ANNA MELOTO-WILK: A Greener Philippines

What is it like to be the daughter of a man who builds new homes and new lives of thousands of poor Filipinos? What does it feel like to be the daughter of a modern day Filipino hero?

In 2008, Tony Meloto’s daughter, Anna Meloto-Wilk, added the vision her father has had for over years with her love for nature by putting up her own business, Human Heart Nature.

When she and her husband moved to the Philippines in 2007, she had a hard time looking for the products which were either organic or natural. She found a one-stop healthy shop but most of the products were too expensive for her budget.

Her love for her children was the key factor why she chose to go green. Being a mother of two girls, Ariel and Chloe, she made sure that they get the best and the safest products, carefully avoiding harmful chemicals and ingredients.

She also made sure their children understand the concept of being green. It was part of their family’s lifestyle. She proudly shared with us that her two daughters used thirty washable diapers, or what we call lampin, for five years. Though it took a lot of sacrifices from her and her husband, Dylan, they both knew that whatever they are teaching their children would help them in the future.

As a green entrepreneur, she believes that to make people try living a green, healthy lifestyle, it should be affordable.

When she started the business in the Philippines over a year ago, her first option was to import raw materials from other countries where they were available than in the Philippines. But she immediately rejected the idea knowing that if she did that, she’ll be part of the ones killing the agriculture industry of the country. Learning from her father about giving Filipinos job opportunities, she decided to look for local manufacturers or producers of the ingredients she needed.

“Being green is switching to the not-so-convenient way. It is having a forward-looking consciousness.” Meloto-Wilk shares her story behind deciding to go green despite having minimal resources on organic or natural products available in the Philippine market.

Anna faced a lot of challenges in making Human Nature a self-sustaining but socially responsible business. It required a lot of her time, effort and patience. Despite receiving words of caution from well-meaning people around her, she stubbornly decided to take people from the slums as her workers. She hired residents of Gawad Kalinga to work in her company and much to her surprise, they turned out to be the great employees after all.

In November 2009, she launched Human Nature USA.

Looking back, Meloto-Wilk finally succeeded in turning Human Nature into a company with a heart. “Being green is not only being pro-earth, but being pro-human.”