Wazzup Pilipinas!?
Nicanor Jesús “Nick” Perlas stood out as the kind of leader who didn’t need a title to move a nation. For five decades, he braided activism, policy, and community-building into a single, stubborn thread: a Philippines that is humane, sustainable, and free. His life’s work—spanning farm fields and UN halls, smallholder co-ops and presidential debates—helped define what Philippine sustainable development actually looks like in practice.
From campus reformer to anti-nuclear strategist
Perlas’ public journey began in the turbulence of youth—organizing education reforms and founding one of the country’s first ecological societies—before stepping into the storm front of the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP). As a technical adviser to the Office of the President after the Marcos dictatorship, he helped steer the ultimate mothballing of the BNPP, citing design, siting, and integrity flaws in a project that had already consumed billions. It was a watershed moment: the Philippines would abandon nuclear power for a generation, and Perlas would be marked as one of the movement’s most effective strategists.
Clearing poisons, seeding alternatives
Not content with stopping a single threat, Perlas turned to the everyday toxicities that stalked Filipino farms. As a member of a national technical panel on pesticides, he helped drive the banning of dozens of hazardous formulations and pushed government to invest heavily in cutting pesticide dependence—while simultaneously pioneering commercial organic and biodynamic agriculture across provinces. It was the template he returned to again and again: reduce harm, then build the better option.
Writing the country’s sustainability blueprint
When the world left Rio de Janeiro with Agenda 21 as a compass, the Philippines went further: it convened one of the most consultative national processes in its post-martial law history to craft Philippine Agenda 21 (PA21)—a homegrown, deeply participatory roadmap for sustainable development. As a key technical writer and civil-society co-chair of the Philippine Council for Sustainable Development, Perlas helped translate global aspiration into Filipino policy. PA21 was formally adopted on September 26, 1996 and remains a touchstone for the country’s sustainability agenda and its localization in cities and municipalities.
A global voice with Philippine roots
Perlas’ influence extended well beyond the archipelago. Through the Center for Alternative Development Initiatives (CADI), which he co-founded, and global networks like the Global Network for Social Threefolding, he argued that real progress requires the equal dignity—and healthy tension—of culture, civil society, government, and business. He carried this message to dozens of conferences worldwide, advising UN bodies, parliaments, foundations, and grassroots movements on “integral” approaches to change.
The “Alternative Nobel” and what it recognized
In 2003, the Right Livelihood Award—often called the “Alternative Nobel”—honored Perlas for the quality and consequences of this work: stopping destructive technologies before they scar a nation, advancing sustainable agriculture, and making sustainable development a living policy rather than a slogan. The foundation’s profile and his acceptance speech read like a ledger of campaigns won and horizons widened—clear evidence that long-haul, systems-level change is possible.
Building finance that serves the poor
Perlas’ theory of change wasn’t only about regulation and policy; it was also about power in people’s hands. As chair and strategist at LifeBank (a rural bank and microfinance institution), he helped scale financial services for hundreds of thousands of low-income families—showing how values-driven banking can underwrite dignity and enterprise at the base of the pyramid.
The 2010 presidential run: putting ideas on the ballot
In 2009, the environmentalist with a policy-maker’s patience did an impatient thing: he ran for president. Perlas formalized his bid on November 29, 2009, vowing to take on “the national cancer of political impunity” and calling for honest elections amid the rollout of nationwide automation. He even petitioned the Commission on Elections to postpone the polls if critical safeguards weren’t met, pressing for verifiable audits and secure systems. He would not win—but he made transparency, integrity, and sustainability part of the 2010 national conversation.
Thought leadership: Shaping globalization, shaping people
Beyond campaigns and councils, Perlas wrote and taught prolifically—most notably Shaping Globalization: Civil Society, Cultural Power, and Threefolding, a book used in universities here and abroad. His broader body of work—articles, monographs, trainings—pushed an “integral” view of development: inner change and social transformation are not rivals; they are twins.
Why his legacy matters now
Consider the pattern: a nuclear plant halted before it could haunt a coastline; poisons kept off farms and out of rivers; a national sustainability agenda born from the voices of farmers, workers, scientists, and artists; finance bent toward the poor; a presidential campaign that treated clean elections and clean government as non-negotiable. The common denominator is not ideology—it is civic courage backed by technical rigor. That is the Perlas method.
Key Milestones at a Glance
Adviser on the BNPP and leading figure in its mothballing after 1986.
Led national efforts that contributed to bans on hazardous pesticides and advanced organic agriculture.
Co-authored Philippine Agenda 21; formally adopted Sept. 26, 1996.
Co-founded CADI; active in global threefolding networks and UN consultations.
Right Livelihood Foundation
Right Livelihood Award laureate (2003).
Chair/Trustee roles at LifeBank serving low-income families through microfinance and rural banking.
Independent 2010 presidential candidate; advocate for election integrity.
Further Reading (authoritative sources)
Right Livelihood Foundation profile and acceptance speech (biography, achievements, motivations).
Government and UN documents on Philippine Agenda 21 (adoption, principles, localization).
GMA News coverage of Perlas’ 2010 bid and election safeguards petition.
Philippine NGO directory confirming Perlas’ leadership at CADI.
Youth Initiative Program (YIP) profile on Perlas’ APEC negotiations and civil-society work.
Ross is known as the Pambansang Blogger ng Pilipinas - An Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Professional by profession and a Social Media Evangelist by heart.
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