Experience

Summary of my 25-year professional experience

 
 
 
 
 

Chief Technical Officer

EcoCaraga Pte Ltd

Sep 2024 – Feb 2026 Singapore
  • Led the design and development of a large, grouped REDD+ project in Philippines using Verra standards (VCS, CCB) and their methodologies, modules, and tools;
  • Managed collaborations and partnerships with stakeholders and partner organisations including investors (family offices), government agencies, international advisors and consultants, project developers, dMRV service providers, ratings agencies, NGOs, and academic institutions;
  • Served as leadership team member and supervised the company’s technical team in Singapore;
  • Supported the delivery of operational requirements and implementation of project activities on the ground.
 
 
 
 
 

Global Head of Remote Sensing & Geospatial Analysis

ClearWind Pte Ltd

May 2023 – Aug 2024 Singapore
  • Led the geospatial team of ClearWind in developing core geospatial/remote sensing/GIS components and products required by projects; and in developing in-house geospatial capabilities, infrastructure, and automated systems to support and enable centralised and well-coordinated origination, feasibility screening, development, implementation, and monitoring of projects in Southeast Asia;
  • Led and facilitated the development of with- and without-project scenarios to support the project design of REDD+ and ARR activities and inform the participatory community-based land-use planning of a large, grouped project in Philippines;
  • Mentored and line-managed two regional staff (Singapore) and five in-country staff (Philippines).
 
 
 
 
 

Research Associate

Centre for Nature-based Climate Solutions, National University of Singapore

Jul 2021 – May 2023 Singapore
  • Led and managed the overall programme implementation and delivery of the Centre’s S$15-million regional Carbon Market Integrity R&D Programme in Southeast Asia, and supervised a team of researchers in developing collaborations, implementing field activities, and data analyses and modeling;
  • Spearheaded the development and negotiations of research collaborations with academic institutions, corporations, government agencies, and NGOs in Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam;
  • Led the overall project implementation and delivery of two research projects focused on technology-driven innovations for enhancing the credibility and integrity of nature-based climate solutions (Singapore and Riau, Indonesia, with a ~S$2-million research project funding);
  • Collaborated as a science team member of Kyoto & Carbon Initiative led by Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency;
  • Mentored undergraduate and postgraduate students and junior researchers on research-related activities.
 
 
 
 
 

Research Associate / Research Assistant

Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore

Mar 2016 – Jun 2021 Singapore
  • Co-authored several scientific publications focused on understanding the causes and drivers of deforestation and land-use change, quantifying and analysing historical forest and land-cover change using cutting-edge geospatial technologies and approaches, and modeling the effects of deforestation and land-cover change on tropical forest tree communities;
  • Co-developed and wrote research grant proposals successfully funded by Singapore Ministry of Education;
  • Mentored undergraduate and postgraduate students and junior researchers on research-related activities.
 
 
 
 
 

Country Programme Manager & Conservation Geomatics Advisor

Fauna & Flora International

Sep 2010 – Dec 2015 Philippines
  • Managed and implemented pilot REDD+-readiness projects and biodiversity conservation projects funded by EU, USAID, FAO, PTFCF, IUCN-EA, among others;
  • Co-developed successfully approved proposals to secure funding for implementing conservation projects, and leveraged funding and resources from partner organisations to support conservation initiatives;
  • Developed and spearheaded conservation geomatics sub-programme of the Philippines country programme to support the delivery of conservation targets and outcomes;
  • Mentored and line-managed five programme staff on leading project team activities, managing projects and grants, developing project funding proposals, and applying geospatial technologies for conservation applications;
  • Developed technical solutions utilising geospatial technologies for REDD+ and conservation applications including land cover change detection using Earth observation data; defining spatially-explicit High Conservation Value Areas using species distribution modeling and remote sensing analysis; and integration of geospatial field techniques with biodiversity and forest carbon assessments;
  • Co-developed training manuals on radar remote sensing for forest mapping and monitoring;
  • Facilitated training workshops on radar remote sensing for partner organisations;
  • Published conference proceedings and technical reports on geospatial analysis and modeling to support conservation planning and management;
  • Conducted field surveys in forest and mangrove ecosystems for site-level ecological assessments and conservation planning;
  • Collaborated as a science team member of Kyoto & Carbon Initiative led by Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency;
  • Facilitated capacity development of staff through participation in international training courses, masters and fellowship programmes, and local and international conferences.
 
 
 
 
 

Programme Development Officer

Foundation for the Philippine Environment

Apr 2007 – Sep 2010 Philippines
  • Facilitated the integration of the community-based disaster risk reduction and biodiversity conservation frameworks;
  • Conceptualised the development of an open-source GIS and web-based mapping portal;
  • Represented the Foundation as a board member in the following institutions including the Philippine Inter-Agency Committee on Environment and Natural Resources Statistics, the Philippine Clearinghouse Mechanism under the Convention on Biological Diversity, and the Resources and Environmental Economics Association of the Philippines;
  • Spearheaded the coordination of mapping efforts among organisations for biodiversity conservation initiatives;
  • Completed the closure and evaluation of unclosed/unresolved grants, and communicated with delinquent partners concerning the closure of such projects;
  • Under the Rapid Site Assessment Project (Apr–Sep 2007), appraised proposals submitted by contractors for the conduct of the site-level assessments; conducted monitoring and evaluation of project contractors; drafted and presented project status reports; overseeing institutional data gathering covering project sites; liaised with consultants and contractors; communicated and coordinated with government agencies regarding the acquisition of prerequisite permits for the project; and provided support in the overall administration of the project.
 
 
 
 
 

Geomatics Specialist

Polillo Islands Biodiversity Conservation Foundation

Jan 2006 – Mar 2007 Philippines
  • Consolidated all map data and geographic-related literature of the Polillo archipelago for the very first time;
  • Presented technical reports and spatial profiles to three municipal development councils in the Polillo Islands to support spatial conservation planning and policy formulation;
  • Designed and produced coastal habitat maps for the research expeditions of Coral Cay Conservation to support the identification of important marine conservation areas;
  • Conducted field surveys across Polillo archipelago for site-level profiling and spatial conservation planning.
 
 
 
 
 

Geomatics Specialist

Haribon Foundation for the Conservation of Natural Resources

Jan 2002 – Dec 2005 Philippines
  • Mentored and line-managed two assistant project staff;
  • Co-facilitated a series of local forest management planning workshops and consultations in three municipalities involving local stakeholders (government agencies, indigenous peoples, civil society groups, academic institutions, people’s organisations);
  • Presented a review of the National Mining Policy Framework and its implications to Philippine forests and biodiversity at the Senate of the Philippines in 2004;
  • Delivered oral presentations of technical studies in symposia and meetings such as the Annual Symposium of the Wildlife Conservation Society of the Philippines, Regional Meeting of BirdLife Asia, and National Conference on Integrating Forest Conservation with Local Governance;
  • Developed a training module on GIS and mapping in support to biodiversity conservation;
  • Facilitated GIS training workshops for faculty/research staff in four Philippine universities;
  • Published papers such as journal articles, conference proceedings, and technical reports on conservation planning and natural resource management;
  • Conducted field surveys in five Important Bird Areas for site-level profiling and biodiversity conservation planning.
 
 
 
 
 

Lecturer

Department of Geodetic Engineering, University of the Philippines Diliman

Nov 2000 – May 2001 Philippines
  • Taught core courses under the Geodetic Engineering Undergraduate Curriculum, specifically: cartography, geodetic leveling and hydrography, mine surveying, and introduction to computer programming.