History and culture tells that the Philippine society is able to rise from 
the quagmire… through collective action.
And Mario Deriquito, director of Ayala Foundation’s Center for Social Development, believes so.
“We have this capability to be heroes to each other, the capacity for collective heroism,” said Mario. “We have shown that in EDSA. We have shown that in projects like Gawad Kalinga and Habitat (for Humanity).”
What we need, he stated, is a vehicle to deliver or manifest the capacity to be one for others.
Mario’s involvement with the Ateneo Student Catholic Group throughout his college years opened his eyes to volunteerism and being involved in the community. Today, he is actively engaged in AFI as head of eight of its projects, one of which is the ICT education-veered consortium GILAS (Gearing Up Internet Literacy and Access for Students).
GILAS aims to connect more than 6,000 public high schools to the internet. Since 2005, it has connected about 1,800 schools around the nation.
In this Greater Good Philippines interview, Mario talks about GILAS and his role as director at Ayala Foundation. He also shares how he is able to handle his 12-hour work day and tells about what he considers his greatest achievement in life, which has helped more than a dozen parishes in their fund-raising efforts.
All these and more only here on Greater Good Philippines.
