PBSP eyes record field in Olango open water swim

PBSP eyes record field in Olango open water swim
By Mars Alison
Cebu Daily News
April 27, 2012

This year’s 5th Olango Challenge slated on May 19 at the Tambuli East in Maribago, Lapu-Lapu City is expected to draw a record number of participants with organizers getting inquiries about the open-water swimming marathon as early as January.

The Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) in cooperation with the Philippine Aquatic Sports Association (PASA) said they are expecting 80 participants this year.

However, entries might swell especially that triathletes are expected to use the event to prepare for the upcoming 70.3 Ironman Philippines this August.

With this, organizers said they will be accepting a maximum of 150 entries, as the number is manageable in terms of logistics and venue.

What is considered as the Philippine’s premiere open-water swimming marathon is also a fund-raising project of the PBSP for the residents of Olango Island.

In yesterday’s press conference at the Casino Espanol, PBSP chairman Antonio Aboitiz said the funds that will be raised this year will be used to build a third two-classroom building in the Tungason Elementary School.

Last year, the event raised P1.6 million which was also used to build classrooms and livelihood projects for the residents of the island. The funds came mostly from the pledges made by the participants.

Making the first pledge this year is Aboitiz himself who is betting that he will finish the race faster than his time last year of one hour and 55 minutes.

The course this year will be the same as last year which resembles a box in front of the Tambuli resort and will stretch to as far as the Crimson Resort.

Aboitiz said that the area is ideal for the race because there are no ports and there are no other resorts in between Tambuli and Crimson so there will be no traffic during race time.

One circuit of the course is equivalent to two kilometers.

Categories to be contested will still be 6K and 2K competitive and 6K and 2K fun with close to P85,000 in prize money to be given away.

PASA’s Alexander Reyes said it is a must for participants to join the orientation to be held before the swim, otherwise they will not be allowed to compete.

A swimmer must also be at least 14 years old to be able to compete.

Forest rangers suspect arson in Buhisan fires

Forest rangers suspect arson in Buhisan fires
Cebu Daily News
April 23, 2012

Are arsonists responsible for the series of bush fires at the reforestation plantations in Buhisan Watershed and Forest Reserve?

Volunteer forest rangers suspect the fires that hit the Buhisan Watershed and Forest Reserve may be caused by arson.

Boy Clamares of Toong Volunteers Farmers Association made this assessment after putting out last Saturday, the third fire that hit the critical watershed this year.

Saturday’s bush fire  damaged 18 young narra trees planted in the 2010 reforestation project of the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP).

Maria Luisa B. Largo, PBSP head of Metro Cebu Poverty Reduction Program is wondering why their plantations seem to be the “victim” of bush fires.
Toong barangay Captain Timmy Bacalso also asked the same question.

“Nganu man gyud kaha nga ang PBSP plantation man gyud ang masunog? Nagsusi pa sad mi ana nga panghitabo. Hinuon, ilawom sa teak man sad sila nananom, (Why does the PSBP plantations suffer from bush fires? We are currently investigating on the matter. Fire is inevitable though since they are planting underneath teak trees.) said Bacalso.

Bacalso though only learned of the third fire when Cebu Daily News called him about the fire.

“Wala ko kadungog nga duna diay sunog nga gamay gahapon.  Amo unya ng susihon, (I did not hear about the fire yesterday (Saturday). We will look into this matter.)” Bacalso told CDN.

PO3 Virgilio Bogatan who is assigned in the area was also clueless on the third fire.

Clamares said he has strong reasons that  the fires were caused by arsonists.

“Sunogon nila ang mga kahoy, aron ilang makuha unya himoong uling. Kay og sunog na daan, di naman sila dakpon, (They burn the trees, so that they can harvest it for charcoal because if it is already burned, they would not be apprehended by authorities anymore), Clamares said.

Skyrocketing prices of liquified petroleum gas (LPG) increased demand for charcoal as families stretching their budget shift to charcoal as cooking fuel.

According to Clamares, the three reported bush fires in barangay Toong have already damaged over 10,000 fruit and non-fruit trees and bushes.

The first one on April 13 damaged more than 7,000 young trees while the second on April 17 destroyed about 3,000.

Government authorities however have yet to determine if the fires were intentional as the area used to be the source of raw materials of charcoal makers.

High summer temperature may however also aggravate the risk for forest fires.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) called for vigilance  against forest and bush fires especially during the summer season.

The Buhisan Watershed and Forest Reserve is part of the 28,000-hectare Central Cebu Protected Landscape.

It also hosts the Buhisan Dam which is the main source of the Metropolitan Cebu Water District.

Soaring temperature, forest fire

HOTTEST DAY OF SUMMER:
Soaring temperature, forest fire
By Carmel Lois Matus, Jessa Chrisna Marie Agua, Tweeny Malinao
Cebu Daily News
April 22, 2012

Earth Day is celebrated today in Cebu city amid soaring summer temperatures, a bicycle tour and a second bush fire in the Buhisan watershed.

The weather bureau recorded 33.2 degrees Celsius yesterday, making it the hottest day of the summer, according to weather analyst Boy Artiaga of the Mactan office of Pagasa.

Artiaga said the heat is normal this time of the year but cautioned the public to stay in the shade and drink a lot of water to avoid dehydration and heat stroke.

Those with high blood pressure should also stay indoors especially between 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. when the day is at its hottest.

Artiaga said there was no sign of an El Niño phenomenon and that the heat would subside by May 15 when weather experts expect the onset of the rainy season.

Pedal power will be showcased by bicycle enthusiasts in the morning.

Traffic enforcers will be on the street at 7 a.m. to guide hundreds of bicycle riders who will travel a 20-kilometer Earth Day Route that starts and finishes in  Plaza Independencia.

Roads “are not closed” to traffic.  Bikers will pass the rightmost lane, said Rafael Yap, executive director of the City Traffic Operations and Management.

A Citom enforcer on motorbike will follow the bicycle teams as they travel through major intersections of JY Square, Gorordo Avenue, Juan Luna Avenue, M.J. Cuenco, Legaspi Extension,  Fuente Osmeña, P. del Rosario Avenue, Colon Street and Osmeña Boulevard.

Meanwhile, the two bush fires occurred only four days and a few kilometers apart in barangay Toong in the Buhisan Watershed and Forest Reserve, the first recorded since 2012.

The cause of the fire is still being investigated, including reports that it could have been intentionally started by dwellers out to cut and harvest damaged trees to make into charcoal.

When Cebu Daily News visited the site,  there were dry patches of land littered with  fallen brown leaves of old teak trees mixed with newly planted fruit trees.

About two hectares of a reforestation site in the “greenbelt” buffer zone entering the protected area were burned in the second fire  on April 17  in barangay Toong, Cebu City.

