More than 200 UPS Philippines employees and their family members recently dedicated their time to a day of painting seascapes on canvas at the Ninoy Aquino Parks and Wildlife Center, Diliman, Quezon City, a shelter for 38 species of trees and shrubs, and sick, abandoned, injured, or rescued animals.
UPS Philippines employees and their
family members paint on canvas to encourage young Filipinos to learn
more about the environment and help protect it. The activity is part of
The UPS Foundation’s ongoing partnership with World Wild Fund for Nature
(WWF) Philippines in support of environmental sustainability.
As one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots, the Philippines is home to mangrove, coral reef, forest, and freshwater ecosystems, and to thousands of different species. For UPS Philippines, the activity provided employees with an opportunity to encourage younger Filipinos to learn more about the environment and what they can do to help protect it.
“One of the four focus areas of The UPS Foundation is environmental sustainability,” said Tim Gohoc, managing director of UPS Philippines. “We hope that through our efforts, more children will realize the diversity that has been gifted to the Philippines and that we all share the responsibility of protecting the environment and our natural resources.”
UPS’s Global Volunteer Month initiative is part of The UPS Foundation’s ongoing partnership with WWF Philippines. Previously, The UPS Foundation awarded a US$10,000 grant to the organization for My1Thing, a program to educate Filipinos on the impact of climate change.
In addition, The UPS Foundation has also awarded a US$40,000 grant for “Simple Steps for Smarter Living,” an environmental life skills education program, to be implemented in 20 public high schools in urban areas throughout the Philippines vulnerable to climate change and improper waste management.
For UPS employees, the Global Volunteer Month was also an opportunity for them to help their families learn more about sustainability and caring for the environment. “We live in a country which is rich in natural resources, and we must do what we can to protect it,” says Art Senseng, UPS Philippines HR manager. “The activity was a good way to introduce some of the resources that we do have, especially to our children, and to remind everyone of what we can potentially lose if we do not do our part. This is also a unique activity for UPS employees, as it allowed them to be creative and raise awareness on important environmental issues at the same time.”
“UPS has always embraced the philosophy of giving back to the community through volunteerism, and has been making incremental investments in resources to ensure that we are contributing to Asia’s development and growth at the pace it demands." said Pete Elroy, vice-president of Human Resources, UPS Asia Pacific Region. "From the 2,400 employees that volunteered 10 years ago in the inaugural volunteer month, we are very pleased to share that nearly 5,700 Asia-Pacific employees, along with their families and friends have contributed their hours in making their communities more environmentally sustainable this year. We look forward to delivering more in the years to come."
Simultaneous Global Volunteer Month activities were also organized in Cebu and in Clark, Pampanga. Elsewhere throughout Asia, a total of 26,000 hours of service were rendered. Through The UPS Foundation, over US$1.7 million in grants and charitable giving were distributed to about 50 non-profit organizations in 2012. Many of these grant beneficiaries have been organizations with whom UPS employees volunteer.
Press release and photo from UPS Philippines
Press release and photo from UPS Philippines
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