UPS, Haribon Foundation jointly restore Philippine rainforests

MANILA, Philippines - The UPS Foundation, the philanthropic arm of UPS, awarded US$35,000 (approximately P1,500,000) to Haribon Foundation, an organization committed to nature conservation.

In addition to adopting more than 7,500 seedlings and restoring six hectares of forest land, UPS’ donation supports Haribon Foundation’s “Rainforest Organizations and Advocates (ROAD) to 2020” project, an environmental conservation movement that aims to restore one million hectares of Philippine rainforests using native tree species by the year 2020.

“As part of our business and with the support from The UPS Foundation, UPS is committed to operating sustainably and doing our part to protect and preserve the environment,” said Tim Gohoc, managing director of UPS Philippines.

“For more than five years in the Philippines, UPS has made environmental sustainability a focus of our corporate social responsibility efforts. To date, we have contributed about US$300,000 through various sponsorships to drive local sustainability initiatives.”

In line with UPS’s “Committed to More” sustainability platform, 12 employees from UPS Philippines dedicated over 50 hours of their time in 2014 to serve as volunteers in the Haribon’s Buhay Punlaan program, which aims to nurture a nursery of native tree species. The volunteers took part in various activities, from collecting wildlings and seeds, to bagging and potting soil, propagating seeds, and maintaining the recovery chamber and nursery beds, to prepare for the planting season. The volunteer efforts went towards the restoration of forests in the Mount Banahaw and Mount San Cristobal areas, which supply water to residents located in the Laguna province.

“There is a lot of work that goes into saving our rainforests,” said Maria Belinda dela Paz, chief operating officer of Haribon Foundation. “Through our partnership with UPS, we hope to be able to restore some of our forest land and make a significant impact as we pursue our goal of restoring one million hectares of forest land by 2020.”

“As we find more ways to give back to our community, we are looking forward to continuing our planting efforts to maintain balance in the atmosphere, preserving biodiversity, and protect a host of other vital ecological processes,” said Gohoc.