DepEd, DOH, USAID launch National BIDA Kid Campaign to promote safe reopening of schools

The Department of Education (DepEd), Department of Health (DOH), and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) formally launched the national BIDA Kid COVID-19 prevention campaign to support the safe expansion of face-to-face classes nationwide.

DepEd, DOH, and USAID kicked off the BIDA Kid national campaign at the SM Mall of Asia Music Hall on Tuesday. The campaign encourages learners, teachers, and education stakeholders to keep practicing COVID-19 health and safety guidelines in schools and public spaces.

“One of our utmost priorities is the safety of our learners amid the risk of COVID-19. The BIDA Kid campaign is another whole-of-government initiative to encourage everyone to keep our children protected while we progressively reintroduce classroom-based learning,” Education Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones said.

WATCH HERE: https://youtu.be/5ne67VYr8ns

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III and USAID Mission Director Ryan Washburn joined Secretary Briones to unveil the official music video and key visual of the campaign, which highlights the 3Bs: Bakuna (Vaccination), Bayanihan (Solidarity), and BIDA behaviors (Bestfriend natin ang masks, Ingatan at hugasan ang kamay, Dumistansya upang makaiwas sa sakit, Airflow ay panatilihin)(Wear masks, observe hand washing and social distancing to avoid getting sick, and maintain room airflow).

Secretary Duque highlighted the importance of the 3Bs. He reminded education stakeholders to continue observing safety measures in schools and at home amid the improving COVID-19 situation in the country.

“A safe school environment is crucial for our children’s development both academically and emotionally. This is only possible if we continue to champion COVID-19 vaccination in our communities and commit to practicing the minimum public health standards everywhere and at all times,” Secretary Duque said.

USAID Mission Director Washburn said he was grateful for the strong partnership between USAID and the national government, as a whole-of-society approach ensures that physical classes can be conducted safely.

“Face-to-face classes give students better motivation to study, having the opportunity to interact directly with their teachers and classmates. Classrooms offer a supportive environment for learning as well as social and emotional well-being,” said USAID Mission Director Washburn. “As your friend, partner, and ally, the U.S. government, through USAID, will continue to collaborate with our Philippine government counterparts, so Filipinos are better able to manage the impacts and bounce back quickly from the COVID-19 pandemic.”

As of March 28, around 13,692 public and private schools are conducting in-person classes, according to the latest DepEd field report. Thanks to the country’s Resbakuna Kids campaign, about 10 million children have been vaccinated against COVID-19, and the DOH continues to secure additional vaccine doses for them.

The BIDA Kid campaign, including BIDA kits, the music video, jingle, and key visuals, will be rolled out to all schools and DepEd offices. Field offices are encouraged to display and develop localized materials to further amplify the campaign’s messages.

SM Shoppingera Quiz: Can You Guess The Prices of These Shopping Items?

A little retail therapy never hurt anyone. Shopping is, in fact, good for you. Here are a few reasons why:

For starters, research says a trip to your favorite shop can benefit both your mental and physical health. After all, it’s been proven that shopping induces the release of endorphins, the same hormones responsible for the joy you get from laughing, falling in love, or devouring a delicious meal. Plus, it’s good cardio. According to a U.K. study, women can burn as much as 48,000 calories a year from all the walking and lifting that comes with bargain-hunting. Additionally, like any other hobby, shopping can keep your mind sharp. Browsing through racks, shelves, and inspecting prices engages your brain, helping improve your memory and thinking skills.

Want to challenge your own shopping smarts? Take this short quiz to find out how well you know your brands and product prices, as well as get a chance to win P5,000 worth of SM gift certificates! It’s simple: All you have to do is guess the prices of the items listed below, share your results on social media, and use the hashtag #WomensWorldAtSMQuiz2022.

Speaking of shopping, score amazing deals from Women’s World, SM’s Women’s Month celebration, when you shop at your favorite SM Supermalls from March 1 to 31, 2022. Click here for more details.

Sustainable living for everyone

Today, living an eco-friendlier life has become much more manageable. With many simple yet effective ways to make our everyday lives more sustainable, and with many groups ready to help us take that first step toward a greener future, there is every reason to start today. Living a personal sustainable lifestyle can be impactful only if we do it together to preserve our planet for generations to come.

One of the best things to live sustainably is to reduce your carbon footprint. Many seemingly harmless daily activities can contribute to a higher carbon footprint or other greenhouse gases (GHG) in the atmosphere, leading to dramatic climate changes. An increased carbon footprint includes high electric consumption, driving our cars over short distances, and the excessive use of aerosols and air conditioners, to name a few. Try to identify and minimize these activities if you can, or look for more eco-friendly alternatives, if available.

You can also lower your carbon footprint by using energy efficiently. Use energy-efficient appliances, replace your old lighting fixtures with LED lights, and turn off energy-consuming items when not in use. Doing these eliminates energy waste in your home and helps you save more on utility expenses.