About one hectare was in the project site of the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) while the remaining one hectare is under the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

Policemen and Toong barangay tanods put out the flames that started about  3 p.m., said DENR 7 Protected Area Superintendent (PASU) Ariel Rica.

Fruit trees like santol, nangka, caimito, kamansi (bread fruit), marang and lumbang were among the damaged trees, said PBSP forester Flor Rosales who showed Cebu Daily News the terrain.

Red flower-bearing fire trees, planted in the first-line boundary of the protected area , were also burned.

Also affected were shrubs like rattan, magay and romblon. These were planted for economic use of farmers, who would be trained on weaving and other livelihood options under a PBSP program, said Flores.

Damaged trees and shrubs were less than two years old.  Some were just planted five months ago.

Rosales said after making an inventory, volunteers and PBSP will have to prepare for rehabilitation of the area and replanting again when the rainy season starts.

Barangay Toong has a sloping, steep terrain.

The first fire in early April damaged the lower part.  The second fire ate up the upper slopes.

In a press statement about the Toong fires, DENR said the dried leaves during summer “should be collected and removed from the site as they are potential source of fire.”

It said three aspects have to be considered 1) prevention, (2) detection, and (3) suppression.

Experts have cited the danger of  bush or forest fires where there are dried teak trees especially with cigarette butts irresponsibly thrown in the area.

Teak trees are exotic species that were massively planted in past DENR reforestation projects but are no longer continued because they absorb a lot of water.

Since tall teak trees form a canopy with its broad leaves, shrubs can’t grow underneath, a factor that leads to soil erosion and eventual siltation of the Buhisan dam.

Rosales confirmed that PBSP and many NGOs don’t plant exotic trees and instead focus on planting  native tree species that improve biodiversity, as well as “revenue-bearing” trees and shrubs so that the community can have livelihood opportunities without resorting to cutting down the trees.

The Buhisan Watershed Forest Reserve covers 630 hectares mostly in the uplands of Cebu City.

It is one of five protected watersheds in the 28,000-hectare Central Cebu Protected Landscape (CCPL).

The others are Mananga Watershed Forest Reserve, Sudlon National Park, Central Cebu National Park and the Kotkot-Lusaran Watershed Forest Reserve.

Another bush fire hits tree plantation

Another bush fire hits tree plantation
Sun.Star Cebu
April 20, 2012

CEBU CITY -- A second bush fire broke out in as many weeks in the Buhisan Watershed Forest Reserve (BWFR), where a fight to protect biodiversity is ongoing.

The fire does not threaten any homes, but it hampers the natural growth of indigenous trees within the watershed.

“Since the area is a plantation, there are no dwelling places that would be affected.

HOW TO STOP A BUSH FIRE.  Marili Ortiz, a former forester and a resident of Toong, gathers dry leaves to form a barrier that will keep a bush fire from spreading. (Alex Badayos)
“So the damage is to the humus that could be transformed into organic matter, which contributes to the natural process or cycle,” said Socorro Atega, Cebu Uniting for Sustainable Water (CUSW) director.

The CUSW is a non-government organization involved in efforts to preserve the Buhisan Watershed, Metro Cebu’s main source of ground water. The watershed is part of the 29,000-hectare Central Cebu Protected Landscape.

Atega said that in Barangay Toong, Cebu City, which is located within the watershed and hosts a large teak plantation, the people have grown used to the fires.

“Tungod sa liter sa teak, if you refer to the DENR, heat and lit cigarettes thrown in the area of dried leaves could start a fire. So it (bush fires) have a human factor,” said Atega.

Marili Ortiz, of the Community Environment and Natural Office (Cenro) and a Barangay Toong resident, reported that a bush fire hit a one-hectare area of the teak plantation Thursday afternoon.

The 54-year-old Toong resident said she passed by the forest past 3 p.m. on her way home from work and saw the fire starting. An hour later, she returned to the site and saw three forest guards, accompanied by a policeman assigned in Barangay Toong, putting out the bush fire.

“Nagtuo ka’g dali ra patyon ang kayo pero lisod kayo (You might think the fire would be easy to put out, but it wasn’t),” Ortiz said.

In an interview, barangay captain Teotimo L. Bacalso said he attended a three-day seminar that just concluded Thursday afternoon, so he was unaware of the bush fire.

Bacalso said they are always prepared for any fires and have fire extinguishers ready.

He also said that the residents, who are used to the bush fires that occur every time the hot season comes, help put out the fires in any way they can.

Ortiz suggested that the best way is to put up a barrier of dried leaves to block the rapid spreading of flames. One can simply stomp on the flames or bring water and splash it on the affected area.

Flor Rosales, a technical officer of the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP), said these bush fires are harmful to the environment since it damages mostly the newly planted trees.

Rosales said they have yet to survey if the affected hectare is a part of the PBSP reforestation site.

Blaze consumes trees in reforestation site, damages part of watershed

Blaze consumes trees in reforestation site, damages part of watershed
By Bernadette A. Parco
Sun.Star Cebu
April 18, 2012

ABOUT 3,000 trees were eaten by a bush fire at a reforestation project of the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) in the mountain barangay of Toong, Cebu City last Friday.

According to a PBSP field survey, the fire—which occurred at noon as residents reported—damaged a 4.8-hectare reforestation site. Of the affected area, three hectares were planted in 2008 while the rest were planted last year.

Since the fire, which was put out after two hours, damaged part of the Buhisan Watershed Forest Reserve, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is closely monitoring the area.

Buhisan watershed is part of the nearly 29,000-hectare Central Cebu Protected Landscape (CCPL).

“What happened in the area was an isolated case,” said Malu Largo, program coordinator of the PBSP-Visayas Regional Operations. She added that the dried leaves of the teak trees may have caught fire during the heat.

The trees eaten by the fire were part of the reforestation project of the Visayan Electric Co. (Veco) and PBSP. Only about 991 trees were left unharmed.

Survival
PBSP’s programs are funded by its corporate members, like Veco.

Largo assured that PBSP reforestation sites have a high survival rate of more than 95 percent.

She said that since watershed management and reforestation are priority projects of the PBSP, the group will reforest the area.

But she said reforesting denuded mountains and degraded watersheds should be the concern of the government and the community.

But Ma. Alma Ferolyn, Barangay Toong treasurer, admitted that the residents were not really concerned about the bush fire as it happened some distance away from their houses.

She said residents are used to bush fires in summer. Besides, she added, the barangay does not have a disaster preparedness program.

CCPL superintendent Le-bert Omac said a DENR team inspected the 800 square meters inside Buhisan watershed, a source of water in Metro Cebu, that was damaged by fire.

