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| Scaled to perfection: One of the first recycling markets the country, Trash-to-Cash’s valuable example that waste can have monetary benefits. The recycling market is held every first Friday and Saturday of the month in all SM Supermalls to encourage waste segregation and recycling among SM customers, tenants, and the community. The recycling market is open from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. (Image Source: Orange Magazine TV/SM Prime Holdings Inc.) |
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| The largest haul and biggest participation to-date: The 38th International Coastal Clean-up had 17,000 volunteers across 15 SM Malls in 12 locations nationwide. It is an annual community-driven partnership between SM Supermalls, SM Cares, the DENR, LGU’s and the volunteers from the SM community. (Image Source: Orange Magazine TV/SM Prime Holdings Inc.) |
SM Prime Holdings Inc. (SM Prime), one of the leading integrated property developers in Southeast Asia, is embarking on its long-running commitment towards sustainability in response to the growing global crises on waste and aims to bring all its property groups and stakeholders toward an #SMWasteFreeFuture. According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), humanity generates more than 2 billion tons of municipal solid waste annually, of which 45 percent is mismanaged. Without urgent action, municipal solid waste will double to almost 4 billion tons each year by 2050. On December 14, 2022, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) proclaimed March 30 every year as the International Day of Zero Waste which aims to encourage global action and bring the world's attention to zero waste. The following year, UNEP inaugurated the first International Day of Zero Waste to bolster actions to address the global pollution crisis.
Strong foundations
SM Prime’s founding leader Henry Sy Sr. believed that “business growth and social development must go hand in hand". The company follows this guiding principle and has formed a sustainability policy that commits to the following: Resource Conservation and Efficiency, Disaster Resilience, Climate Advocacy, Social Integration, and Transparent Reporting. Anchored on these sustainability commitments are the SM Supermalls’ Environmental Programs on Waste Management. Through its corporate social responsibility arm SM Cares, SM Supermalls has pioneered longstanding programs such as the Trash to Cash recycling market and provided support to the annual International Coastal Clean Up among other national sustainability-centric events. In the hotel and tourism sector, SM Hotels and Conventions Corporation (SMHCC) has taken the lead in mitigating global food waste by implementing sustainable initiatives across its properties in the Philippines. Their key initiatives include the World Wide Fund for Nature’s Sustainable Diner Program that aims to transform and help the food service sector minimize its impact on the environment thru resource efficiency, plastic refusal and food waste management and contribute to the world’s future food security. To support these programs, SM Prime also recently unveiled its waste-to-fuel partnership with GUUN Co. Ltd. (GUUN) to implement the Japanese technique of reducing landfill impact. The technology converts non-recyclable and hard-to-recycle packaging into alternative fuel.
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| Closing the loop: The sustainability efforts of SM Hotels & Conventions Corporation (SMHCC) are anchored on the 7Gs or Seven Green Goals, based on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDG). The overall thrust for sustainability is cascaded to the rest of properties, ensuring that it is embedded at every step of the hotel’s operations, ensured by property Sustainability Champions. (Image Source: Orange Magazine TV/SM Prime Holdings Inc.) |
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| No time to waste: Sorting through the amount of trash at the GUUN Facility in Cebu. Unfit for recycling and reuse, the waste material recovered avoids the landfill and is then reconverted to fuel resource. (Image Source: Orange Magazine TV/SM Prime Holdings Inc.) |
A Vision for an #SMWasteFreeFuture
“As a community, we strongly believe in our ability to contribute to solving today’s waste issues,” said SM Engineering Design and Development Corporation (SMEDD) President and SM Prime's sustainability champion Hans “Chico” Sy Jr. SM Prime’s announcement of its vision of an #SMWasteFreeFuture, which was made in observance of the 2024 International Day of Free Waste, demonstrates the company’s strong commitment and sustainability stewardship by inviting its stakeholders to engage in activities that will help spread zero-waste awareness and work for a sustainable and environmentally responsible approach on waste management. “We understand that this may seem like a daunting challenge to overcome However, by joining forces, we can create a world that our future generations truly deserve – if we have the courage to take on this journey together,” said Chico.
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| Dr. Rea Villa of Mind You, Willie Garcia of JunkNot and Antoinette Taus of CORA with the SM Prime Sustainability Technical Working Group (TWG) leads (Image Source: Orange Magazine TV/SM Prime Holdings Inc.) |
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| Several SM Prime employees trying out the company's new waste segregation scheme R-D-C (Recyclable-Disposable-Compostable) during its #SMWasteFreeFuture internal launch. (Image Source: Orange Magazine TV/SM Prime Holdings Inc.) |
SM Prime Employees Celebrate Launch Of #SMWasteFreeFuture
Thousands of employees of SM Prime gathered at the new SM Prime Headquarters Office in Pasay City last April 22, 2024 to celebrate the internal launch of the company's #SMWasteFreeFuture program aside from its observance of this year's Earth Day. The event was also attended by employees of SM Development Corporation (SMDC) from Two ECom and of SMHCC in One ECom while SM Prime employees nationwide joined in on the celebration via exclusive live streaming events. Entitled “Re-Thinking Our Relationship With Waste", the internal event aimed to reach critical elements of the employee experience when it comes to waste segregation and waste management by taking a deeper look at how we create better individual habits. Anchored on the Theory of Change, the internal launch reinforces that the right habits create the right response, and the positive consequences follow suit. Chico emphasized that the biggest value of the #SMWasteFreeFuture lies in creating the right call to action by encouraging the SM community to take part in this journey, saying, “The #SMWasteFreeFuture Program is not solely about technology. It represents a fundamental shift in our approach to waste management. It’s about changing our mindset and behavior towards waste, and implementing the right intervention that can encourage the behavioral change that we need." Experts and advocates were invited to give a short session, starting with Rea Villa of Mind You on creating better habits, Willie Garcia of JunkNot sharing her story on how she uses her art to help the environment, and Ms. Antoinette Taus of Cora engaging the hearts and minds present through education and her rendition of the song Heal The World.
SM Prime remains committed to its role as a catalyst for economic growth, delivering innovative and sustainable lifestyle cities, thereby enriching the quality of life of millions of people. SM Prime is pursuing the next horizon on integrated property development and onward to building sustainable cities of the future. #SMWasteFreeFuture is being implemented across all SM Prime companies and subsidiaries nationwide.
