The Philippines, once dubbed as Earth Hour Hero Country for having the world's most number of participants from 2009-2012, continues to gain a wider audience – thanks to private businesses like SM. With 60 malls spread across the country and 7 in China, the message of Earth Hour goes beyond the symbolic 60-minute light switch-off, and gets a chance to reach the malls' daily customers and visitors. SM's present record shows foot traffic of over four million customers a day.
"We at SM Supermalls are excited to share this hour with all Filipinos who choose to take action against climate change," said Liza Silerio, SM Supermalls Vice President for Corporate Compliance and Head of the Sustainability Committee of SM Cares. "We believe that the challenge of climate change can only truly be addressed through the collective will and the united resolve of every individual," she added.
The potential of resonating Earth Hour's "60+" message to more people even goes beyond 60+ malls of SM. As a host venue for the actual ceremony, all SM Supermalls have given their respective communities and local government unit partners the chance to re-ignite their commitment to help solve global warming in their own ways. To make the ceremony more meaningful, each SM mall will have its own unique ceremony to draw more emphasis on Earth Hour's call for action.
"We have 18,456 tenants in SM Supermalls alone that simultaneously switch off their lights to lead by example. We hope that through our collaborative participation, we are able to encourage and inspire our stakeholders to do their part in their daily lives, from their offices to their homes," Silerio continued.
Since 2007, the Earth Hour movement has been raising support and funds for access to renewable energy, protection of wildlife and their habitats, building sustainable livelihoods and driving climate-friendly legislation and policy.
With this campaign, SM Supermalls reaffirms its commitment to promote corporate citizenship and environmental sustainability as SM continues to support these advocacies through its corporate social responsibility arm, SM Cares.