The DENR is yet to determine if the fire was deliberate. But it said in a statement that “the intense heat with the presence of many large dried leaves of teak tree species may have contributed the fire.”(CNU Comm Intern Zarah Joi J. Ancajas)

Burned: 14 houses in Mandaue city, 4.8 hectares in Buhisan forest

TIPOLO FIRE

Burned: 14 houses in Mandaue city, 4.8 hectares in Buhisan forest

By Jessa Chrisna Marie Agua, Norman V. Mendoza

Cebu Daily News

April 18, 2012

A mid-afternoon fire destroyed 14 houses in an interior neighborhood of barangay Tipolo, Mandaue City yesterday.

No one was injured.

Minutes after the fire in sitio Basubas was tapped at 3:33 p.m., a grass fire sent firefighters rushing to a field a kilometer away at the Mandaue City Sports and Cultural Complex.

Urban and upland fires have been reported in soaring temperatures of summer.

In the Buhisan watershed of Cebu City, a bush fire was declared under control after damaging 4. 8 hectares, according to the Philippine Business for Social Progress  which maintains a reforestation site.

The fire was reported by a PBSP forester who was passing by the area last Friday.  The forester raised the possibility that illegal tree cutters had started the fire to justify cutting down dead trees for firewood and charcoal.

Damaged seedlings of native trees have to be replanted and a two-meter wide “fireline” to be set up by clearing boundaries of debris, said the PBSP in a report.

The fire was put under control “after two hours” said the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), which said it did not know if the fire was  accidental or the work of an arsonist.

“Grassland/ bush fires in the Buhisan Watershed are a frequent occurrence especially in summer time,” said the report of DENR Protected Area Superintendent Ariel Rica.

He said they used “fire swatters like wood and banana stalks” to put out the flames.   The DENR gave a smaller damage estimate of .8 hectares of the undershrubs of an old Teak tree plantation.

The Buhisan watershed is co-managed by the Metro Cebu Water District and DENR.

While the bush fire “won’t affect water supply”, Roel Paneblo, manager of the MCWD environment division, said the area must be “vegetated or reforested immediately” because the siltation level of the Buhisan Dam would increase with the soil erosion.

The PBSP report, using satellite-based Global Positioning System images, pinpointed the area to 4.8 hectares.

“Of these, 3 hectares were planted in 2008.  The 1.8 hectare reforestation site was planted in 2011.”

More than 3,000 forest trees and shrubs were damaged in the “bush fire” but  991 survived ,including native species of narra, malapaya, lumbang and  salingkuwan.

In the Mandaue fire, small alleys in sitio Basubas allowed only  a one-way access for small vehicles.

“We just connected hoses until it reached the area,” said SFO1 Nilo Cosido, Mandaue fire investigator said.

The fire started in the house of Rosemarie Miñoza and spread to other houses of light materials, concrete and wood.

The lone patient of the “Paanakan sa Mandaue”  a three-bed  maternity house nearby was discharged in the morning so no one was around when the fire broke out.

A firewall prevented flames from reaching them, but part of an extension building was affected,  said the owner Liza Basubas Prudenciado.

A 14-year-old girl was asleep when the fire broke. She was frantically trying to get back into their burning  house when a neighbor John Arnel Toñacao grabbed her and took her to safety.

The girl’s mother recalled a fire in the sitio in 2001, and said bystanders who use shabu in the neighborhood may have accidentally caused the fire.

Marvin Sevillino, a resident, was at Carbon market. He wasn’t able to save any of his house appliances while his wife was away in San Fernando town, south Cebu.

Mandaue Mayor Jonas Cortes rushed to the scene and ordered social workers to assist fire victims and provide emergency meals. A rapid census will be made.

“They will receive assistance from the city for sure but we are still assessing them first,” said the mayor.

Fire torches native trees in Buhisan watershed

Fire torches native trees in Buhisan watershed

Cebu Daily News

April 15, 2012

A fire broke out and spread through 12 hectares of the Buhisan Dam watershed a in barangay Toong, Cebu City, while forest guards and residents were attending  a nearby seminar last Friday noon.

Chairman Boy Clamares of the Toong Volunteer Farmers Association said three out of the affected 12 hectares of trees were sponsored by two companies and managed by the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP).

The cause of the fire was unknown but Calmares said he suspected it was started intentionally  by illegal woodcutters  eyeing the  dead trees for making charcoal.

Though most of the trees are still standing, their leaves were torched. A  100-year-old teak tree and several 1-year-old seedlings  were  lost in the blaze.

PBSP forester Flor Rosales said she saw the fire when she passed by the area at 3:45 p.m. and was disappointed to see  that  no one was  putting  it out.

“I got off the motorcycle and went directly to the nearby Nature Center where forest guards and people were having a meeting. They ran to extinguish the fire,” she said.

The fire was also spotted by 28-year-old Buhisan resident Menti Cabingatan, who said she was about to gather firewood at the time.

“Like me, the children were supposed to get firewood, but they ran away when they saw the fire,” she said.

Rosales and Clamares said native trees like teak, narra and molave and some shrubs were  ruined  by the fire.

Suspecting arson, he said illegal  wood gatherers “burn trees since it is no longer prohibited to cut them once the leaves and branches are dead. That’s why they burn it. Why else would they do it? It is because authorities would  arrest them if they cut trees,” he said.

A forest fire is not a rare occurrence in their barangay and it is  especially frequent in the summer, Clamares said.

The biggest recorded bush fire  was in 2010 where a total of 320 hectares was affected.

“The summer heat may also be a cause but it’s possible that the fire was caused by illegal loggers, to avoid being penalized,” Clamares said.

He said the fire wouldn’t have occurred if there were forest watchers assigned to patrol the areas.

The burned plantation is part of the Buhisan Dam watershed reserve, where a ecotourism park is being developed by the PBSP with private donors and the community.

The Buhisan Dam watershed is  a 631-hectare protected area in the Central Cebu Protected Landscape (CCPL) also called the Cebu Hillylands, which is Metro Cebu’s primary source of water.

The 100-year-old Buhisan Dam  itself provides about 5 percent of the  water supply of the Metro Cebu Water District.

The  Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Central Visayas (DENR-7) said it will send a team on Monday to assess the fire damage.

Barangay councilor Melvin Bacalso agreed that forest watchers should be assigned in the area. Correspondents Jessa Chrisna Marie J. Agua, Caryl Baylon and Careen L. Malahay.

BE Resorts joins reforestation caravan

BE Resorts joins reforestation caravan
Cebu Daily News
April 14, 2012

BE RESORTS Mactan in cooperation with Philippine Business for Social Progress joins Cebu Hillylands Reforestation caravan inbarangay Tabuna, Cebu City.