The 2020 Climate Transparency Report disclosed that the Philippines generated 1.18 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per capita in 2017. The country will need to reduce its emissions to below 132 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2030 and below -198 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2050. It is to meet the 1.5°C-compliant climate change mitigation goals of the Paris Agreement, of which the country is a signatory.

 

Together with the Plastic Credit Exchange, SM Cares helps gather empty, clean, and dry plastic waste at select SM Supermalls nationwide. Plastic waste may be dropped off every day from 10AM to 5PM.

Another way to make your lifestyle more sustainable is to correctly manage and segregate your garbage. Sort and separate your waste by type (e.g., paper/carton, plastic, glass, metal, electronics, etc.). It helps to find out more about your community's waste collection and management policies. You can even make extra cash if you dispose of your non-organic waste through the proper channels.

You can also minimize the waste you generate at home. There are many simple ways to do this. It includes reusing plastic bags, opting for eco-bags when shopping, and avoiding single-use items. By being mindful of our food consumption, we can also significantly reduce food waste and packaging.

The 2020 Ocean Conservancy and McKinsey Center for Business and Environment report that the Philippines ranked third among the world contributors to plastic pollution, with 2.7 million metric tons of plastic waste each year.

 
SM's Trash to Cash recycling market happens every first Friday and Saturday of the month from 10 AM to 2 PM across all SM Malls and select SDMC Malls nationwide.

As a responsible member of the community, SM has consistently implemented programs to inspire Filipinos to be more sustainable, educating them on the importance of sustainability and how to help protect the environment. It includes the long-running Green Film Festival, which features the free screening of environmental documentaries for students and other program partnerships that promote alternative options to plastic.

SM also has projects that directly engage its mall-goers, focusing on solid waste management. These are the monthly Trash to Cash recycling market and the collection of used lead-acid batteries (ULABs), the Electronic Waste Collection program, and the Plastic Waste Collection program held in partnership with the Plastic Credit Exchange. To date, SM Supermalls have collected more than 11,600 kg. of plastic waste, 2,000 kg. of electronic waste and 908,000 kg. of assorted recyclable waste.

Customers can drop off their electronic waste at bins in the Cyberzone and selected locations of SM Supermalls nationwide.

In addition, SM has been exploring renewable alternatives as its malls' energy source. For instance, in 2020, the company generated 9,620 MWh of energy from solar roof panels installed in ten different malls nationwide. The company has also completed solar panel retrofits in other malls. SM hopes to achieve its goal of having 50% of the energy it consumes being sourced from renewable sources by the end of this year.

"We have always been an advocate of sustainable living. Proof of this is the numerous environmental initiatives that the company has implemented. We build our malls with the environment and community in mind, and we make sure that our developments contribute to environmental protection," said Engr. Liza B. Silerio, SM Supermalls' Corporate Compliance Head. "More importantly, we know that personal sustainability is key to achieving the green future that we want. We will continue to implement programs that encourage positive change within our community partners."

SM Cares is the Corporate Social Responsibility arm of SM Prime Holdings, with programs to support communities, promote social inclusion and care for the environment. Its CSR advocacies include the Environment, Persons with Disabilities, Women & Breastfeeding Mothers, Children & Youth, Senior Citizens, and the Bike-Friendly SM Program.

To learn more about these programs, visit www.smsupermalls.com/smcares.

SM reinvents ‘Building on Stilts’ as a Climate Resilient Design for the Future

Floods and rising water levels brought about by typhoons are perennial problems in Marikina city, which is considered as one of the low-lying areas of Metro Manila. During typhoons, Marikina River’s water can rise up to 23 meters compared to its normal average level of 13 meters. While this causes the communities surrounding the Marikina Watershed to be underwater, SM Marikina stands tall, serving as a safe haven to its neighboring communities.

The secret? It is sitting on 246 stilts.

SM City Marikina is uniquely designed. The 6-hectare mall property which is located within the Marikina River Watershed is an elevated mall built on top of 246 stilts.

“A critical part of building climate resilient structures is to understand weather patterns and how it affects the environment where your city or building will be,” explained Architect Fides Garcia-Hsu, Vice President of SM Engineering Design and Development (SM EDD). “During the design phase of SM City Marikina, we considered the long-term flood cycles of the Marikina Watershed, which was identified to be a high-risk area by the World Bank in 1977.”

Building on stilts traces back to ancient civilization from different parts of the world. The answer lies in its powerful functionality. Elevated construction had been the way earliest people groups would protect themselves from flooding, moisture and surface organisms. It also gives them provision for open space storage or cultural activities. Lastly, it reduces cost in modifying natural terrain. While building on stilts have been adopted by modern architects through the years, people had lost interest in it during the rise of urbanization.

SM revisited the functionality of ‘building on stilts’ and reinvented the concept as a climate resilient feature. This design was complemented with other disaster preparedness considerations to help reduce the risk of damages during extreme flooding. As such, SM City Marikina was built an additional 20 meters farther than the suggested 90-meter distance from the Marikina River centerline. Moreover, the ground floor parking was purposely laid out as an open-design, without walls to allow water to flow, while the second floor was elevated at 20.5 meters, which is higher than the maximum recorded flood levels.

