNI-QUOTES TEXT="It has not been an easy ride. In addition to negotiating demands and positions with campaign adversaries and the expected challenges of managing a growing regional operation like GPSEA, Von has had to deal with physical threats to him and his team.
His LKYSPP experience has helped him overcome some of those issues: “My LKYSPP education has provided me with fresh perspectives and new approaches to deal with challenges and improve the design and delivery of our campaign projects and initiatives.”
In the future, Von hopes for a binding global treaty to address plastic pollution."][/ALUMNI-QUOTES]