At least 1,690 seedlings of tiga, marupunyot, malasuna and lawaan were planted last Aug. 20, 2011, by BE Resorts Mactan Associates joined by employees of other companies such as Lexmark Philippines, SGV and Co., Recon Radio, Qualfon Philippines, with the support of the Philippine Navy.

As a corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative, BE Resorts supports Hillyland Reforestation Caravan 2011, an environmental advocacy that empowers the community by educating them in agroforestry and engaging the business sector to volunteer.

The project stemmed from the Cebu Development Program of 1991, which covers 27,000 hectares of Central Cebu protected landscape that supplies water for Cebu City, namely: Buhisan Watershed and Sudlon National Park, Central Cebu National Park, Kotkot-Lusaran Watershed and Forest Park, Mananga Watershed and Forest Park.

Earth Hour reaches space!

Earth Hour reaches space!
March 29, 2012
Business Mirror

FINALLY, Earth Hour breaches Earth! For the first time, the global 60-minute switch-off will extend to the International Space Station, where Earth Hour Astronaut-Ambassador Andre Kuipers shall stand vigil over our imperiled planet as the lights switch off on March 31, sharing photos and live commentary.

Kuipers says he is thrilled to participate in Earth Hour to literally take the globally significant movement to new heights. “There’s no better way to raise awareness for the future of the most beautiful planet in the whole universe!”

Back on Earth, preparations are frenetic. From Angola to Zimbabwe, organizing teams from the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and its growing roster of allies are preparing for what is hoped to be the largest environmental celebration in human history.

Earth Hour founder and Executive Director Andy Ridley says everyone from citizens to businesses, schoolchildren to world leaders, need to believe they can make a difference.

“The state of our planet affects each and every one of us,” says Ridley. “Last year Earth Hour reached 1.8 billion people across the planet. This year through digital media we are offering a greater opportunity to connect people with the desire to take much-needed action for the environment.”

Ridley—the founder of Earth Hour—is slated to celebrate Earth Hour 2012 in the Philippines, which has been rewarded for topping Earth Hour’s global town and city participation levels for three- straight years by being declared a ‘‘Hero Country.”

Philippine preparations set, switch-off sites declared

WWF-led switch-off ceremonies are slated for the cities of Makati, Cebu and Davao—though other cities and towns are expected to hold well-organized events to observe the switch-off.

Makati City’s Ayala Triangle Gardens shall be the central hub for Luzon. At 6:30 p.m. on 31 March, glow-in-the-dark dance troupe Bailes de Luces and the Caracol dancers shall form the vanguard of an Earth-themed parade, which starts at the Makati fire station and ends at Ayala Tower One—where WWF-Philippines National Ambassador Rovilson Fernandez shall host a program with performances from El Gamma Penumbra, Brigada and other groups. No less than Earth Hour founder Andy Ridley shall lead the country’s main switch-off event, hosted by WWF with the help of Ayala Land and the Makati City government.

Cebu City’s Plaza Independencia shall be the chief switch-off site for the Visayas. A festive street parade, led by local Sinulog Dancers shall start from Fuente Osmeña Circle from 5:30 p.m. onward. The Cebu switch-off further features a candle lighting ceremony capped off by the release of biodegradable sky lanterns. Cebu’s event is in cooperation with the Aboitiz Group and the Cebu City government.

SM Davao shall be the main switch-off site for Mindanao. WWF-Philippines National Ambassador Marc Nelson shall host the switch-off, which features a tribal-themed parade around SM Davao at 6:30 p.m. Black-light and fire-dancers shall woo the crowd with specialized routines once the city plunges into darkness. The Davao event is in collaboration with SM Supermalls, the Green Alliance and the Davao City government.

Earth Hour Philippines National Director Atty. Gia Ibay shares, “We’re extremely excited for this year’s switch-off ceremonies. Though the Visayas and Mindanao have always observed their own unique switch-off ceremonies, WWF has traditionally celebrated Earth Hour from Manila.

To commemorate our country’s fifth Earth Hour, we thought it high time for WWF to observe the movement across the archipelago—which has always been what we’ve aimed for.”

‘I Will If You Will’ pledges snowballing

Earth Hour 2012’s new “I Will If You Will” handle empowers people to share a personal dare with the world by asking everyone what are you willing to do to save the planet?

The concept of “I Will If You Will” centers around providing a social contract between two parties —connecting one person, business or organization to a “promise” and their friends, family, customers or members to a “challenge”—uniting them behind the common goal of creating a positive environmental outcome.

The campaign has taken hold and “I Will If You Will” pledges are now

snowballing across cyberspace.WWF-Philippines National Ambassador Marc Nelson has pledged to swim with sharks—in a Panda costume—and plant trees underwater while munching on a ledge to avoid plastic and reuse shopping bags. WWF-Philippines National Ambassador Rovilson Fernandez, for his part, has pledged to run races clad in a Panda costume until April if 5,000 of WWF-Philippines’s 23,000 fans opt to use stairs over elevators for a full month.

Cynthia Dayco, a mother and WWF-Philippines Facebook fan, has promised to let her son Josh play Minecraft an hour longer over the summer break if Josh remembers to turn off the lights and fan whenever he leaves his room.

Lyjenunt Gonowon, another WWF-Philippines fan, has pledged to recycle if his friends promise to switch to energy-efficient CFL bulbs.

An enormous LED billboard along Edsa currently showcases pledges posted on the WWF-Philippines fanpage.

Famous faces around the world are speaking out to encourage participation and support for Earth Hour. Environmental activist and former US Vice President Al Gore urged people to join the switch-off from a video message recorded from Antarctica. Pledges are coming in from a plethora of groups—ranging from top band Coldplay to global supermodel Miranda Kerr. As an open-sourced campaign, Earth Hour uses social media to connect a global community of people inspired to change the world we live in.

Local governments, schools, corporations ready to go

Now in its fifth year, Earth Hour Philippines continues to grow. Current public-sector partners include the Climate Change Commission, Department of Energy, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Philippine Information Agency, Department of Public Works and Highways, Department of Science and Technology, Department of Agriculture, Department of Foreign Affairs, Department of National Defense, Department of Transportation and Communications, National Economic and Development Authority, Department of Budget and Management, Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Education, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, League of Municipalities, League of Cities and League of Provinces of the Philippines.

Philippine media champions include TV5, ABS-CBN, GMA 7, CLTV-36, Discovery Channel, Knowledge Channel, ZOE TV, Global News Network, Philippine Star, BusinessWorld, the BusinessMirror, Philippine Daily Inquirer Online, Aftercall Magazine, Philippines Graphic, Radyo Veritas, dzIQ, dzAR, Globaltronics, QCreativs, Photoworld Manila, ASK and Illuminati Philippines.

