In Memoriam | ELSIE BRANDES-DE VEYRA


The EcoWaste Coalition is saddened to announce that our mentor and friend Mrs. Elsie Brandes-De Veyra passed on 1 May 2022 due to an illness. 

Tita Elsie was former treasurer and Steering Committee member of the EcoWaste Coalition, representing the Citizen Organization Concerned with Advocating Philippine Environmental Sustainability (COCAP) and the Zero Waste Recycling Movement of the Philippines Foundation, Inc. (ZWRMPFI).

Aside from her steadfast advocacy for zero waste, Tita Elsie stood for the recognition of the rights and dignity of domestic workers, and for the protection of women from hazardous chemicals.  Signing an open letter as officer of the EcoWaste Coalition and as commissioner of the the National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women (now called the Philippine Commission on Women), Tita Elsie in March 2007 called attention to these toxic substances that threaten women’s health “and their capacity to bear, nurture and sustain life.” At a public hearing called by the Quezon City Council in 2018, she spoke in support of the passage of an ordinance banning cosmetics with mercury content, telling councilors "mercury-laden skin lightening products are hazardous to health."  

For her work in environmental conservation and sustainable development, Tita Elsie received the 2016 UP Alumni Association’s Distinguished Alumni Award. 

We thank Tita Elsie for her contributions to the zero waste movement, and we commiserate with her beloved husband Dr. Ernesto de Veyra, their children and grandchildren over their loss.

We will miss you Tita Elsie!

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