Heroes gather for Earth Hour

Official Press Release

Use your power to make environmental change a reality

Use your power to make change. This is what Philips, Sun Life, and World Wide Fund (WWF) Philippines campaign for in the Earth Hour held at the Sun Life Centre Green Roof at Bonifacio Global City on March 29, 2014.

“For this year, we have the superhero theme for Earth Hour. We have Spiderman as our first ever superhero ambassador,” says Mr. Jose Maria Lorenzo Tan, CEO of WWF Philippines,  “We want to ask people, what heroic act can you do to save the planet? We chose Spider-Man because he is a superhero who shows that we can all be great once we realize the power that we have.”

World Wide Fund, Philips, and Sun Life joins together for this year’s Earth Hour beyond the hour switch off ceremony held at the Sun Life Centre Building. Shown (from left standing) World Wide Fund for Nature Vice President for Programs Jose Palma, Philips Country Manager and General Manager for Lighting Fabia Tetteroo-Bueno, Chief Marketing Officer of Sun Life Financial  Mylene Daez- Lopa. Shown (from left in Spiderman outfits) are children who gave their pledges during the event, Richard Enriquez and Robert Angelo Gabriel Ebcas.

In addition to this partnership with WWF Philippines, Philips also collaborated with Sun Life Financial—another fervent supporter of green living. Philips is a tenant of the Sun Life Centre building which is a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) construction in Bonifacio Global City.

The switch-off activity was held at the building’s green roof designed to mitigate what is called the “heat island effect”, a phenomenon which makes the building absorb heat and increase air temperature. The Sun Life Centre’s green roof is the perfect setting for a movement that campaigns wise use of energy with its vegetation that absorbs urban heat and reduce the use of an air-conditioning system inside the building.

Attendees comprised of Philips and Sun Life employees as well as children dressed as Spiderman were given Philips LED tealights to make the 60+ formation during the 60-minute switch-off event which lasted from 8:30 to 9:30pm. After the lighting ceremony, the participants were asked to write their answer to the question “What heroic act can you do to save the planet?” on the pledge wall.

“We want everyone to understand that all of us can make a difference. All of us can be heroes and do something for the planet,” says Ms. Fabia Tetteroo-Bueno, Philips Country Manager when asked about the main message they want to impart. “That’s why for this event, we tried putting together names and brands that support the same message.”

Philips has always been a faithful supporter of green technology. Since 1994, the brand has been trying to improve the efficiency of their products and reducing the amount of energy they use in their manufacturing sites. Philips offers a wide variety of energy-efficient lighting solutions and products powered by renewable sources.

“Sun Life is the perfect partner for this event because they also promote energy efficiency. They really put effort in aligning their brand for long-term sustainability not only when it comes to their business but also to the environment as well,” says Ms. Tetteroo-Bueno.

The Sun Life Centre Green Roof is atop the pre-certified GOLD LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) building. Besides from mitigating the heat island effect, it also helps save on energy consumption as well.

“Philips and WWF Philippines has been working together since 2009 for Earth Hour. This is definitely something we are planning to do for the long-term.”

Philips, Sun Life, and WWF Philippines may indeed come from different backgrounds but there is one thing that ties the three of them together. “We all believe in using power to make change a reality,” concludes Ms. Tetteroo-Bueno.