Globe Business lauded for ecology advocacy

More than 100 young student-engineers from all over the world recently participated in the Shell Eco-Marathon (SEM) Asia 2016, an annual competition that challenges students to put their self-built, fuel-efficient vehicles to the test on a specially designed street circuit.

The streets around Luneta was site of the four-day competition, which saw Team How Much Ethanol from Panjavidhya Technological College in Thailand winning first place in the Prototype Alternative Fuel category with a mileage of 2,040 kilometers per liter—the approximate equivalent distance between Manila and Bangkok— at the street circuit.

Team Sadewa from Universitas Indonesia won in the UrbanConcept Shell FuelSave Gasoline category, by more than doubling last year’s winning result with a record 275km/liter.

The annual event is a reflection of Shell and the commitment of its partners, which include Globe Business, the information and communication technology (ICT) arm of Globe Telecom, in fostering innovation and harnessing technology for environmental sustainability.

Student teams were challenged to stretch the boundaries of fuel efficiency in a real-world urban environment, and winners were determined by the mileage achieved on a liter of fuel, rather than speed.

“We are glad to have these young minds from around the world as our participants,” SEM Asia Project Head Lyndon Lumain said.

“They are not just innovative and creative, as embodied in their work, but more important, they have environmental advocacies that will definitely benefit the next generation.”

“We are happy that Globe Business continues to support this worthy endeavor as our connectivity partner, as well as our co-advocate for environmental sustainability,” he added.

Aside from paving the way for the seamless exchange of data and information for nearly 30,000 attendees at the event, Globe Business also had the opportunity to showcase its environmental advocacies by supporting the Shell Eco-Marathon Asia through the years.

Globe Business has actively embraced environmental sustainability and is working closely with enterprises that share this advocacy on various fronts.

This includes creating greater scale and impact for the company’s programs on solid-waste management via its large-scale initiative “Project 1 Phone;” energy conservation with its participation in the Earth Hour and Earth Day celebrations; carbon offsetting through the successful Cordillera Challenge; and biodiversity and habitat protection by partnering with organizations such as the Philippine Eagle Foundation, which aided the rehabilitation of the Philippine eagle Pamana.

“It was a pleasure to participate in this year’s Shell Eco-Marathon Asia and be affiliated with a company like Shell, which champions environmental sustainability through this initiative,” said Mike Frausing, senior advisor for the enterprise and IT-enabled services group at Globe.

“Shell Eco-Marathon Asia’s goal to cultivate innovation among young people and promote the development of technology for environmental sustainability greatly resonate with our sustainability efforts and the innovative culture that Globe espouses.”