SM Seaside City Cebu led the ceremonial switch-off of lights at The Cube at 8:30 p.m. to mark the beginning of Earth Hour.
The Earth Hour activity was attended by Cebu City vice mayor Edgardo Labella and Cebu City Councilor Nida Cabrera together with SM management led by SM Prime Holdings, Inc. vice president Marissa Fernan.
Meanwhile, Habagat Outdoor Equipment held an Earth Hour Night Ride where bikers roamed around the streets of Cebu City beginning in SM Seaside City Cebu.
The bike night ride was held in line with the worldwide awareness campaign of the Earth Hour Movement to promote a cleaner and sustainable environment.
In SM City Consolacion, Mayor Teresa Alegado and SM assistant mall manager Estrella Wamilda led the ceremonial switching off of lights. Highlighting the celebration was a performance from the Sining Dilaab cultural group.
Supporting Earth Hour is just one of SM Supermalls’ strategies for environment conservation. “Risk planning against calamities has been part of SM’s business strategies for decades. Natural disasters will happen, and we all have to be prepared not just for our business but also for the communities we serve,” SM Prime Holdings President Hans T. Sy said in a statement.
For many years now, SM has been taking sustainability initiatives that include water recycling facilities, rainwater catchment tanks, and LED lighting systems.
Regular Trash to Cash activities are also conducted wherein the public can exchange specified recyclable or reusable trash for cash.
In 2014, SM North EDSA installed the country’s first and biggest commercial solar rooftop with the ability to generate 1.5MW of power. Soon, more SM malls around the country will have solar panels on its rooftops.