Sun Life Foundation champions environmental sustainability, plants 3,000 trees at La Mesa Watershed

Sun Life Financial-Philippines Foundation, Inc. (Sun Life Foundation) reaffirmed its commitment to  environmental sustainability with recent back-to-back tree planting activities, organized in coordination  with Asia Society for Social Improvement and Sustainable Transformation (ASSIST). 

The initiative was supported by over 200 Sun Life volunteers, including Sun Life Philippines’s Chief Asset  Management Officer and Foundation Trustee Valerie Pama and Chief Human Resources Officer Michelle  Cordero-Garcia. Together, they planted a total of 3,000 seedlings at the DENR Nursery in La Mesa  Watershed. 

As the last remaining forest of its size and the only major watershed in Metro Manila, La Mesa helps  provide drinking water to the region’s more than 13 million residents. Considered as the “lungs” of the  metropolis, La Mesa also acts as a carbon sink, absorbing a significant amount of Metro Manila’s carbon  emissions. 

“It’s crucial to conserve and protect nature, especially here in Metro Manila where pollution, climate  change, and monsoon rains greatly impact the quality of life of millions,” said Sun Life Foundation  Executive Director Kristine Millete. “Through annual tree plantings, we hope to help in building a more  sustainable, climate-resilient, and livable city.” 

“Each step we take contributes to the greater good. If a small step makes a difference, imagine the impact  our concerted effort will have not just in the present but for generations to come,” said Sun Life President  Alex Narciso. “We must all work together for a greener and brighter future.” 

As the philanthropic arm of Sun Life Philippines, the first and longest-standing life insurance company in  the country, Sun Life Foundation supports holistic initiatives encompassing education, health, and  environmental sustainability.