It’s no secret that Robinsons Land Corporation enjoyed a very good year in 2018, with net income surging by 40 percent year on year. But for one of the biggest and most diversified property developers in the country, merely looking at the bottom line isn’t enough these days—development has to be done ethically and sustainably so they can be appreciated and enjoyed in the generations to come.
An image from Robinsons Land's Sustainability Report.
It’s against this backdrop that RLC has released its first-ever Sustainability Report, covering the period from January 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018. Released in time for the Annual Stockholders’ Meeting, the report looks at the company’s performance in non-financial terms, focusing instead on RLC’s efforts to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all, the purpose of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. In their joint message to stockholders, RLC Chairman Lance Y. Gokongwei and President and CEO Frederick D. Go said, “We see a great opportunity to contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly to making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.”
Thus far in its sustainability program, RLC has taken steps to address seven of the United Nations’ 17 Sustainability Development Goals: Quality Education, Gender Equality; Affordable and Clean Energy; Decent Work and Economic Growth; Sustainable Cities and Communities; Responsible Consumption and Production; and Climate Action. The rest of the UN SDGs are: No Poverty; Zero Hunger; Good Health and Well-being; Reduced Inequality; Clean Water and Sanitation; Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure; Life Below Water; Life on Land; Peace and Justice; Strong Institutions; Partnerships to achieve the Goal.
Sample pages from the 2018 Sustainability Report.
To help everyone in the organization understand the goals and how it’s going to meet the objectives, Robinsons Land Corp. has made clever use of its corporate initials. R represents the strategic sustainability goals of Responsible Growth, Reshaping Communities, and Reaching Underserved Markets, while the next two letters represent the enablers to reach those goals. L standing for Local Economic Contribution, Lower Environmental Footprint, and Leadership and Team Culture; and C for Customer Responsiveness, Community Relations, and Corporate Governance.
Robinsons Land's newly completed Tera Tower in Bridgetowne is a LEED-certified building.
Each project that RLC takes on and completes touches on these points. As the company states in its Sustainability Report, “In everything that we do—from expanding our land assets, construction, and turnover, to operations and maintenance—we keep in mind our ambition: to improve the lives of Filipinos.”
RLC is taking a balanced approach to meet long-term social, economic and environmental objectives. With environment issues being a big concern, it has taken steps to measure its impact on the environment. Having become aware of its consumption, the company now focuses on making more prudent use of natural resources to reduce its impact. This is reflected in its buildings which make efficient use of energy, water, and other resources. Fourteen of Its Robinsons Malls are now equipped with solar panels—an investment worth 1.5 billion pesos—which helped reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 11,036 MT in 2018, equivalent to the planting of 224,260 trees.
The solar panels atop Robinsons Starmills in Pampanga, the largest mall rooftop solar panel installation in the world, cut down the mall's energy costs significantly.
Of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, providing quality education is “Close to our hearts,” say RLC’s top brass. The report bears this out, as it shows that RLC has assisted with the classroom and common area upgrades of 42 public schools; meanwhile, 74,000 students have benefitted from RLC’s Brigada Eskwela project and Adopt-A-School program.
In propelling meaningful economic growth, the report shows that RLC supports 128,390 jobs, composed of its employees, mall contractors and agency/providers. RLC also counts 11,904 tenants in its malls, office buildings, hotels and resorts. Regarding its workforce, the company is a strong advocate of gender equality as well, as proven in its 1:1 ratio of men to women in senior management positions.
RLC’s malls have helped reshape communities all over the Philippines; more than just changing the landscape of the city, they have helped many Filipinos improve their lives. Robinsons Malls have become known as a convenient “one-stop shop” for accessing a range of government services through the Lingkod Pinoy Centers. In many communities where they operate, Robinsons Malls have also become the main transport hub, again serving the needs of the public.
The Sustainability Report adheres to standards set by the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), and it will be released henceforth every two years. It is RLC’s intention to continue improving in many areas—and contributing towards more of the UN SDGs—in that time.
To read the full Sustainability Report, please click here.
Visit www.robinsonsland.com for more information.
Robinsons Land Corporation is located at 12/F Cyberscape Alpha, Garnet and Sapphire Roads, Ortigas Center, Pasig. You may reach them at (632) 397-1888.
