Ayala Corp shares sustainability journey

MANILA, Philippines — When companies start talking about sustainability, journalists start to yawn and zone out.

But Ayala Corp., the country’s oldest conglomerate, is unfazed. It continues to reach out to its stakeholders, different communities and journalists alike to explain its sustainability efforts.

In a recent forum on sustainability, Ayala Corp. chief finance officer and managing director Jose Teodoro Limcaoco took the spotlight and explained the company’s many concrete steps in embracing sustainability in the way it conducts its business.

Whenever he talks about sustainability, Limcaoco lights up. The excitement and passion are almost tan­gible, true to his role as the company’s chief sustain­ability officer.

In all, Limcaoco explained that Ayala anchored its sustainability efforts with the UN Sustainable Develop­ment Goals.

“The UN SDGs serve as business objectives aligned with our purpose of accelerating the future by seeing potential, making businesses better and improving lives,” he said.

The company has embodied its sustainability efforts into its integrated reports released annually. Thus, it’s no longer just the usual annual reports. Ayala, like many listed companies, now have integrated reports.

More importantly, with its latest integrated report, Ayala took the extra mile in making its report more reflective of what the company is doing.

It has for instance set sustainability targets.

“For the past two integrated reports, we disclosed our contributions to the SDGs. Now, we are more deliberate in our contribution by setting targets and having champions for SDGs that are core to our businesses across the group,” Limcaoco said.

Limcaoco narrated that in 2009, the company began speaking of integrating sustainability into its business model and touching the base of the pyramid.

Sustainability efforts progressed and so did the re­porting. Ayala Corp. 2011 Annual Report started giving more importance to sustainability. A separate sustain­ability report was still published and the company began speaking of creating shared value.

“Our framework began taking shape: Sustaining and sharing value, greening and growing our business, and changing the social landscape,” he said.

Targets

In 2030, the same year that the SDGs will be fully measured, Ayala Corp. envisions a country where all citizens are free from hunger and poverty. The company wants a Filipino who is healthy, educated and has access to safe and affordable water. The Filipino should also be an entrepreneur, employed or economically secure with access to financial services, information and communica­tion and is able to move freely and efficiently and lives in a safe dwelling.

The Filipino should also have access to clean energy, manages waste effectively and is a responsible global citizen.

In the area of access and inclusivity for instance, Ayala Corp. envisions a Philippines where everyone has access to basic human needs.

The conglomerate also envisions a country where Fili­pinos have the safety, stability and support they need in order to engage in decent, ethical and productive work and entrepreneurial activities.

They are supported by innovative infrastructure de­velopment that makes it possible to live and work safely and securely. They should also have increased access to connectivity, information technology and financial services.

Ayala Corp. also envisions a Philippines that ad­dresses its vulnerability to climate hazards through the development of affordable and clean energy, re­sponsible production and consumption and proactive climate action.

“Here, the business community leads innovation to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and to driver consumer and customer demand for more sustainable alternatives and lifestyles. It boldly challenges the sta­tus quote to engage in climate action, recognizing its role as a driver of consumer behaviour and sustainable development,” Limcaoco said.

Indeed, Ayala is walking the talk. It has set bold targets to achieve its sustainability goals. This, at best, is the first big leap toward a better, brighter future not only for the company but for the country.