Corporate partners include the Yuchengco Group of Companies, Arthaland, McDonald's, Globe Telecommunications, Smart Communications, Primer Group of Companies, Core, York, Victory Liner, Aboitiz Group of Companies, Philippine Business for Social Progress, Ayala Land, SM Supermalls, Canon Marketing Philippines, Smart Communications, the Makati Shangri-La Hotel plus Hyatt Hotel and Casino Manila. The list of allies grows longer each day.

“More than anything, Earth Hour is a celebration of hope. When our planet plunges into darkness, we can look to the stars and dream of what can be. When the lights switch back on though—our real work begins,” concludes Ibay.

Earth Hour 2012 is set for 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 31, whether you’re on planet Earth—or orbiting it.

Toong Farmers Open New Bakery with DOLE

      

See the full gallery on Posterous

DTI taps PBSP for Samar’s SMEs

DTI taps PBSP for Samar’s SMEs
By Ninfa Iluminda B. Quirante
Philippine Information Agency
March 27, 2012

CATBALOGAN CITY, Samar, March 27 (PIA) - The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) engaged the cooperation of a non government organization (NGO) to boost Samar’s small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

Meanwhile, the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) - Strategic Corporate-Community Partnership (SCOPE) assists in identifying projects mutually beneficial to the company and the community. Through SCOPE, the SME will be able to look for a community that will produce the raw materials that the enterprise needs in its business.

One example given is the Calbayog Tinapa Processors Association that chooses a community that will culture the fish which it uses as raw product. The scheme will not only assure the tinapa makers (the association) of a steady supply of raw materials but will also provide steady income to the fisher folks in the community; the association is headed by Donato Abelda Jr.

"SCOPE has been designed to harness private sector’s competence and expertise in doing business to create employment," said Cebu- based SCOPE consultant Janina Wohlgemuth, in her visit to the SMEs with DTI folks in Calbayog and Catbalogan.

In Catbalogan, an Entre-Pinay , Lolita Cupido of Lolit’s Danguit (dried fish) would also like to have a community that will supply her "danguit" and a dryer. The dryer will be of use during rainy season.

The scheme for funding, DTI said will be 50/50 because even the company owner can benefit from the communities that will supply the raw materials.

But whether company leaders Abelda and Cupido will be granted the SCOPE benefits still remains to be under the consideration of the PBSP executives. Their proposals have yet to be approved, said DTI.

SCOPE projects have been successful with the SMEs in Cebu and in Mindanao.

Message (of hope) in a bottle

Message (of hope) in a bottle
By Nathalie Tomada
The Philippine Star
March 27, 2012

MANILA, Philippines - Boy Abunda is proud to have gone to a public school. When he was in elementary, the TV host studied at the Eugenio Daza Pilot Elementary School in Borongan, Eastern Samar.

When he was in grade one, he attended a school tucked away in a remote barrio where his mother, then a new teacher, was assigned to teach. He remembers that there were only two classrooms, with grades one to three students packed in one, and grades four to six in the other.

He now believes that his phobia for snakes started at that school, where snakes would find their way to the roof. He also experienced not having any classroom because it got damaged by visiting typhoons.

Despite those challenges, Boy will always remember that part of his life with great fondness.

“I think some of the sweetest moments of my life happened when I was in public school, when life was gentle,” Boy shares in a presscon.

“Those were the times when I was walking to my school in slippers. During recess, I would eat ice candy sold outside the school. I remember a very strict principal and when you throw your trash around, you get reported to her. I miss those unadulterated moments. All these are part of my life, a part of me that has not diminished. I think that public school boy is still who I am deep inside.”

Boy may have gone on to become one of the most successful in the entertainment industry who has a public school background, but he still feels for the many public school students who still have to contend with those conditions that make learning a struggle every single school day.

For this reason, Boy readily gave his endorsement to the new purified bottled water in the market, aptly termed as Hope In A Bottle, which aims to address a persisting problem of the country’s education sector — classroom shortage in public schools.

Boy is joined by other celebs that had public school backgrounds, too, such as Joey de Leon (Moises Salvador Elementary School, Manila), Bea Alonzo (Ususan Elementary School, Taguig City), Winnie Monsod (Juan Luna/Legarda Elementary School, Manila) and Jericho Rosales (Esteban Abada Elementary School, Quezon City). All are endorsing the bottled water for free and are appearing in a commercial megged by award-winning director Yam Laranas, also a product of the public school system.

Hope In A Bottle is the cause-oriented brainchild of Friends of Hope, Inc., led by former actress Nanette Medved and Ricky Gomez, a former San Miguel Corp. big boss. Friends of Hope has committed 100 percent of its profits — meaning whatever is left after all the expenses needed to manufacture, market and deliver Hope In A Bottle have been met — to the building of public school classrooms nationwide.

“This is not just any story, it’s a real story for me, I really experienced what it’s like to be in a classroom without a roof and under the shade of a tree, especially if our classrooms got destroyed,” says Boy, whose many advocacies are essentially education-related (from Unicef to NCCA). “I realized that the problem is still there and is even worse, because there are more students now needing classrooms. So, this is one reason why I didn’t have second thoughts of doing this project. More than just it being water, this is an advocacy.”

Figures say that with 88 percent of Filipino students in public schools, the country is suffering from a classroom shortage of 66,800.

Nanette says, “This is something that everybody knows. When we decided to come up with and choose an advocacy that we felt will have the most impact, actually it’s not hard to think that it’s education. Our public schools, naghihirap talaga, and you can’t always rely on the government to solve all the problems so we thought that rather than blaming the government for the lack of this and that, parang let’s take a most positive approach, and do it ourselves.”

Nanette further relates that it all started as an idea — Project Hope — “and then as Ricky started to pull in all the experts to make it happen, and as we brainstormed, we wound up with this project. Although you’re buying water, what we are really selling here is hope.”

That’s what made Boy fall in love with the project as well. “Ang ingay ng mundo natin ngayon, nariyan ang impeachment trial, mga problema, lahat. I fell in love with this project because it’s hope, and we cannot lose this right now. More than just it being bottled water, it represents so much as to where we should be, what we should have, and what we should go for in the long run in terms of solving problems.”

Ricky, for his part, says: “It’s a rather different (business model). It requires a lot of sacrifice. Hopefully, we can really excite a nation to be part of this and in turn, make huge profit to build more classrooms. That is also what excites me.”

Hope In A Bottle is competitive as a product, adds Boy, in the sense that it’s quality (toll-packed by San Miguel Yamamura Packaging Corp.) and priced at parity with existing products in the market.

To keep track of the profits and any developments on classroom-building, they have also put up the Hope Meter on the Friends of Hope’s Facebook account.

