MMPH Founder Awarded in Singapore for Mangrove Conservation Efforts in the Philippines

We are proud to announce that Matthew Vincent Tabilog (Tabby), Founder of Mangrove Matters PH, is one of the 8 recipients in Asia-Pacific of the prestigious Sustainability Leadership Youth A-List Awards of Eco-Business at the Capitol Theatre in Singapore in May 30, 2025 for his youth-led initiatives on mangrove conservation in the Philippines through research, science communication, educational discussions, youth and community engagement, policy-lobbying, and mangrove reforestation. 

The Sustainability Leadership A-List Awards initiative established in 2019 is Asia Pacific’s foremost platform for recognizing outstanding professionals who drive meaningful changes across business, policy, and civil society and the Youth A-List Category was launched in 2021. 

A-List Youth Awardees

Tabby started his journey on environmental works when he was an undergraduate student at the Institute of Environmental and Marine Sciences (IEMS) of Silliman University in 2018, under the leadership of Dr. Hilconida Calumpong, one of the leading marine botanists in the country, at that time when she was the Director. During his college days, he was active with the student government, having positions as Vice-Chair of the Silliman University Student Government (SUSG) Environment Committee and as the first-ever Chair of the SUSG Research Committee. He then founded Mangrove Matters PH in 2020 to promote science communication on the importance of mangroves and the marine environment during the peak of the pandemic as everything was purely digital. After he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Marine Biology degree, he did not stop his work on marine conservation and youth and community engagement.

Matthew Vincent Tabilog - Founder of MMPH

Atty. Antonio Oposa, Jr., one of Asia’s leading environmental lawyers, hired him as his Research Executive Assistant and then he worked with CEED (Center for Energy, Ecology, and Development) as the Advocacy and Networking Staff under its Oceans and Climate Program and later on with the Partnerships of Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia (PEMSEA) for the 8th East Asian Seas Congress in Xiamen, People’s Republic of China. 

Currently, Tabby is a Research Student at the Akkeshi Marine Station, Field Science Center for Northern Biosphere of the Graduate School of Environmental Science in Hokkaido University where he is focusing on seagrass studies and blue carbon as one of the Filipino scholars of the prestigious MEXT Scholarship of the Japanese Government.

“When I received the email that I got the award, I was surprised because this is the first time that I got an award that recognizes my efforts. But the things I do is not just simply for recognition but it is for the environment, the youth, and the communities that depend on our coastal greenbelts”, Tabby said.

Tabby’s notable youth-led works are the Mangrove Nursery Management Workshop in Siaton, Negros Oriental, various mangrove planting initiatives in Negros Island, the First National Mangrove Youth Summit in the Philippines, and the youth engagement at the senate for the passage of the 11 Protected Area Bills. 

“Despite my resignation as Chair of MMPH, I have handed the position to Leo (Leo Anthony C. Castro) who will be continuing our works in the country and I believe the youth should always take spaces in environmental conservation because we, as a sector, provide diverse and creative ideas to accelerate the things we advocate for despite challenges like lack of resources and funding for sustainability”, Tabilog added.

Tabby will be participating in the incoming Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (COP15) in Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe this coming July 2025 where he will represent MMPH, the East Asian-Australasian Flyway Partnership (EAAFP) Youth Task Force as the Chair, and Youth Engaged in Wetlands (YEW) as the Knowledge and Capacity Building Lead.