Sustainability

I have to admit I nearly dozed off listening to men on stage talk about sustainability. It wasn’t entirely their fault. I haven’t had enough coffee, the glittering ballroom of Conrad Manila was dimly lit, and it was a little too early for my sometimes nocturnal clock.

But then again, the topic wasn’t exactly headline material. Listening to the men in suits, I didn’t think I’d be able to write a sustainability story that would even make it to the next day’s papers. I knew then that my two-hour drive from Quezon City to Pasay would just be a waste of time. And precious gasoline.

Or so I thought. When tycoons Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala and Hans Sy started talking passionately about sustainability, I suddenly perked up. And when Universal Robina Corp. president and CEO Irwin Lee started talking about plastics and how URC is considering a better way of doing things, instead of just using plastics, he got my 100 percent attention.

The first Global Reporting Initiative Sustainability Summit held last Monday turned out to be interesting after all. And when Teresita Sy-Coson, SM vice chair went on stage, she also got everyone listening.

She said that businesses of today are closely linked with sustainability and all are faced with greater predictability due to the devastating effects of climate change.

“There is a need for us to have common measures on how we are performing,” Sy-Coson said.

I think it’s about time indeed for businesses to look at the way they do business and put in serious effort to do things in a sustainable way.

Some would say it’s rather late, what with all the disasters we’ve been experiencing the past years and the island of plastics in our waters.

But businesses inevitably are catching up. Zobel said that for businesses to remain relevant, corporations must contribute to society as a whole.

He said there are implications of affordability and access during the initial entry into low-income consumer markets.

“This is why ‘parceling’ or purchase-as-needed small amounts have become popular in emerging markets.”

The second point he made was very realistic. He called it the culture challenge as corporate decision-makers do not typically come from the base of the pyramid, making them a step removed from the realities on the ground.

But, Zobel said businesses need to be open to experimentation and to look at business models from a new and innovative perspective.

Sy-Coson said that, indeed, sustainability has become an integral part of doing business. Thus, she saw the need to bring businesses together to have this common cause.

Her brother Hans, SM Prime Holdings executive committee chairman, said SM Prime now allots 10 percent of its capital expenditures to sustainability efforts.

He trumpeted the disaster resiliency features of SM Mall of Asia, one of which is that it has a three kilometer seawall with a drainage and that all structures are built 1.5 meters from ground level.

It’s good to hear businesses talk about something that really matters. I’m looking forward to seeing more initiatives on disaster resilience and environmentally-friendly efforts, including waste segregation and the use of better alternatives to plastics.

Solar para sa Bayan: Solution or Trojan horse?

Speaking of sustainability, is solar power sustainable?

I thought about this because the issues hounding Solar Para Sa Bayan (SPSB) continue.

I received an e-mail from David Tan, head of a consumer group who raised the question: Is the SPSB franchise intended only to be an altruistic provider of cleaner and cheaper solar based energy in the unserved communities, or is it a Trojan horse for a grander scheme to become a master franchisee for a nationwide mini-grid distribution utility?

For sure, Congress needs to resolve the question before deciding with finality on SPSB’s franchise application.

On the other hand, if SPSB mini-grids can indeed make the Philippines the global leader in clean energy while keeping the cost of power low, then it should be a welcome development.

Mayors from five provinces are backing the project.

SPSB promised to bring 24/7 power to some parts of Mindoro, Palawan, Masbate, Cagayan, Aurora, to benefit 200,000 Filipinos.  Of the five, Aurora and Cagayan were among the worst affected by Typhoon Ompong.

Dingalan in Aurora has suffered decades of outages and when power came, it came at a high price.

Dingalan Mayor Shierwin Taay said SPSB has helped solve the power crisis in their town and has reduced the cost of electricity.

“This is a great help for a town like ours to achieve a stronger economy and better life for our people,” Taay said.

It would be good to see other provinces benefit from cheaper electricity as well.

Clearly, the debate rages on with consumers wanting cheaper electricity and big power players threatened by unfair competition. It’s now up to our lawmakers to thresh out the issues.

Iris Gonzales’ e-mail address is [email protected]