Businesses weathering the pandemic storm: The Sustainable Diner Business Recovery Dialogue with CCCI
September 22, 2021
“In our business, the attitude is like this (pandemic), like a storm or a strong typhoon that is hitting us figuratively. You don’t go out there and do your usual thing. What you need to do is buckle up. That is why we are taking a conservative stance. Our inventories are low. We are doing mostly improvement of facilities but not as aggressive as planned before the pandemic. We realized, more than a year into the pandemic, that it is here to stay. We will see what sustainability will mean for us. We have to change our mindset from being in the middle of the storm to how to move forward with the bad weather.” Jay Yuvallos, CCCI VP for Business Development.
With almost two years into the pandemic, businesses now have a better grasp on how to navigate their operations. Sustainability initiatives are slowly getting back on track with their agenda to further support Cebu establishments before the project ends. To further support these developments, a business dialogue was held to serve as a venue for knowledge and practice sharing.
The Sustainable Diner project (TSD) of the World Wide Fund for Nature-Philippines (WWF-PH) partnered with the Cebu Chamber of Commerce & Industry (CCCI) to host Salu-Salo: The Sustainable Diner Business Recovery Dialogue last August 24, 2021 via Zoom. This event was exclusively held for CCCI business members with the aim to reconnect with these members and to share TSD project outputs relevant to their sustainability initiatives. 42 participants from several food service and hospitality business members of CCCI and other active members and officers of different business platforms were able to participate and contribute to the event.
Ms. Melody-Melo Rijk, Project Manager of The Sustainable Diner and SoilMate projects, welcomed the participants by honoring CCCI’s efforts to contribute in some community-based pandemic relief programs.
Lorayne Roque, Sustainable Consumer Specialist, enticed the participants with an appetizer by introducing project activities, achievements, and the timeline. Alexa Jeanne Lasch, Sustainable Business Specialist, served the main dish filled with knowledge products and tools and where to access them. As the project comes to its conclusion, these materials are easily accessible and readily available to any business who wants to start or improve their sustainability journey. Finally, Iris Abrigo, Sustainable Business Officer, ended the hearty meal with a dessert that gave emphasis on why businesses should move forward sustainably. Sustainability guidelines for businesses were sent to participants prior to the event to serve as their starting point.
After the meal, participants were engaged in a ‘Kwentuhan’ session, which served as the main highlight of the event. In this session, attendees were divided into breakout groups, and were able to share and discuss their current sustainability efforts. Admirably, Cebu businesses are still striving to be sustainable even in the midst of national economic challenges. Jacqueline Durana of SEDA hotels shared that “SEDA Hotels started a project three years ago. We are using starch based containers. This project is actually helping the environment, we are not using plastics and styro anymore. We are also in the planning stage to tie up with EcoGreen. They are going to collect all the plastic bottles that we used in our hotels.”
Participants also shared how they are preparing for the post-pandemic economy, and how they are balancing economic recovery with environmental sustainability. Rey Emmanuel Polotan of Circa 1900 shared how Circa 1900 has been making use of their time during the lockdowns. “We can use this down time to continue and improve the practices that we are doing now. And this is a great opportunity to educate our team on matters like these - the sustainable measures that we are doing. And hopefully, our actions, our practices here as an establishment will influence them to do it in their own respective homes, and hopefully the other establishments in the same industry as well,” he states. To wrap up the Kwentuhan session, one representative from each breakout group shared highlights of their group discussion with the plenary. Salu-Salo served as an interactive venue for businesses to share lessons, challenges, and motivations.
Mr. Felix Taguiam, CCCI President, closed the event by acknowledging the strong involvement of CCCI in some TSD activities, “Today we emphasize the importance of partnership in ensuring the achievement of the project goal. That is by giving a platform for diners and our food industry stakeholders to participate in the making of the local food service industry more sustainable and by engaging our government, it is possible to reduce food waste and continue stimulating economic growth while protecting our natural resources especially in this time of pandemic. Because of the EO’s instituted by the government, this is the time that all restaurant owners will have to think, redo, restart, and reboot their businesses.” This Salu-Salo brought to light how challenging this past year has been, but it also brings into focus how Cebu businesses faced the challenges head on, and took it as an opportunity to do better for the planet.
To learn more about how to be a Sustainable Diner, you may visit the WWF website and Facebook page.
The Sustainable Diner project, under Sustainable Consumption and Production, is part of the International Climate Initiative (IKI). The Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety (BMU) supports this initiative on the basis of a decision adopted by the German Bundestag.
The Sustainable Diner Project Team:
Melody Melo-Rijk, Jonna Ellaine Jordan, Lorayne Therese Roque, Alexa Jeanne Lasch, Iris Joy Abrigo, Liezl Stuart del Rosario, Kristan Gabriel Villalon, Jenette Callada
For more information, please contact:
Melody Melo-Rijk
Sustainable Diner Project Manager
mmelorijk@wwf.org.ph
Alexa Jeanne Lasch
Sustainable Business Specialist
jlasch@wwf.org.ph
Iris Joy Abrigo
Sustainable Business Officer
iabrigo@wwf.org.ph
