BOARD OF DIRECTORS
In response to the deterioration of coastal resources in the Philippines, the Coastal Conservation and Education Foundation was formed by a group of concerned and talented individuals to address some critical marine conservation needs of the country.
Over the years, the Board of Directors of CCE Foundation has served as a guiding light for the Foundation staff and has been key in the growth and success of the organization. Consisting of marine and social scientists, education and community organizing experts, and institutional development and financial consultants; the Foundation enjoys a sustainable and rich learning environment with the greater vision of responsible leadership, sustainable resource management, rich coastal habitats, and healthy, responsible communities.
President
Dr. Alan T. White is a Senior Scientist for the Global Marine Initiative of the Nature Conservancy and is based in Hawaii, U.S.A. He received his Masters in Management from the School for International Training in Vermont and his doctorate in Geography from the University of Hawaii, U.S.A. Dr. White has worked on projects in coastal resource management in the Philippines since 1978 through Silliman University and the Coastal Resource Management Project supported by the United States Agency for International Development.
Vice President/Treasurer
Mr. William Jatulan is the Deputy Chief-of-Party of the Fisheries Improved for Sustainable Harvest (FISH) Project supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) based in Cebu City, Philippines. Mr. Jatulan received his Masters in Industrial and Organizational Psychology in the University of San Carlos, and a Bachelor of Laws at the University of Visayas, Cebu City. He has worked as a trainer and manager in coastal resource management around the Philippines since 1993.
Secretary
Mrs. Evangeline Eban White is a founding member of Coastal Conservation and Education Foundation. She completed her Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce with a major in Banking and Finance at Saint Paul College of Manila, Philippines. She also has units in Business Administration and Accounting at the Rhode Island State Business School, U.S.A. She has been managing the Saving Philippine Reefs Research Expeditions annually since 1992 through the support of Earthwatch Expeditions and expedition volunteers. Mrs. White is a founding member of the Coastal Conservation and Education Foundation, Inc. with her husband, Dr. Alan White, and has been actively involved in coastal management and research activities in the Philippines and in Sri Lanka since the early 1990s. She is also currently the Volunteer Coordinator of Waikiki Aquarium in honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.A.
Visayas Advisor
Mrs. Rebecca Pestaño-Smith is the Information, Education, and Communications Coordinator of the FISH Project supported by USAID in Cebu City, Philippines. Mrs. Smith has a Masters degree in Asian Studies from the University of Hawaii (East-West Center), U.S.A. and a Masters in Communication Arts from the Ateneo de Manila University, Quezon City, Philippines. She also has Ph.D. units in Sociology at the University of the Philippines, Diliman. She has experience as Communications and Public Relations Officer for South and Southeast Asia with the Bank of America Asia Division. Mrs. Smith also taught at the Ateneo de Manila University Department of communications for many years and was involved as consultant in projects under the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM).
Coastal Resource Management Advisor
Dr. Patrick Christie is a professor at the School of Marine Affairs in the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington, U.S.A. Dr. Christie received his Masters in Conservation Biology and his Doctorate in Natural Resources and Environment in the University of Michigan, U.S.A. Dr. Christie’s current research projects consider the human dimensions of marine protected area networks, tribal perspectives on the state of Puget Sound, and the feasibility of marine ecosystem-based management in tropical contexts. He was recently selected as a Pew Fellow in Marine Conservation. He has led various comparative, socio-ecological research projects in the Philippines and Indonesia on the practice of marine resource management.
Community Organizing Advisor
Mrs. Evelyn T. Deguit is the Training Coordinator of the FISH Project supported by USAID in Cebu City, Philippines. Mrs. Deguit received a Bachelor of Science in Social Work at Silliman University in Dumaguete City, and completed her Masters of Science in Social Work in the Asian Social Institute in Malate Manila, Philippines. Her work experience includes community development management in several coastal management projects and she is also a part-time professor in social work and research at St. Theresa’s College in Cebu City.
Institutional Development Advisor
Dr. Thomas J. Mueller is an Independent Educational Consultant based in California, U.S.A. Dr. Mueller received his Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Loyola University of Los Angeles and his Ph.D. in Biology (Neurobiology) from the University of Southern California, U.S.A. Dr. Mueller served on the faculty of Harvey Mudd College from 1981 to 1995 and helped found the Biology Department there. Since 1995, Dr. Mueller has been working as an independent faculty teaching development consultant for higher education.
(Ex-Officio) / CCEF Executive Director
Atty. Liza Osorio is the Executive Director of Coastal Conservation and Education, Inc, Cebu City and Legal and Policy Consultant of the Seahorse Research Project, University of Washington-UN Food and Agriculture Organization. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from the University of the Philippines and finished her Bachelor of Laws at Silliman University. Atty. Liza has experience in legal practice, teaching, lecturing, and research. She is a professor of Environmental Law and Problem Areas in Legal Ethics at the University of Cebu. She has been a Legal-Institutional Consultant of the World Bank through Tetra-Tech EMI for the preparation of the Philippine Environment monitoring report in 2005. Atty. Liza has published several articles and books about the coastal environment such as: Legal Issues Affecting Sustainability of Integrated Coastal Management in the Philippines; Legal, Institutional and Planning Dimensions for Marine Ecosystem Management; Local Governance for Municipal Fisheries; and Legal Issues Affecting Sustainability.
(Ex-Officio) / CCEF Administrative Officer
Sheryll C. Tesch is the Administrative Officer and the Information, Education and Communications Coordinator of the Coastal Conservation and Education Foundation, Inc. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Development Studies from the Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines and is currently in her third year of pursuing her Bachelor of Laws from the University of Cebu in Banilad, Cebu City. She previously worked for the Coastal Resource Management Project of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources supported by the United States Agency for International Development. She has been with the Coastal Conservation and Education Foundation since 2002.