So how does it work? Once enough funding has been raised for a classroom, Friends of Hope in tandem with the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP), the largest corporate-led, non-profit social development foundation in the country, will refer to a shortlist provided by DepEd of the “most desperate districts” to select a school. Once that school is identified, Friends of Hope and PBSP will bid out the project. PBSP will then manage the project under its Ten Moves program. Depending on the location of the school, building a classroom can cost from P500,000 to P700,000 per classroom, and this amount only covers the bare structure.

Nanette says, “It (is) really an effort but we understand that Filipinos really have this sense of collective heroism, which is why nanggaling sa atin ’yung People Power. It’s really in us to help, so we decided to use this for good and put it towards something more tangible like schools.”

Hope In A Bottle is supported and distributed by Rustan’s, Ministop, Krispy Kreme, Seattle’s Best Coffee, Jamba Juice, Shopwise, Kenny Rogers, Super 8, Suy Sing, Landmark, South Supermarkets and selected Robinsons Supermarkets.

Two companies join PBSP

Two companies join PBSP
By Grace Melanie I. Lacamiento
The Freeman
March 19, 2012

CEBU, Philippines - More and more companies strengthen their mission towards promoting corporate social responsibility and reaching out to the community.

In the recent 24th Visayas Annual Membership of Philippine Business for Social Progress, the foundation which has over 230 corporate members nationwide welcomed and recognized two new member companies – the Venus Group of Companies and Talleco.

Venus Group of Companies is a manufacturer and exporter of handicrafts, furniture, coco-based items and accessories while Talleco is a business process outsourcing company and advertising industry.

Revolving in its current theme “Develop, Nurture, Align”, Jose Antonio Aboitiz, Board of Trustee and Chairman of PBSP Visayas Executive Committee said that corporate social responsibility must also be inculcated in each company’s DNA.

“DNA is life’s blueprint. In the same way, CSR is also essential in PBSP and in companies. It builds concrete bridges of work accomplished in communities and companies. We develop, nurture and align corporate citizenship in your core business in which we also share innovative citizenship approaches,” Aboitiz said.

He added that PBSP positions itself as an organization of choice that bridges the gap between profitability and economic sustainability. He also gave acknowledgement for the contribution of the member companies to the organization’s success.

PBSP Visayas committee has approved P112 million for projects in Bohol, Cebu, Guimaras, Leyte and Samar focusing on sustainable livelihood and enterprise, health, environment and education.

The foundation has strategically extended its assistance to subcontractors and companies such as Jojie’s Bakeshop, Andy’s Crunchicken, Bon Ace Fashion Tools Inc., Wellmade Corporation, Philippine Associated Smelting and Refining Corporation and even the Buhisan watershed.

Rafael Lopa, PBSP Executive Director, noted that PBSP aims to establish models of change through successful projects with the help of their donors, members, advisers and volunteers.

“We hope to learn more form each other by scaling up big solutions from big problems. We are geared towards more projects that answer the need for access of financial and human resources. We value the continuing trust and confidence of our financial contributors to PBSP,” he said. — By Grace Melanie I. Lacamiento

In its “DNA” theme, PBSP plans to develop key agents of social change for sustainable growth, nurture institutions for positive transformation and align companies and communities for a mutually-beneficial relationship.

This year, the corporate-led social development organization awarded 13 volunteer advisers form different sectors of the society who shared their knowledge and expertise to the companies and communities.

PBSP okayed P112M in projects

PBSP okayed P112M in projects
By Mia A. Aznar
Sun.Star Cebu
March 19, 2012

In the last two years, the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) Visayas Executive Committee approved P112 million in projects, its chairman Jose Antonio Aboitiz reported.

During the organization’s 24th annual membership meeting last week, Aboitiz assured member-companies that their contributions, along with financial assistance from international donors and local companies, were able to fund these projects, which included livelihood, enterprise, environment, education and health programs, as well as business advisory for micro, small and medium enterprises.

In his report, he said these projects were carried out in the provinces of Bohol, Cebu, Guimaras, Iloilo, Leyte, Northeren Samar and Southern Leyte.

Replication

He also said that for the period, they were able to record good experiences that are ready to be scaled up or replicated in other areas.

“PBSP positions itself as your organization of choice, as we have concrete programs and business solutions that bridge the gap between profitability and environmental sustainability and complement your business requirements with resources that our assisted communities can ably provide,” he said.

He explained that their corporate-community partnerships work along the value chain of companies. They help communities become suppliers of services or semi-processed goods to help fill the gaps of a company’s supply chain.

As examples, he cited the success of a farming community that has benefitted from their project by bridging them with Bohol-based Jojie’s Bakeshop, makers of peanut delicacies that the province is known for. Other success stories include a group of out-of-school boys, who are now accepting upholstery orders from Kenneth Cobonpue’s furniture company.

Also present during the meeting was the executive director of the Philippine Association of Smelting and Refining Cooperative (Pasar) Foundation, Ruben Cajigas, who shared their experience of training out-of-school youths in Isabela, Leyte to on welding and pipe-fitting skills.

Benefits

Cajigas said the project benefitted both the company and the community, as it provided the company with much-needed skilled workers providing employment opportunities to out of school youths in the town. He said that because of poverty, about 40 percent of the town’s youth could not go on to college.

By teaching them these skills and allowing them to complete their on the job training at Pasar, Cajigas said have helped 39 out of school youths become Tesda-accredited welders and pipe fitters. Some have also found employment in neighboring companies.

PBSP executive director Rafael Lopa, said that while the PBSP is one of the largest business-backed non-government organizations in the country, the collaboration of all stakeholders is needed to achieve the changes they wish to implement.

He thanked member companies for their contributions, saying these funds have allowed them to embark on several projects that have the endorsement of international donors.

“Your collective giving has capacitated PBSP to absorb the management of huge grants from multi-lateral donor agencies. Most notable are the funding from USAid and Global Fund for TB (tuberculosis) Control,” he said. He added that currently, PBSP manages 40 percent of the total TB Control budget in the country.

He further announced that PBSP is finalizing big grants for classroom construction in public schools to aid in addressing the 66,000 backlog of classrooms in the country.

Recognition

They are also finalizing the establishment of a. “more inclusive supply chain mechanism” between companies and community-based producers.

Beyond contributing funds, Lopa challenged members to think of ways to scale up successful projects so that more can benefit.

During the meeting, the organization gave recognition to 13 individuals who volunteered their expertise in advising small businesses in agriculture, tourism and manufacturing. Two new companies, Talleco, a business process outsourcing company, and the Venus Group, an exporter, joined the 259 members of the PBSP.

PBSP-Visayas OKs Projects Worth P112M

PBSP-Visayas OKs Projects Worth P112M
By Malou M. Mozo
Manila Bulletin
March 19, 2012

CEBU CITY, Cebu — The Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) Visayas’ Executive Committee said it has approved some P112 million worth of projects in the last two years, even as its head in the region said more projects are expected to be established this year with its partner companies, groups and donor agencies.

