July 2008 Archives

IN OUR FAMILY, it’s the younger generation we turn to when we’re lost in the world of technology. My mother asks my 13-year-old son to find out why her mobile phone does not ring (it was on vibrate mode). My brother-in-law asks his kids why his cellphone keeps ringing (it had a virus). And my father turns to his 17-year-old apo to download kundimans into the iPod my sister gave him. It turns out that a lot of us aged more than 20 years old are clueless about technology. I have a batchmate who knows how to check her e-mail but cannot figure out the ins and outs of our yahoogroup. Another friend confessed to not knowing how to attach photos onto her e-mail, so we’ll just have to wait for her husband to do so before I can view our pictures. And I hear about executives who are so clueless with the computer that they are dependent on their secretaries for PowerPoint presentations and reports made on Excel. Well, the non-techie among us should decrease in number soon. That’s because Microsoft Philippines and Netopia recently partnered to offer free e-learning programs at Netopia Internet cafes (just pay for the use of the PC). Need help in figuring out Office 2007 and Microsoft Vista? No problem. Want to know how to maximize the use of the Internet? Help is here. Want to do awesome PowerPoint presentations and be an expert in using Excel files? Yes, finally, you can do them yourself. Dubbed “Angat Ka! sa Microsoft at Netopia,” the program aims to help improve technology skills among the youth and professionals. What’s even better is that participants will be pronounced “certified” by Microsoft upon completion of the modules and passing of the online exams. There are 16 short courses: Computer Basics, The Internet and World Wide Web, Productivity Programs, Computer Security and Privacy, Digital Lifestyle, and courses in Windows XP, Windows Vista, Office Word 2007, Office PowerPoint, and Office Outlook. Participants can do all the courses in less than 12 hours, or at their own pace. All they need to do is go to a Netopia outlet, log on to http://icafe.microsoftelearning.com. A Windows Live account is necessary. “With technology, people can achieve their full potential, both in their personal and professional goals. Expertise and knowledge in Microsoft technology gives individuals a competitive edge in the work place, and that’s why we are providing accessible and affordable training on our products,” said Rafael Rollan, managing director of Microsoft Philippines. Rollan further said the company partnered with Netopia to bring technology training closer to Filipinos. George Tan, president of Digital Paradise Inc. (Netopia) is happy with the tie-up as it can be greatly helpful to young people as they look for jobs. Indeed, having a Microsoft certificate is an added credential that can help one advance in his/her career. And that will also boost office productivity without spending a lot on training programs. Small and medium-sized businesses can take advantage of this free e-learning program to hone their staff’s skills. And hopefully, that will lessen our dependence on the younger set.

EVEN without the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas telling us that inflation hit 11.4 percent last June (the highest in 14 years), we know that prices have gone up way beyond expectations. Just last year, in June, inflation was at 2.3 percent. We feel the pain, don’t we, every time we gas up, pay for groceries at the supermarket, or fork over money for FX fare. Businesses have been feeling the pinch too, and my dad’s fave binalot outlet in Silang, Cavite is no exception. The chicken adobo binalot he buys regularly has shrunk in size. :( Other than shrinking portion sizes or adjusting prices, what can business people do in these tough times when business may be slower? Rather than wallow in self-pity, here are some things you can do: 1. Use the time to strategize. Juliet Z. Cruz, general manager of M-Vision Business Solutions, an advertising and PR company, shares: “Right now, we are undergoing strategic planning, reviewing internal and external factors to make ourselves more competitive in these hard times. We pause for a while or break to energize and regain positive energies.” 2. Work with other businesses by co-branding. M-Vision is a small company and Juliet says they always try to keep their expenses low. One way they do business is by “co-branding” with several partners. “In essence, we save in advertising and marketing cost and make our brand more visible in the market,” says Juliet. 3. Focus on giving quality service. Rosanne C. Araneta, administrator of CHILD Preschool, Inc., says they lowered their tuition fee by more than P10K a few years ago to remain competitive when at least three preschools sprang up in their vicinity. “Now my business partner, Tet, and I believe that it will all boil down to quality of service and the genuine care we have for the total development of our student population. Parents will get what they pay for,” says Rosanne. CHILD Preschool has been around for 10 years and employs only teachers with a solid foundation in early childhood development. Rosanne is confident that parents will see and feel their genuine appreciation for children’s abilities and potentials and deep concern for their welfare, development and happiness.

