The Philippines Chapter Leads

Arnel Paciano Casanova, Class of 2007

Country CEO
AECOM

Arnel Paciano Casanova is a city builder and Country CEO for AECOM, the world's premier infrastructure firm. He was previously President and CEO of Philippines Bases Conversion and Development Authority. Casanova is also the founder of the 9,500-hectare Clark Green City, the Philippines’ first and biggest smart, green, metropolis, and also led the rise of Bonifacio Global City. As a peace negotiator, he drafted the peace agreement that was signed by the Philippine military and the country’s Muslim rebels. For his public service work, Casanova was awarded the Philippine Legion of Honor Medal and the Presidential Medal of Merit, two of the highest national honors bestowed by the President of the Philippines. He is also a lecturer of real estate law at the University of the Philippines (UP) College of Law and helped create the Afghanistan Airfields Economic Development Commission. Casanova studied law, finance, urban planning, philosophy, and English literature and language. His alma mater, the UP School of Urban and Regional Planning, recognized him as its Most Outstanding Alumnus of the Decade. He is a World Cities Summit Young Leader and received his M.P.A. from the Harvard Kennedy School.

Natalie "Ching" Jorge, Class of 2009

Executive Director
Bato Balani Foundation Inc.

Natalie “Ching” Jorge is Executive Director of Bato Balani Foundation Inc., a non-profit foundation engaged in the management of education programs aiming to uplift the quality of education in the Philippines. She is also President of Young Public Servants, an organization harnessing a new generation of leaders who support and advocate democratic citizenship and good governance; Chairperson of the League of Corporate Foundations, the largest network of corporate foundations in the country; Managing Trustee of the International Center for Innovation, Transformation and Excellence in Governance (INCITEGov), a Manila-based policy think tank that aims to develop and operationalize a policy agenda that links democratic politics, good governance, and development outcomes in critical reform areas; and a communication specialist with the World Bank. Jorge is a former board member of the Association of Foundations, and has represented the country in various international programs such as the International Visitors Leadership Program of the U.S. State Department and the Europe-Asia Young Leaders Forum. In 2013, she was recognized as one of Manila’s 40 under 40 International Development Leaders