TAO-Pilipinas is a dynamic group of women professionals in the fields of architecture and planning, engineering, environmental science, economics, research and social development.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The Board directs and oversees the activities of the organization.

Laura T. David
President

Laura is the Deputy Director for Instruction of the Marine Science Institute in the University of the Philippines – Diliman. She has a PhD in Physical Oceanography from the University of South Carolina, USA and a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry. She has been involved in research about the Philippine coast and adjacent waters; in mapping and modelling the vulnerability to human impact of coral reefs in the Southeast Asia region; and in the WWF/KKP exercise of identifying and prioritising critical areas for management, protection and preservation of the Sulu-Sulawesi Sea.

Eloisa M. Pilapil
Vice President

Lisa works as the Project Manager for Economic Policy Reform and Advocacy Project of the Economics Department of the Ateneo de Manila University. Before joining EPRA, she worked for the the Benigno S. Aquino Foundation (BSAF) where she was assigned Project Manager/ Owner Representative of the construction activities of the Aquino Center located at the Luisita Industrial Park, Tarlac City . She also worked for various international agencies such as the International Labor Organizations (ILO), HELVETAS Swiss Development Agency, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the World Bank (WB) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and has established good professional relationships with people of different backgrounds and affiliations.

Ma. Victoria S. Ilagan
Secretary

Ana Marie O. Dizon
Treasurer

Members
Herminia R. Caringal
Eleanor C. Ramos

Ex-Officio Member
Arlene Christy D. Lusterio

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Arlene Christy D. Lusterio
Executive Director and Coordinator, Human Settlements and Environment

Arlene is an architect and environmental planner. She has a Master of Architecture in Human Settlements from the Department of Architecture, Urban and Regional Planning of the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium, and a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of the Philippines. As an ASIA Fellow, she completed a research fellowship awarded by the Asian Scholarship Foundation on river basin and coastal settlements in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam. Before setting-up TAO-Pilipinas, she worked for three years as an architect-planner for Planning Resources Operations Systems, Inc. (PROS), an architectural and planning consultancy firm; prior to that, spent most her professional career in development- oriented work with Samahan para sa Angkop na Pabahay ng San Pablo Apostol (SAPSPA) working directly with the poor. Her professional interests are sustainable development and water-based human settlements.

PROGRAM COORDINATORS

Maria Faith Y. Varona
Coordinator, Research and Publications

Faith is one of the founders of TAO-Pilipinas (The other two are Arlene and Ger). An architect and environmental planner, she has been in the alternative career path of development work for more than a decade now. Before TAO-Pilipinas, she worked for non-government organizations such as Alterplan, NGO-Coalition for Cooperatives Development, Oxfam-America, and Building Alliance for Action and Initiatives. In 2006, she received a Master in Urban Management and Development from the Institute of Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)-Erasmus University in Rotterdam, the Netherlands through a fellowship from the Netherlands Fellowship Program of NUFFIC. She also holds a post-graduate Diploma in Urban and Regional Planning from the School of Urban and Regional Planning in the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City where she also completed her Bachelor’s degree in Architecture. Her pet projects include the TAO Resource Center and research on alternative materials and technology.

Geraldine R. Matabang
Coordinator, Young Professionals

Ge is an architect and environmental planner. She has a Master of Arts in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of the Philippines School of Urban and Regional Planning and a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of the Philippines. Before joining TAO-Pilipinas, Geraldine worked for architectural design firms SmithGroup Gexis Manila and LV Locsin Partners. She loves to read Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Isabel Allende. She wants to learn how to swim, ride a bike, and learn a foreign language like Spanish or Nippongo.

Gertrudes Samson
Coordinator, Education and Training Program

Ger is an architect with a Master of Architecture in Human Settlements from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium, and a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of the Philippines in Diliman. Before working for TAO-Pilipinas, she worked for Habitat for Humanity Philippines, a non-profit ecumenical Christian housing ministry involved in building homes for disadvantaged Filipino families. She has also worked as program coordinator for the people’s organization Samahan Para sa Angkop na Pabahay ng San Pablo Apostol (SAPSPA) and as a project officer for Alternative Planning Initiatives (ALTERPLAN), a non-profit, non-government organization focusing on the promotion and advocacy of integrated socio-physical planning.

Beryl F. Baybay
Coordinator, Education and Training

Beryl is an architect and environmental planner. She finished her Diploma in Urban and Regional Planning in the University of the Philippines. She recently finished the 2nd phase of Sida’s International Training Program for Shelter Design and Development and will be finishing the last phase in Africa later this year. Before joining TAO-Pilipinas, she taught at the Department of Architecture of the Technological Institute of the Philippines for two years. She also worked with Parsons International and CJ De Guzman and Associates. Beryl’s interests include songwriting and playing musical instruments; reading inspirational books; and doing handicrafts. She wants to travel more in and out of the Philippines, and take diving lessons.

PROGRAM STAFF

Rosalyn-Frances O. Marcelo
Staff for Young Professionals

Rosalyn, “Osang” to most of her friends, is a geodetic engineer and an environmental planner as well. She has a degree in Geodetic Engineering from the University of the Philippines (UP). She finished her Master of Arts in Urban and Regional Planning from the UP School of Urban and Regional Planning. Her masteral thesis was about the service infrastructure sharing of resettlers and host communities. Before TAO-Pilipinas, she worked for the Survey Geomatics Division of F.F. Cruz and Co., which provides mapping and surveying services. “Osang,” as she is called by most of her friends, plays a lot of badminton in her spare time.

Amillah S. Rodil
Staff for Human Settlements and Environment

Amillah, nicknamed Pon, is an architect and Program Staff for the Human Settlements and Environment Program. She also edits TAO Shelter, the bi-annual magazine of TAO-Pilipinas. Before joining TAO, she worked as a staff writer for the interior design and lifestyle magazine Real Living, published by Summit Media. She was also a designer and draftsman for the Office of the Campus Architect of the University of the Philippines Diliman. She is currently finishing a Master of Arts in Urban and Regional Planning in the University of the Philippines, and is researching post-disaster shelter planning in Albay for her thesis. She updates the TAO website together with Angel.

Angelus Maria P. Sales
Staff for Research and Publications

Angel worked as a lighting designer for a lighting company before joining TAO. She recently passed the Architects Licensure Exam held last June 2007. Angel has a bachelor’s degree in architecture from the University of the Philippines College of Architecture. As staff for the research and publications program, she is in charge of managing and cataloging books and other references for the TAO Resource Center. Angel is also the resident techie of the office, fixing computers whenever they break down. Aside from computers, Angel’s interests include visual arts, poetry, sports, video games and online gaming. She still wants to improve her graphic design skills, learn computer animation, programming, and GIS (geographic information systems).

ADMINISTRATION STAFF

Anita M. Salvan
Administration and Finance

Nethz has worked for NGOs for about 17 years, usually taking care of administration and accounting. She joined TAO in 2005. As staff for administration and finance, she prepares the payroll, monitors the cash flow and budget, and prepares financial reports. She also keeps tab on the cleanliness of the office, getting a repairman when something needs to get fixed, and reminding the staff to clean up their own mess. When needed, she also gives bookkeeping workshops to communities that TAO works with. She would love to have her own house someday with a yard and a vegetable garden, which she can share with her husband, Roy, and three children: Roy Anthony ,18, Devorrah Anne ,16, and Roy Hamilton, 4.