By Tony La Viña* Nation building is best done place by place, village by village. The combination of social entrepreneurship and technology solutions is making this possible in many places in the country. This weekend, I went around Negros Occidental to visit the Alternative Indigenous Development Foundation, Inc. (AIDFI), a citizen organization that specializes on developing and disseminating appropriate technologies to help small and poor upland farmers improve their farm-based livelihoods. As the Ashoka representative for the Philippines, I have been on the lookout for social innovators, and a number of people have pointed me to the ground-breaking work that Nonoy Moraca and his colleagues in AIDFI have been doing, especially in water technology. They have developed and installed their technology all over the Philippines, starting with their own island Negros, but they have also gone out to other countries like Japan, Thailand, Malaysia and, more recently, in Afghanistan. Using the hydraulic ram pump as the flagship technology, AIDFI is solving an age-old problem – lack of access to water – and helping upland farmers and communities improve their communities and uplift their lives. The problem of access to water has haunted many poor communities in the Philippines. This is especially true in the uplands where water is even more important because of the role it plays in the livelihood of farmers. What is ironic is that there is an abundance of water sources in these places. The problem is taking them out of the ground or from the source and delivering them to the communities and households that need them. This is where AIDFI comes in. Working with partners – usually citizen organizations as well as local governments – they install hydraulic ram pumps in communities that need them. Their work has already benefited more than 16,000 people and they hope to reach even more. As Nonoy shared to me, “What makes me happy is helping people have water.” This is a simple dream but a challenge to implement. What is interesting with AIDFI is the model they are following in scaling up their work. For them, it is not just a matter of introducing technology but preparing communities to receive the technology, ensuring ownership by the local people. Being social entrepreneurs, they follow the principles of long-term sustainability: costs are shared by the local governments and by the residents of the barangays (villages) that benefit from the technology; because of this, AIDFI does not rely as much on outside funding as other citizen organizations do. In addition to cost-sharing, communities are also asked to take on commitments to preserve their water sources, implementing watershed and forest protection programs that produce even more benefits to them. In the end, the ram pump is just an entry point: AIDFI delivers a cluster of environmentally friendly and community-based technologies that are all intended to improve and uplift the lives of poor communities. To help disseminate their technologies, their office has a demonstration site and a coffee shop in Bacolod city. Yesterday (Monday, July 21), we had the chance to visit one of those barangays - Canlandog in the town of Murcia. We were accompanied by Nonoy Moraca, the executive director of AIDFI, and hosted by barangay captain Ernesto Pinafiel, and the Barnagay Council of Canlandog. The project has received support from the Murcia government under the leadership of Hon. Esteban H. Coscolluela. We rode a big truck for more than an hour on rough roads until we got to the site of the ram pump installed a few weeks earlier by AIDFI. Aside from the pump itself, they had also built the infrastructure to distribute the water – from the pipes, the reservoirs and the cluster faucets. For the first time, a community had water and they expressed how grateful and happy they were. Nonoy Moraca too must be very happy. *Tony is the Dean of the Ateneo School of Government and the Country Representative for Ashoka Philippines. For more information on social entrepreneurship and the Ashoka Fellowship, you can go to http://philippines.ashoka.org or send an email to philippines (at) ashoka (dot) org. For those who wish to learn more about social entrepreneurship and how to become an effective social entrepreneur, the Ateneo de Manila University-School of Government together with Ashoka-Philippines will be running Beyond Bottomlines II: An Introduction to Social Entrepreneurship this coming September 20,2008 (Saturday), 8 am to 5 pm at the Ateneo de Manila-Professional Schools campus in Rockwell, Makati City. If you are interested to attend this seminar, you can send an email to youthventureph (at) gmail (dot) com or contact Katrina Wy at (02) 683-0262 local 141.

While sipping barako coffee today at Figaro on Congressional Avenue in Quezon City, I thought about how the area has changed in the past 10 years or so. You see, I live in the area, and have seen how this extension of Congressional Avenue has changed from a grassland occupied by squatters to a busy concrete road connecting to Mindanao and Visayas Avenues. In the early 90s, Congressional Avenue ended just after the road leading to the Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish and Congressional Subdivision in Project 8. Now, you need to take a jeep or drive a car to reach the end of it at Visayas Avenue in Project 6. Where before, there was cogon everywhere, now there are gas stations, banks, schools, salons, spas, supermarkets, a bookstore, strip malls, fast-food outlets and restaurants. In fact, when I need to take a quick break from working at home, I head off to this area for a quick meal or just to browse at the bookstore. It's just ten minutes away from our house. When Cherry Foodarama put up a supermarket here in the mid-90s, people at first wondered if it will survive. Most people did their grocery shopping at SM City North EDSA. But now Cherry Foodarama has won a steady clientele, and the traffic is terrible around it on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve, when everyone it seems is shopping for Noche Buena here. A few years ago, I thought to myself that the area lacked only one thing: a decent coffee shop. A place where one can talk with friends over coffee or tea, or where one can work quietly on a laptop or read a book. I remembered thinking how it would be good to get a franchise of a coffee shop and put up one here. But since I'm really more a journalist than an entrepreneur, I didn't give it much thought. Well well, Starbucks and Figaro have since established a presence, and people just love hanging out in these two coffee shops. So, my point is, if you spot a business opportunity, explore it, and if you feel there's a future, take that opportunity. Just a decade ago, Congressional Avenue was not a "happening" place. Now it is.

