HON. RAMON J.P. PAJE

Secretary Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR)

After working in the DENR in different capacities in a span of three decades, multiawarded public servant Ramon Jesus P. Paje was finally put at the helm of one of the biggest, and probably the most important, line departments of the Philippine bureaucracy.

Paje, the 19th secretary of the agency in charge of protecting and conserving our environment, has ever since displayed the fruits of his educational training, experience, and insight by effectively leading DENR’s close to 16,000 officers and personnel towards collective and collaborative action.

Among his many achievements as DENR’s chief include effectively rallying his people and the citizenry to plant trees through the National Greening Program, involving the private sector, academe, and local communities in the advocacy to clean dirty waters/ waterways in their Adopt-an-Estero program, and improving transparency and security in DENR by eradicating fixers.

Known for being an “action man,” Paje also recognizes the power of social mobilization, approaching every challenge and seeing each achievement as a team effort involving the agency and the rest of the nation. Among the strategies he has employed are partnerships with media networks, organizing concerts, and holding speaking engagements to explain and promote DENR’s programs.

His vision, after all, is to make the cause for the environment a national thing, with every citizen doing his or her part to protect, conserve, and manage the country’s natural resources. With exceptional leadership and communication skills, he is inching closer to fulfilling this objective.