Green Forum ongoing at Manilacon
MANILA, Philippines - Innovating and sharing ideas on green technologies and expertise matter a lot in providing sustainable solutions for the built environment, says Green Architecture Advocacy Philippines (Green AP) chairman Ega Reformado.
Green AP and LA Ducut and Company, Inc. (LADCI) are participants at the Green Forum 2010, ongoing until today at the SMX Convention Center, SM Mall of Asia Complex, Pasay City. Themed “Green Extremes: Master Planning to Neighborhood Developments,” Green Forum is a twin event of the annual Construction Show Manila (MANILACON).
The country’s premier building and construction trade exhibit on innovations and sustainability, Manilacon brings together construction industry experts, urban planners and architects to share their insights on sustainable built environment and technologies. Manilacon also features the latest trends and developments in products, new markets and sustainable building solutions.
“We believe in corporate social responsibility, defined as the deliberate inclusion of public interest into corporate decision-making and the honoring of a triple bottom line: people, planet, profit,” shares Lilibeth D. Abais, managing director of LADCI. “The Green Forum at Manilacon is our contribution to transforming the market into a more environmentally conscious one.”
This year, Green Forum takes an in-depth look at how sustainability at the grassroots level is hinged on large-scale urban planning. “Environmental problems solved at the grassroots, at homes and barangays, contribute to solving the larger global environmental problems we face,” explains Reformado. “In the same manner, the green urban planning of the towns, municipalities, cities and country support the green strategies attempted at the lower level.”
The Green Forum 2010 brings together the country’s top urban planners, industry experts and prominent architects. “The Green Forum centers on tackling issues and strategies on sustainable communities,” says Abais. “Exchanging information is vital to improving and applying best practices in sustainability.”
Award-winning urban planner and architect Nathaniel von Einsiedel will speak on effective and environment-friendly urban planning. Architect Anna Maria M. Gonzales and Bayawan City Mayor Rene G. Gaudiel will tackle disaster-resilient developments, environmental management and disaster preparedness.
Other speakers include former Department of Environment and Natural Resources Undersecretary Elmer S. Mercado, Davis Langdon & Seah (DLS) senior environmental consultant N. Mark Evans, Philippine STAR columnist and BluPrint magazine editor-architect Paulo Alcazaren, and Lilia GC Casanova of Center for Advanced Philippine Studies (CAPS).
Joining them is award-winning environmental planner and heritage preservation expert and architect Maria Lourdez Joy Martinez, whose list of achievements include a US Senatorial Award for her contribution to the perpetuation and preservation of Chamorro culture and history in the Marianas Islands and a Environment Responsible Entrepreneur Award from the Cebu Chamber of Commerce for her work on Cebu’s premier resort, Plantation Bay. Martinez has also been awarded the Most Outstanding Individual for Community Service during the Cebu City Charter Day Awards for heritage conservation in revitalizing the old downtown of Cebu.
Green Chat, a roundtable discussion on current industry issues for trade professionals and the second Green Archi Students Symposium will also be held during Manilacon.
For more information, log on to www.manilacon.com or call 873-8202; 873-9047 and 873-8876.