During super typhoons, SM Marikina’s resiliency saves an average of Php1 billion in terms of losses from business sales alone. This means that it is able to help its tenants, especially the micro, small and medium enterprises that depend on the mall for their business continuity and growth.

For its neighboring communities, SM Marikina also serves as a safe haven and a first responder to families who are affected during calamities. It also provides free parking spaces for those who are stranded and need a safe place to wait for flood water to recede.

“Our ultimate goal is to help build the resilience of our stakeholders. This begins by building our own resilience to serve as a good foundation they could rely on especially during calamities,” Garcia-Hsu said.

Beyond the city of Marikina, building on stilts may be experiencing a revival in other parts of the world as urbanization begin to rise along with a greater demand for greener spaces. This would allow for high rise developments while keeping ground levels reserved for much needed green open spaces.

While it took SM an additional 15% in its capital investments to make SM City Marikina a disaster resilient mall, the group sees it as an essential investment in its commitment to create shared value for its stakeholders. This, complemented with a science-based approach on climate scenario risk analysis, allows SM City Marikina to defy odds and prove that integrating resiliency is the way to a climate resilient future.

Negros Footprint: The Negros Forest Park

It might as well be Central Park. This 1.2-hectare jungle located beside the Negros Occidental Capitol, ostensibly Kilometer Zero, is home to critically endangered animals endemic to the province. The so-called Big Five are here: the Visayan Spotted Deer, the Rufous-headed Hornbill, the Visayan Warty Hog, the Tarictic Hornbill, and the gracious yet enigmatic Negros Bleeding Heart Pigeon.

Begun in the mid-1980s as the Biodiversity Conservation Center under the Negros Forest and Ecological Foundation, in 2018 the Talarak Foundation assumed its management, renaming it Negros Forest Park. At any given time the park is home to some 150 animals, including birds of prey, wild cats, and reptiles. Their cages are camouflaged among endemic tree species that once covered the rainforests of Negros, bringing this recreated habitat as close as possible to its original look and feel.

This “jungle classroom” amid modern infrastructures bears intrinsic appeal to a wider audience. Its sheer magnificence as a wooded area in a highly urbanized space makes it a rare occasion to marvel at the wonders of nature, so that from that place of awe, people might pull themselves by the bootstraps and embrace conservation work in earnest.

Negros Season of Culture believes that nature is part of human heritage. In September and October this year, the NSC will pursue an environmental issue featuring three efforts that have proven success in environmental conservation and protection in Negros Occidental. The series includes Danjugan Island, PeacePond, and the Negros Forest Park.

For more on Negros heritage, visit www.negrosseasonofculture.com and like us on FB and IG @NegrosSeasonOfCulture.

Go Beyond Ordinary with Kojiesan’s improved lotions

Kojiesan has always been committed to making its products better than ever. After introducing the newest kojic acid skin lightening innovation called Zero Pigment Light, this brand is once again pushing itself further to Go Beyond Ordinary with its improved line of lotions.

Kojiesan Skin Lightening Body Lotion with HydroMoist and Kojiesan Skin Lightening Body Lotion SPF25 with HydroMoist are now infused with the Zero Pigment Light technology, its latest Kojic Acid skin lightening innovation that zeroes in on your dark spots, age spots, scars, melasma, and hyperpigmentation giving you a lighter even skin tone.

Taiwan Excellence: A mission to showcase Taiwan’s best products and manufacturing practices to the world

 

For a country that thrives on innovation, it is no wonder that Taiwan is already recognized as one of the top countries in the world that truly excels in manufacturing and exporting products that will help improve people’s lives for the better. 

Founded in 1993, Taiwan Excellence continues on its mission to showcase what Taiwan is made of with regard to best products and even manufacturing practices that can be the envy of even the most progressive countries around the world. 

NOVUHAIR Petite: Less is more

The reality of adhering to the different pandemic-related health protocols until this global health crisis is under control while slowly relaxing the expansive social restrictions to bootup the economy refers to our “new normal.” 

ADP Pharma Corporation introduces to the island of Luzon the new NOVUHAIR® Petite, the fit and clear-cut choice to meet the ever-changing needs and essentials in facing the challenges and the impact of the new normal. 

5 reasons why your hair might be falling out

Losing up to 100 strands of hair every day is normal. If your hair starts to shed more significant than usual, or if they do not grow back as they should, it can be a source of concern. Once the cause is detected, hair fall remedy or baldness cure for hair loss treatment can be easier. 

FREE extra NOVUHAIR Herbal Shampoo exclusive only at Watsons

 

Along with the ongoing threat of this pandemic health crisis comes, one has to adapt to the new normal that affects everything and everyone. Despite the urgency of reopening businesses for economic reasons, the majority of the Filipinos are still forced to stay at home with uncertainty. 

Apparently, these endless quarantines have taken emotional and mental tolls in the household affecting Filipino women, most of whom work from home and work at home. They have to take care of the entire family and household while maintaining a healthy work-life balance.