Crispian Lao, one of the most influential advocates of plastic waste management in the Philippines, died aged 58 on 18 February.
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Lao was the founding president of the Philippine Alliance for Recycled Materials (PARMS), a multi-sectoral industry organisation that aimed to develop zero waste programmes through partnerships between government, industry, and civil society.
PARMS’ corporate members include Coca-Cola FEMSA Philippines, Nestlé Philippines, Pepsi-Cola Products Philippines, Universal Robina, Procter & Gamble, and Unilever Philippines. The Philippine Plastics Industry Association and environmental non-government groups such as the Zero Waste Recycling Movement are also part of the alliance.
Lao died unexpectedly after suffering a cardiac arrest. He is survived by his wife and two children.
As a private sector representative and vice chairman of the National Solid Waste Management Commission under the Office of the President, Lao is credited with shaping national policies that encourage waste reduction, recycling, and circular economy initiatives like the Philippines’ Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) law.
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It was through Crispian that competitors in the industry became allies in sustainability and regulators found common ground with business leaders to pursue innovative environmental solutions.
Zedrik Avecilla, programme director, Philippine Alliance for Recycled Materials (PARMS)
A son of a plastic factory owner in Manila that used to manufacture toys in the early 2000s, he attended a waste management training in Japan which inspired him to find ways to handle plastic more sustainably at the end of its life.
Between corporates and civil society that rarely collaborated towards solving plastic pollution, Lao bridged the gap, said Zedrik Avecilla, programme director at PARMS.
“We have lost an extraordinary visionary of a zero-waste future,” Avecilla told Eco-Business.
“It was through Crispian that competitors in the industry became allies in sustainability and regulators found common ground with business leaders to pursue innovative environmental solutions.”
Avecilla said that Lao’s vision was to improve collection systems, support recycling entrepreneurs, and always consider the social impact on waste workers and communities, highlighting the opportunity for green jobs to uplift their livelihoods.
In a previous interview with Eco-Business two years ago, when the EPR law was newly enacted, Lao called for the regulation to include reforms to turn waste pickers’ trade into a more formal, privately held business.
“We have to build the infrastructure for the informal waste system and try to formalise and develop them [waste pickers] into entrepreneurs because that is what they are in their own right,” Lao had said.
Plastic pollution and the waste sector are highly polarised issues in the Philippines, where the solutions and interests of various stakeholders often diverge, despite a shared recognition of the problem and a common desire to resolve it, said Bonar Laureto, director of PARMS.
“Crispian stood at the center of this complex landscape,” Laureto told Eco-Business.
“He possessed a rare combination of scientific insight and political acumen, enabling him to understand diverse perspectives and navigate competing priorities. This ability to translate conflict into cooperation stands as a defining legacy of Crispian’s work.”
