Fr. Francis Lucas is the Chair Emeritus of ANGOC and former head of the NGO Association for Agricultural Research in Asia and the Pacific (NAARAP).Together with ANGOC, he has espoused Sustainable Agriculture (SA) in the Asian region even before the first UNCED. He founded ICDAI, a community-based NGO that has assisted farmers to develop their SA farms since the late 1980s.A self-made agri-technican, Fr. Lucas while promoting SA, has partnered or challenged agri institutions and research facilities alike, such as IRRI and PhilRICE, as well as APAARI.
Through ANGOC, he has spoken before numerous conferences and dialogues to advocate for SA, agroecology and the viability of smallholder agriculture for the past 20 years. ANGOC regards SA as one of the main pillars of food security together with Agrarian Reform and Resource Rights and Participatory local governance.
Fr. Lucas is also a recognized radio broadcaster, heading the Catholic Media Network and is one of the Church's speakers.