The PBSP is the largest corporate-led social development foundation in the country. Committed to poverty reduction, it is the first of its kind in Asia, leading in the promotion and practice of corporate social responsibility (CSR).

Jose Antonio Aboitiz, who chairs PBSP’s Visayas executive committee reported during PBSP’s recent annual membership meeting that programs in 2010 and 2011 in the Visayas valued at P112 million were focused on livelihood, enterprise, environment, education and health programs, as well as business advisory for micro, small and medium enterprises.

Said projects were established in Cebu, Bohol, Iloilo, Guimaraas, Leyte, Northern Samar and Southern Leyte provinces.

“PBSP positions itself as your organization of choice, as we have concrete programs and business solutions that bridge the gap between profitability and environmental sustainability and complement your business requirements with resources that our assisted communities can ably provide,” Aboitiz said during PBSP’s recently concluded 24th annual membership meeting.

“Corporate-community partnerships work along the value chain of companies. They help communities become suppliers of services or semi-processed goods to help fill the gaps of a company’s supply chain,” Aboitiz added, noting that corporate citizenship is “the DNA in PBSP’s business sector involvement.”

Among the many successful corporate-community partnerships forged by PBSP is that with a farming community that has benefitted from PBSP’s bridging it with Bohol-based Jojie’s Bakeshop, makers of peanut delicacies for which Bohol is known for.

Other success stories include a group of out-of-school boys, who now service upholstery orders from globally-famous furniture designer Kenneth Cobonpue’s furniture-making company.

Meanwhile, PBSP executive director Rafael Lopa said that while the PBSP is one of the Philippine’s largest business-backed non-government organizations, close collaboration by all of its stakeholders is needed to achieve the organization’s objectives and the changes in society it wishes to effect.

“Your collective-giving has capacitated PBSP to absorb the management of huge grants from multi-lateral donor agencies,” said Lopa. “|Most notable are funding from USAid and the Global Fund for TB (tuberculosis) Control. He added that, currently, PBSP manages 40 percent of the total TB Control budget in the country.

He further announced that PBSP is finalizing big grants for classroom construction in public schools to aid in addressing the 66,000-classrooms backlog in the country.

Cebu business group vows more projects

Cebu business group vows more projects
By Marlen D. Limpag
Business World Online
March 18, 2012

CEBU CITY -- The Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) said millions of pesos worth of projects have been implemented in the last two years even as more activities are expected this year with partner companies, groups and donor agencies, an official said.

Jose Antonio Aboitiz, chairman of the PBSP Visayas executive committee, said during the group’s annual membership meeting last week that programs in 2010 and 2011 -- worth P112 million -- focused on livelihood and enterprise, the environment, as well as education and health.

Social enterprise programs have the best potential to address the environment, material, and spiritual divides and bring the country forward, said Paolo Benigno Aquino IV, Microventures, Inc. president.

For his part, Rafael C. Lopa, the group’s executive director, said new methods are required to address poverty and climate change issues, citing as example efforts to replicate management practices at Cebu’s watershed in the Upper Marikina River Basin Protected Landscape.

Entrepreneur says social enterprise best model for the future

Entrepreneur says social enterprise best model for the future
Philippine News Agency
March 18, 2012

CEBU CITY -- An entrepreneur has said that social enterprise, aside from helping the less fortunate, is the best business model for the future.

Speaking at the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) general membership meeting, Microventures Inc. president Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV said social enterprise simultaneously addressed spiritual, material and environmental divide in society.

While he lauded the Filipinos for being charitable, especially during times of calamities, he said there were some poor people who did not need charity.

Instead, they needed help acquiring skills to better themselves, he said.

Aquino, who organized the Hapinoy Stores with his business partner Mark Ruiz in 2006, likened successful social enterprises to “a new form of people power.”

“There is dignity in livelihood. If the poor are able to build a business on their own, there is a dignity there that can’t be bought,’ he said.

He said that by building business skills of sari-sari store owners and connecting them with companies, they were empowered to support themselves.

“As their stores grow, so will they, as individuals,” Aquino said.

Aquino said that as they grow their businesses they also become better family members.

Microventures service microfinance organizations and their clients through the Hapinoy Store program.

Aquino said that their company started with a dream to make the “lowly’ sari-sari store powerful.

With the sari-sari store being at the bottom of the retail chain, Aquino said they wanted to bring hope to micro-entrepreneurs, about 800,000 of these being sari-sari stores.

He said organizing owners of these stores allowed them to create a network of sari-sari stores and “transform their mindsets” from being a poor, helpless store owner to an entrepreneur with a business that could be scaled up with proper management.

While he admitted initial steps introduced to store owners were often met with resistance, he said they would later on willingly implement more discipline in running their stores and see things differently.

The Hapinoy program won the United Nation’s Project Inspire award against 400 other social enterprises.

He and Ruiz were also named Asian social entrepreneur of the year by the World Economic Forum’s Schwab Foundation for Social Enterprises.

Aquino also joined the board for Rags2Riches in 2007, a business that helps underprivileged women weave rags and turn these into fashion accessories.

He hopes that in five to 10 years, a similar model of the Hapinoy Program will flourish in other developing countries.

PBSP: Empowering people through enterprise

PBSP: Empowering people through enterprise 
By Grace Melanie I. Lacamiento 
The Freeman
March 17, 2012

CEBU, Philippines - Empowering socially and economically-challenged people to succeed on their own by managing small businesses like sari-sari stores can already make a difference in the society.

As the keynote speaker of the recent Visayas annual membership meeting of the Philippine Business for Social Progress, Microventures Inc. President Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino said that social enterprise is a model that can create transformation and sustainability that everyone can achieve.

“We believe in empowerment and social enterprise is a new form of people power. It is the best way to simultaneously address the environmental, material and spiritual divides in society,” Aquino said.

Aquino, who is a co-founder of Hapinoy store together with Mark Ruiz in 2006, said that the program intends to empower sari-sari store owners with good management skills and opportunities to be linked with manufacturers and other companies.

“Hapinoy store dreamed of a lowly store that can be a powerful store. This is a hope for micro-entrepreneurs,” he stated.

As the smallest unit of the retail chain having about 800,000 sari-sari stores all over the Philippines, Aquino said that working with the store owners and helping them transform their mindsets and uphold their dignity can improve the economy.

However, he pointed out that social enterprise is different with charity.

“We need charity. We definitely need that. But our contention in social enterprise is not all poor people needs charity. What they need is financing, training and management expertise to develop themselves,” Aquino said.

He added that micro-entrepreneurs have the capacity to do more on their skills, capital and opportunities, unleashing the power in communities to fight poverty and illiteracy.

