EcoWaste Coalition Jubilates with “Paskong Walang Aksaya” in Tondo, Manila

14 December 2025, Tondo, Manila. The EcoWaste Coalition, together with San Pablo Apostol Parish Council, kicked off its annual Zero Waste Pasko celebration with the 2025 continuing its theme, “Christmasaya Kapag Walang Aksaya” highlighting united opposition to the proposed Waste-to-Energy (WtE) incineration project in Tondo. Since 2006, the holiday tradition has served as a platform to raise awareness and inspire collective action for a zero-waste and toxics-free society for 19 years.

Held at the San Pablo Apostol Parish, the event brought together over 150 community members, youth groups, parish volunteers, and environmental advocates such as the newly-formed Manila Anti-Incinerator Alliance (MAIA), and joined the festivity in promoting reusing, recycling, and rejecting throwaway habits.

The event saw the launching of San Pablo Apostol Parish as a Zero Waste Church to further instill and promote reuse and responsible consumption in the community.

“As we celebrate the Christmas season, we also reaffirm our commitment as children of God and stewards of His creation to protect our environment and promote our neighbors’ right to a decent, healthy, safe, and sustainable community,” said San Pablo Apostol Parish Ecology Ministry Coordinator Jose Torres.

10 groups formed from the Church, MAIA, and Tondo community with 5 members each showed off their creative skills in a parol-making contest featuring reused home items. The activity had brief learning sessions on Zero Waste Pasko, solidarity messages to raise public awareness against the WtE proposal, and a simple gift-giving of in-kind donations for fire-affected families in Tondo.

The event mainly responded to the imminent threat of a proposed WtE incineration plant near Smokey Mountain, a community already burdened by decades of waste-related health and environmental challenges.

“In a time of uncertainty, our collective power to stand together as a Coalition to advocate for human rights, environmental, and health protection for the Smokey Mountain community remains constant. May this celebration of shared hope amplify our urgent call to reject harmful and false solutions to the waste crisis,” EcoWaste Coalition National Coordinator Aileen Lucero said.

The Coalition continues to strengthen the solidarity unity against harmful development projects and empower and uphold their dignity through people-centered solutions.