Shangri-La launches ‘Soap for Hope’ in Cebu

MANILA, Philippines - With the mission to create a more sustainable community, Shangri-La’s Mactan Resort & Spa, Cebu recently held the first leg of its Soap for Hope program at its adopted community, Brgy. Tingo, a small coastal town on a neighboring island. The resort remains at the forefront of social responsibility initiatives, as it is the first in Cebu to take part in the global campaign that has been realized in 15 countries by over 150 partner hotels.

Shangri-La Mactan’s launch of Soap for Hope was attended by the program’s founder, Stefan Phang of Sealed Air Corp., who personally demonstrated to the staff volunteers and community members how leftover soap bars can be reprocessed. More than an act of recycling, the program aims to offer a new form of livelihood to members of the community and improve their hygiene practices by providing access to soap.

Over 10 kilograms of discarded soap were collected and used at the launch. Colleagues and community members had an enriching and fun time at the activity, where they were taught Phang’s innovative way of recycling the used soap into fresh bars. It involves mixing the used soap with fruit zests then cold-pressing it. The entire process takes less than 10 minutes.

Piloted in Cambodia in 2013, Soap for Hope has since recycled 240 tons of used soap into 2.1 million bars of fresh soap, and has benefited over 160,000 individuals in local communities each year. Shangri-La Mactan aims to contribute to this growing program by stamping a mark in its own community.

Shangri-La Mactan’s corporate social responsibility manager Dangee Delgado said the resort has wholeheartedly pledged its commitment to Soap for Hope, and it will be included in the resort’s lineup of activities in Brgy. Tingo. A pressing machine has also been donated to the community to be used by locals as an additional form of livelihood.

“We have long wanted to find a way to save our excess soaps from ending up in the landfill, and to provide for the hygiene and sanitation needs of the families in our adopted community,” Delgado said.

Soap for Hope is only one of the several programs that Shangri-La Mactan implements and participates in to ultimately achieve its vision of uplifting the lives of people in the community that it is part of.

Under the umbrella of sustainability, Shangri-La’s social responsibility program consists of the two elements of “embrace” and “sanctuary.” Embrace focuses on Shangri-La’s Caring People Project, which aims to promote the highest level of education and health support in underprivileged communities.

The sanctuary program concentrates on Shangri-La’s Care for Nature Project, which promotes the conservation and restoration of biodiversity.

For more information, access the CSR section on www.shangri-la.com.