MOTHER EARTH Foundation, led by former Artlets professor Arlen Ancheta, has been named one of 15 finalists in the 2026 Earthshot Prize for its community-based waste management initiatives.
The Philippine environmental group is the only Southeast Asian organization among the finalists and is shortlisted in the “Build a Waste-Free World” category, which recognizes efforts to reduce waste and promote circular practices.
“The Mother Earth foundation builds community-run waste systems that stop plastic and organic waste reaching landfills and the sea, helping Philippine cities and coastal communities cut pollution while giving the country’s informal waste workers fair pay and recognition,” the Earthshot Prize said on its website.
Mother Earth Foundation began in 1998, when five women organized their Quezon City neighbors to separate waste, compost organic materials and turn an empty lot into a community garden.
The foundation has since developed its Zero Waste Cities model, which has also been adopted in Indonesia, Vietnam and Tanzania.
It is also behind the Waste Assessment and Brand Audit methodology used by organizations to identify the producers behind discarded packaging.
Ancheta, who serves as president of Mother Earth Foundation, taught in the Asian Studies department of the Faculty of Arts and Letters and conducts research on waste management and climate change. She served as president of the Philippine Society for the Study of Nature from 2017 to 2019.
UST sociology alumnus Raphaelo Villavicencio serves as the foundation’s director for programs.
The other finalists for the 2026 prize are from Australia, Bhutan, Canada, Argentina, India, Uganda, the United States, Niue, Spain, South Korea, France, Kenya and Denmark.
Winners will be announced at the Earthshot Prize Awards in Mumbai, India, on Nov. 17.
Launched in 2020 by Prince William, the Prince of Wales, the Earthshot Prize recognizes environmental initiatives in five categories: Protect and Restore Nature, Clean Our Air, Revive Our Oceans, Build a Waste-Free World and Fix Our Climate.
For its 2026 cohort, the prize incorporated the “science of positive tipping points” into its selection criteria. Paolo Emmanuel D.C. Blanco
