OUR VISION & mission

Our Vision

REECS is an internationally recognized consulting corporation committed to building resilient societies by providing policy and sustainable solutions to governments, private business, and communities on the environment, economy, and governance with state-of-the-art technology, local knowledge, and professionalism.

Our Mission

By 2025, we will be a major contributor to green economies and effective environmental governance towards inclusive development.

Jose Erezo Padilla

CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD

Dr. Jose Padilla is currently the Chairman of the Board of the Resources, Environment, and Economics Center for Studies (REECS). He is a local and international expert in natural resources and environmental management. As an international expert, he has an extensive experience in the fields of Climate Change Adaptation, Natural Resource and Environmental Policy, Development and Advocacy, Market-based Instruments and Payments for Environmental Services, Natural Resource Management which integrated ridge-to-reef approaches; coastal and water resources management; fisheries and coastal resource management; protected areas & biodiversity; and water security.

He is currently involved in the Regional Technical Assistance project: Scaling Up the East Asian-Australasian Flyway Initiative of Asian Development Bank (ADB) as the International Senior Project Development Specialist, with main objective of developing the documentation necessary for submission to the Global Environment Facility (GEF). This entails consultations with ADB staff, and relevant countries.
He has over 20 years of professional experience with a United Nations agency (UNDP); a regional development bank (ADB); an international environmental NGO (WWF); a CGIAR –Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (World Fish Center); and has over 30 years of intermittent professional experience in the Philippines managing a consulting firm (REECS) and implementing development projects (e.g., funded by USAID).
He received his Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Engineering from the De La Salle-Araneta University. He also received his Master’s Degree in Resource Economics from Universiti Pertanian Malaysia, now Universiti Putra Malaysia (Royal University of Malaysia). He was accorded his Doctorate degree in Economics by Simon Fraser University.

Gem B. Castillo

PRESIDENT

Dr. Gem Castillo is currently the President of the Resources, Environment and Economics Center for Studies (REECS). He is concurrently the President of the Resources and Environmental Economics Foundation of the Philippines (REAP) and the National Director of the Economy and Environment Group Philippines (EEG), the country institution partner of the Economy and Environment Partnership in Southeast Asia. He is a local and international expert in natural resource and environmental economics. As an expert, he has been involved in a wide range of topics such as wealth accounting and valuation of ecosystem services, the economics of environmental governance, forest land use planning, the economics of coastal resources management, and payment for environmental services among others.

As the National Expert, he was involved in piloting the World Bank Program on Wealth Accounting and Valuation of Ecosystem Services (WAVES) in the Philippines. He also served as the Project Leader of a multi-disciplinary team that completed the Philippine Country Study on The Economics of Ecosystem and Biodiversity (TEEB) program of the UN Environment Program. He received his degrees of BS Forestry and MS Forest Resources Management with a specialization in Forest Economics from the University of the Philippines Los Baños. He was accorded his doctorate degree in Forest Economics, and Certificate in Resource Economics by Michigan State University.