The Benita & Catalino Yap Foundation (BCYF), in partnership with Deloitte Philippines, announced last Friday the opening of nominations for college students and young professionals who have contributed in changing Philippine society.
Now on its third year, the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Youth Awards 2017 aims to recognize college students and young professionals aged 18 to 39 who have initiated projects with a social impact.
Nominations for the Youth Awards, which recognizes young leaders who exemplified citizenship, sustainability or social responsibility, will end on July 22.
“We need to provide exemplars [or] people who can actually be role models for society. Exemplars [who are] possible to commit [and] to achieve social impact whether through volunteerism, through entrepreneurship, or innovative efforts to help society,” said Noreen Bautista, BCYF officer in charge for the Visayas.
Nominees must hold a leadership position, led an activity for two years, with projects whose impact was validated by proofs. Judges will consider the continuity and viability of projects, net positive impact to the community, and replicability and willingness to share expertise and experience.
Deloitte Managing Partner and CEO Eric Landicho cited the importance of advocating social responsibility to the youth, who account for more than 50 percent of the population.
“We wanted to promote CSR as a lifestyle among our youth because we firmly believe that the future of our country rests with our youth. And if we really want to move this country forward from a sustainable business, we really need to invest in our youth,” he told the BusinessMirror.
CSR is the involvement of companies in providing assistance to the members of society that need help in particular aspects, such as education, livelihood and health.
BCYF developed personal CSR (CSR 3.0), which stands for citizenship, sustainability and social responsibility for individuals to embody and practice as a lifestyle for society.
Clarissa Delgado, CEO of Teach for the Philippines and CSR Youth Awards 2015 winner, said it is the responsibility of those who are privileged to help others to find their own opportunities to help.
“We are living in a country with a lot of inequality, so for those of us that have the better deal…it’s your responsibility, as well, to make sure that your kapwa Pilipino and those that don’t have that privilege somehow finish their schooling or get their opportunities themselves or else we won’t go anywhere as a country,” she told the BusinessMirror.
She also noted that most, if not all, millennials have CSR already in their consciousness. It is only a matter of how they will use it, together with their responsibility as privileged citizens, in helping those who are in need.
“I don’t know if it’s a matter of instilling so much because I find that a lot of the millennials I work with are already looking to matter or to have a purpose in some way, so I don’t think that it’s ours to teach them that; I think they already have that,” she said.
Landicho said, “More than the applause, more than the plaque, more than the prize that you get from being recognized, I believe that the sense of fulfillment in getting the award really…is an affirmation that what you are doing is correct and that you are making an impact to the wider communities.”
He also noted that their main purpose of having these awards is to create awareness and encourage others to do the same as what the nominees and winners are doing.
“It’s more of the awareness that we are trying to create and with that awareness, that would be the beginning for them to encourage more people to do this kind of thing,” he said.
Delgado said the CSR Youth Award helped in giving them the drive to continue with their advocacies and goals.
BCYF was founded in 1993 and aims to advocate CSR 3.0 as a lifestyle for societal development.
Navarro Amper & Co. is the local member-firm of Deloitte Southeast Asia Ltd., a member-firm of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Ltd.
The awarding ceremony will be held on August 25 at Club Filipino in San Juan, Metro Manila.
Mikaela Cecille S. Silverio and Vann Marlo M. Villegas
Image credits: Nonoy Lacza
