Atty. Mayo-Anda is an environmental attorney with over 25 years of field-based practice in environmental advocacy and community-based resource management work in the Philippines. She established the Environmental Legal Assistance Center (ELAC) in 1990, now one of the Philippines’ most active NGOs working to empower communities and local stakeholders to protect their natural resources. She is currently the Executive Director of ELAC.
Known as Gerthie to family, colleagues and friends, Atty. Mayo-Anda has almost two decades of programmatic and managerial experience in various areas of non-profit work including policy development and advocacy for conservation and natural resources management, community development and human rights, fund raising for non profit environmental work, project cycle management/monitoring and evaluation, partnership building with local governments and private sector on concerns such as climate change, coastal resource management, clean air
management and legislation, protected area establishment and management and community organizing work for natural resource management.
She has received several awards and commendations for her environmental work, including one from Conde Nast Traveller Magazine in July 2000 which selected her from a list of global candidates in recognition of her work with the Palawan indigenous communities and the establishment of ELAC; the Puerto Princesa City’s Mayor’s Award for valuable contribution to sustainable
development and environmental protection (March 1998); and Grant Fellowship Awardee, United States–Asia Environmental Fellowship (USAEP) Program (1994); the Western Command 2014 Bayanihan Award for engagement with government and communities on environmental education and the February 2018 “Istorya ng Pag-asa” commendation of Vice-President Leonor Robredo.
She is a frequent lecturer or resource person in seminars and trainings organized by the Philippine Judicial Academy (PHILJA), Alternative Law Groups (ALG) and government agencies (e.g., DENR, DA-BFAR and local government units) on environmental laws, new rules on the prosecution of environmental cases, coastal law enforcement, climate change, and environmental governance. She is an author and co-author of various articles and publications on environmental policy, environmental governance, community-based resource management, mining, REDD+, and corruption risks.
She is a Professor of Natural Resources, Environmental Law (since 1996) and Legal Ethics (1995–1998, 2003–present) and Land Titles (since 2014) in the Palawan State University College of Law.
She finished her law degree (cum laude) in 1985 at the San Jose de Recoletos, Cebu City and undergraduate degree in Accounting (cum laude) from St. Theresa’s College, Cebu City.