Aquino encourages the sari-sari store owners to work together and be a stronger force of the society moving towards a tipping point, running their stores and perceiving things differently.

Managed by the Microventures Inc., the micro entrepreneur enhancement program aspires to be nationwide within two to three years and envisions itself to be globally-inclined in the next 5-10 years.

Hapinoy was among the five social entrepreneurs from Asia recognized as “Asian Social Entrepreneurs of the Year 2011” by the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship.

Sari-sari stores: Social enterprise for ‘people power’

Sari-sari stores: Social enterprise for ‘people power’
By Aileen Garcia-Yap
Cebu Daily News
March 16, 2012

Changing the mind-set of sari-sari store owners from being “just a small store owner” to “an entrepreneur running a business that has potential to grow” is one way to empower people to start their own business.

Paolo Benigno “Bam” A. Aquino IV, founder of Hapinoy Store, said this was the aim of the group behind the network of sari-sari stores which he helped set up in 2006.

“We believe in empowerment. We feel this is a new form of ‘people power.’ We fight the poverty of the mind, spirit and wallet,” said Aquino during last Wednesday’s annual membership meeting of the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) Visayas at the Casino Español.

Aquino explained the difference between charity and a social enterprise.

Giving people what they need through traditional chairty has temporary benefits.

“A social business enterprise puts into balance the three important issues—environmental divide, the material divide and the spiritual divide—and is the best way to address each of them simultaneously,” said Aquino.

Aquino, who co-created the Ang Hapinoy Store in 2006, said he was inspired by an international futurist who gave a talk emphasizing three important numbers—1.5, 2.5 and 3 “that every entrepreneur should address.”

“The number 1.5 is the amount of resources that we use compared to the actual available resources that we have. This represents our environmental divide,” he said.

For the second number, 2.5 represents the total number of poor people, in billions, in the world, which represents “our material divide.”

The number 3 refers to the trend of three times more deaths caused by suiicide compared to death by violence in the world.

“This represents our spiritual divide,” said Aquino.

A social enterprise addresses all three needs.

Aquino said the Hapinoy Store was created to help empower the owners of the sari-sari store, as the smallest retail unit in the country.

“There are around 800,000 sari-sari stores in the country today and if we can group them, they can become powerful. We thought that if we can work with the owners, empower them and make ways for a change in mind-set, we can be able to help improve our economy,” said Aquino.

Aquino illustrated the concept of a social enterprise by sharing the classic children’s story “The Giving Tree” with a twist.

In the classic story, an apple tree gives up all its fruits and wood so that a boy could earn money and be happy.

Aquino then retold the story using a mango tree, who gave all her fruits and told the boy to sell half of it and plant the seeds of the other half. The seeds multiplied till the boy had an orchard, providing a sustainable income for the boy until he became an old man.

“For Hapinoy, we are aiming it to be nationwide within two to three years and global within the next five years,” said Aquino.

The PBSP Visayas has its own volunteer program for start-up businesses.

The Business Advisory Program (BAP) involves volunteers from member companies of the PBSP, a foundation made up of at least 230 corporate members.

Individual experts volunteer for assignments in finance, marketing, production operations and organizational management.

This year, PBSP Visayas awarded 13 volunteer advisors, including a posthumous award to Mr. Leonardo Alindajao who was the quality and productivity coordinator of San Miguel Yamamura Packaging Corporation.

Alindajao assisted the Agricultural Producers Cooperative in San Carlos City, Negros Occidental.
According to PBSP executive committee vice chairman Philip N. Tan, 46 volunteer advisers have assisted 39 enterprises .

“This year we hope to have more volunteers and assist more enterprises,” said Tan.

In his remarks, PBSP executive director Rafael C. Lopa said they aim to scale up successful anti-poverty projects such as the development of the Cebu Hillylands and replicate it in other communities like the Marikina watershed in Luzon.

“We want to establish a win-win models of change through our successful projects,” said Lopa.

Other awardees were Michael J. Alcarde, engineer Gerry R. Burdas of Teradyne Philippines, Limited, Dioscoro O. Ayag Jr. of Options and Concepts and Spice Up Massage and Spa and Bed and Bath, Rammel B. Cagulada of Cagulada Accounting Solutions, Macario P. Balali of East Asia Utilities Corp and Cebu Private Power Corp., Arlette L. Melgar of Development Academy of the Philippines, Ronaldo V. Puzon of Hotel and Restaurant Management of CITU, Cristina Florabel C. Lim and Neil Raymond N. Saletrero of the University of San Jose Recoletos, Engr. Phyllis May C. Sia of the University of San Carlos, Jose F. de Castro of Center for International Education, and Maria A. Bunao of PBSP.

Social enterprises ‘the future’

Social enterprises ‘the future’
By Mia A. Aznar
Sun.Star Cebu
March 15, 2012


Beyond helping the less fortunate, social enterprise is the best business model for the future, said an entrepreneur.

Speaking at the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) general membership meeting, Microventures Inc. president Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV said social enterprise simultaneously addresses spiritual, material and environmental divides in society.

While he lauds the Filipinos for being charitable, especially during times of calamities, he believes there are some poor people who do not need charity. Instead, they need help acquiring skills to better themselves.

Aquino, who organized the Hapinoy stores with his business partner Mark Ruiz in 2006, likened successful social enterprises to “a new form of people power.”

“There is dignity in livelihood. If they (poor) are able to build a business on their own, there is a dignity there that can’t be bought,” he said.

Empowerment


He explained that by building business skills of sari-sari store owners and connecting them with companies, they are empowered to support themselves.

“As their stores grow, so will they, as individuals.”

Aquino said that as they grow their businesses, they also become better family members.

Microventures services microfinancing organizations and their clients through the Hapinoy Store program.

Aquino said that their company started with a dream to make the “lowly” sari-sari store powerful.

With the sari-sari store being at the bottom of the retail chain, Aquino said they want to bring hope to microentrepreneurs, about 800,000 of these being sari-sari stores.

He said organizing owners of these stores allowed them to create a network of sari-sari stores and “transform their mindsets” from being a poor, helpless store owner to an entrepreneur with a business that can be scaled up with proper management.

Resistance

While he admitted initial steps introduced to storeowners are often met with resistance, he said they will later on willingly implement more discipline in running their stores and see things differently.

The Hapinoy Program won the United Nations’ Project Inspire award against 400 other social enterprises. He and Ruiz were also named Asian social entrepreneur of the year by the World Economic Forum’s Schwab Foundation for social enterprises.

Aquino also joined the board of Rags2Riches in 2007, a business that helps underprivileged women weave rags and turn these into fashion accessories.

He hopes that in five to 10 years, a similar model of the Hapinoy Program will flourish in other developing countries.