AN upland farmer who now has access to drinking water, a whale-shark guide who was able to send two of his children to college and a boatbuilder who helped rebuild boats in Leyte.
They were just some of the faces featured by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)-Philippines when it gave recognition to its partners in a “Partners’ Night” during its 20th anniversary celebration at a hotel in Makati City on November 15.
“Our work has taken us far and wide over the past 20 years—through the Turtle Islands in Tawi-Tawi, the sugarcane fields of Negros—even international battlegrounds, like COP 22 [22nd Conference of Parties], which even now is happening in Morocco,” WWF-Philippines President and CEO Joel Palma said. “Through it all, our goal has always transcended mere conservation. We don’t just protect a coral reef—we want to make it healthy enough so fishers can fish there forever. We work to positively transform lives and create a future where people live in harmony with nature.”
For his part, WWF-Philippines Chairman Aurelio Montinola III said: “Our corporate, public sector, civil society, the media and academic allies have helped ensure that our core thrusts—food and water security, climate-change solutions and species conservation—continue to deliver long-term solutions in line with modern times…. Alone, we form individual drops—but collectively, we have the strength of a raging river.”
The WWF-Philippines has been conserving the country’s natural resources, protecting endangered species and alleviating poverty since 1996. Among its projects is the transformation of Donsol town in Sorsogon from a sleepy fishing village to a bustling center for wild whale-shark ecotourism, where many residents rose from poverty because of the influx of tourists.
The environmental conservation organization works with many allies to conserve the country’s most significant coral reefs and forests, such as the Tubbataha Reefs in Palawan and the Sierra Madre mountain range covering 10 provinces in Luzon.
The WWF holds the Earth Hour every last Saturday of March—the world’s largest mass action to fight climate change.
During the celebration, the WWF-Philippines feted “Heroes of the Environment”—WWF-Philippines Founder Dr. Celso Roque, Tubbataha Reefs guardian Angelique Songco and slain whale-shark guide Joel Briones.
Believing that the WWF’s strength “lies in its ability to convence industry leaders and drive change across various sectors,” it recognized its “outstanding” corporate partners, led by Century Pacific Food Inc., National Geographic Channel Philippines, Samsung Electronics Philippines Corp., Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Alternergy Wind One Corp., PetroWind Energy Inc. and Trans Asia Renewable Energy Corp./Phinma Energy.
Also recognized WWF-Philippines partners were Arthaland Corp., Banco de Oro Unibank, BPI Foundation, Cebu Pacific Air Inc., Coca-Cola Femsa, Coca-Cola Foundation, Costa del hamilo, Eagle Broadcasting Corp., Far Eastern University, Norwegian Maritime Foundation of the Phils. Inc., Pascual Laboratories Inc., Philips, Republic Cement, Smart Communications Inc., SunLife Financial Philippines Foundation, The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corp., Yuchengco Group of Cos., Griegstar Phils. and United States Agency for International Development.
The BusinessMirror was also recognized with a certificate of appreciation “for its continuous support in helping the WWF build a future where humans live in harmony with nature.”
The WWF-Philippines National Ambassadors Marc Nelson and Iza Calzado hosted the event.