From land to sea, AboitizPower walks the talk
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These days, champions of sustainability are diamonds in the rough. AboitizPower is one such gem.
With its purpose being to “transform energy for a better world,” the company aligns its strategies with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals through its corporate social responsibility efforts. AboitizPower understands that sustainability touches every aspect of our existence, particularly the environment, culture, and the community. This understanding helps shape AboitizPower’s CSR initiatives.
In Toledo City, Cebu, Therma Visayas, Inc., a subsidiary of AboitizPower, has partnered with the local community to enact environmental projects that directly benefit the people.
Scubasurero: Discovering an unexpected haven
Among TVI’s prime sustainability programs is Scubasurero, a coastal and underwater clean-up drive that aims to help conserve life below the waters of Tañon Strait. TVI employees, volunteers, marine biologists, and government representatives gather to dive and clean the shoreline and submerged areas near the TVI facility and Bato Marine Sanctuary.
On April 24, 2025, TVI and AboitizPower once again invited the Scubasureros to dive from the jetty of its 340-megawatt Therma Visayas power plant and clean the area and its nearby surroundings. Coastal and underwater cleanups have led to about 11,500 kilograms of gathered waste since the program’s launch. This time, the collected waste only weighed 35 kilograms, against 408 kilograms in October 2022. This development reflects the growing interest in environmental protection and preservation in the surrounding communities.
Besides cleaning the waters, the Scubasurero program has paved the way toward an unexpected discovery: an abundant biodiversity beneath the jetty, a haven for marine flora and fauna.
The quality of life to support marine diversity in the area shows promise. Marine biologist Roxie Diaz explained that various factors, such as the area’s undisturbed state and the protected natural reef nearby, may have influenced the thriving presence of life in the jetty’s columns.
Spreading the word
Marine biologist Agnes Sabonsolin-Bautista shared that activities such as Scubasurero, especially with media coverage, help inform and reach people: “Now they know there's a chance na if we volunteer pala [...] we can go somewhere cool like a power plant. It's a cool experience, and at the same time, you're also doing something very good for the environment.”
Some of the marine life that Diaz and Sabonsolin-Bautista have found in their dives are sea fans, soft and hard corals, groupers, snappers, butterfly fishes, eels, lionfishes, and even nudibranchs, or sea slugs.
Sabonsolin-Bautista urges TVI to maintain these activities as they help the marine ecosystem. Diaz, on the other hand, hopes for more research-driven approaches that explore the relationship between the waters near TVI and the adjacent natural reef.
TVI’s Scubasurero program not only helps the environment but also rallies multiple groups that believe in the cause, such as Toledo Spearo member Leo Jay Canonigo, who shared that he has observed a noticeable decrease in the marine debris they collect—clear proof of the Scubasurero project's effectiveness.
TVI Environmental Supervisor Emalyn Sevilla shared that their partner communities have been eager to help with the cause. TVI also works closely with local government units and other government agencies to ensure the success of their projects.
Sevilla said they are refining their information, education, and communication campaigns by employing a sectoral approach, considering their stakeholders' differing contexts.
Project B.R.I.C.K.: Fortifying communities
As they plan their sustainability-centered projects, AboitizPower and TVI are also exploring possible innovations, mindful of their role in the energy industry and host communities. This approach laid the foundation for Project B.R.I.C.K. (Building Resilient Infrastructure for Communities and Kalikasan), a collaboration between TVI, the Aboitiz Foundation, Inc., and Toledo United Farmers, Fishermen, and Women Workers.
This project uses the technology of the social enterprise Green Antz to transform TVI’s fly ash, along with plastic waste, into durable eco-bricks. TVI supplies the fly ash to TUFFWOW for free.
TVI’s Reputation and Stakeholder Management Operations Specialist Marigold Lebumfacil equips their partners with marketing skills to keep the project financially sustainable.
Lebumfacil added that the local communities are supportive of TVI’s projects. For instance, they’ve been supporting the “Basura Mo, Bigas Ko” scheme. It encourages community members to collect and exchange their gathered plastic waste (at least two kilos), such as food wrappers and shampoo sachets, for a kilo of rice. The scheme helps not only to clean the community but also provides materials for TUFFWOW’s eco-bricks.
“Para sa amin, ‘yung Project B.R.I.C.K. talaga, very sustainable siya… We’re not only helping improve the lives of our communities, [...] create more jobs, but at the same time, we're helping the environment,” Lebumfacil said.
Personal journeys
Johncent Poloyapoy, a member of TUFFWOW’s board of directors, believes his experiences working in TUFFWOW and Project B.R.I.C.K. have made him an innovative and risk-taking leader, especially given the uniqueness of their product.
Aside from Project B.R.I.C.K., TVI collaborates with TUFFWOW for the Ka-BAMBOO-hayan livelihood program; they transform resilient woody grass into useful products like tiles, armchairs, and tables.
For Poloyapoy, working in TUFFWOW, Project B.R.I.C.K., and Ka-BAMBOO-hayan fuels his drive to work for a sustainable future.
Driving change to achieve a better world is not easy. The road remains mired in multiple obstacles. But the efforts of AboitizPower and TVI prove that by rallying communities toward a shared purpose, it’s possible to achieve milestones that help communities while raising environmental awareness.
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Editor's note: BrandedUp is designed to provide you with insightful, inspiring, and educational content created by The Philippine STAR in collaboration with brands like Aboitiz Power Corporation.