Putting up and maintaining an office is getting costlier every day. If you have been working out of your home for some time now and are put off by the idea of putting up a brick and mortar office due to cost, a virtual office may be the answer. Virtual offices have been around for quite some time now in major cities in the world like New York, London and Hong Kong. It's great for those who don't need an office full-time but need an office presence. Companies that are downsizing or are just starting up may also benefit from having a virtual office. Just what is a virtual office? Tina Cuerva, marketing consultant of My Office , a Makati-based company offering virtual office services, says: "A virtual office lets the entrepreneur enjoy the benefits of having a traditional serviced office without having to physically occupy office space. This way, an entrepreneur will still have a professional image without having to spend much on capital." Cuerva herself has been working out of her home for several years now. But there came a time when she didn't feel comfortable forwarding her clients' calls to an answering machine or giving out her mobile number. That's when she brought up the idea of putting up a virtual office with her sister, Milette Carlos, to service the needs of entrepreneurs who don't need an office and staff full-time. Carlos became My Office's managing director. According to Carlos and Cuerva, a virtual office may be just what small business owners need these days. "With no end in sight to the weekly increases in oil prices, our subscribers are able to save on gas by telecommuting. They are able to maintain lower overhead costs, maximize their resources and focus on their businesses," they say. Since 2004, MyOffice specializes in office support services such as mail receiving/releasing, phone answering, call transfers, fax to email service, inquiry handling and others. Its facilities, like workstations and meeting room, are made available to clients either on demand or as part of their subscription. "This set up has worked very well as it gives our clients the flexibility in work hours and capability to control their expenses," Carlos and Cuerva say. Nina Martinez, business manager of ProAccess Business Services, Inc., says the company's virtual office service started in 2002 as an offshoot of the services they were providing to the tenants of the Makati building they were in. "Further recognizing the need for small and starting businesses to have the option of a good corporate address without the attendant expensive costs, the ProAccess concept for providing flexible office solutions was born," she shares. Like My Office, ProAccess provides clients a respectable business identity with several flexible subscription options based on individual client specifications at very reasonable costs appropriate to the selected option. It also offers ready-to-use serviced or flexible managed offices, business support services, conference center, and even a concierge service. "There is a basic cost which is inclusive of many services such as lighting, electricity, airconditioning, security, etc. If and when needed, all other services are on a "pay-as-used" basis so the client need only pay for what is required in a timely manner to save any unnecessary fixed costs. Clients receive a single monthly billing and where applicable, includes the detailed usage records such as business services utilized, toll calls made, text message transactions, etc. allowing the client to track and control costs," adds Martinez. The cost of all these? Very flexible, says Cuerva. "The subscription price will depend on the services availed of and our minimum is P1,000 per month. We can come up with a package having a combination of features that best complement one's business." For ProAccess, rates start at P2,000 for a mail access virtual office subscription. Serviced offices go for P15,000 monthly for a shared office space.

By Katrina C. Wy* I started running my own business at the age of 19. It was an online shop at a website called Multiply. All of my friends visit this site everyday and getting an account is free so I decided to try posting stuff for sale and see how my friends (my potential clients) would react. I chose to sell trendy but really affordable clothes. It was a low-risk business as the only capital I needed was for my inventory. I figured that if I fail to sell anything, I can still keep the clothes for myself and it wouldn’t be such a waste of money. I was shocked, however, by the response I got from my friends. They really liked the clothes I was selling and was extremely happy at the price I was selling it to them. My clientele increased as the months went by mainly thru referrals and other people who usually do their shopping online. After a month, I was already shipping my clothes all over the country and I even got inquiries about shipping my products to the US! I expanded to include luxury items and electronic goods to my product line. I was earning a lot, enough actually for me to not ask money from my parents to pay my condo, my bills, my shopping and living allowance. It was such a great experience for me as I was earning money through something that I was really passionate about. What’s more interesting is that I have friends who came up to me to say that they really admire me for being able to set up and run my own business while I was still in school. They asked me for advice on how to start their own businesses and some of them did and are now running their own small but successful businesses. Starting my own business was easy since I had the resources. My parents helped me find suppliers and people to produce my designs. I was taking up Management Engineering in Ateneo, which taught me the basics of starting up a business and running it. Others who want to do the same thing can find help in Youth Venture, an organization that aims to get young people interested in entrepreneurship, setting up their own civil society organizations or other informal programs to develop leadership. Young people are encouraged to “Dream It, Do It and Grow” their own social ventures that will benefit communities. The Youth Venture staff guide young dreamers throughout the whole process of formulating, launching and running their social ventures by providing them with professional assistance, technical support, mentoring, skills training and seed funding. One such example of a youth-created and youth-led organization that is changing lives is Alay Ni Ignacio (ANI). ANI was started back in 2000 runs summer programs for 3rd and 4th year public high school students to prepare them for college. ANI also hopes to shape young people’s character and values in the principles of magis and service. ANI helps around 200 high school students every year. An administration team provides extra-curricular activities such as computer exposure, field trips, career talks, open house for the parents to see their kids in school and also a support group that the students can run to. Aside from helping the public school students, ANI also helps their volunteers to become better persons. Volunteers are made to remember that if dreams for a better Philippines is to be achieved, ideas must not stop with ideas but must be followed through with concrete actions, and actions must not be random acts of kindness but a planned change. Through the help of Youth Venture, kids who don’t have the resources can put their ideas into concrete actions to help them start a venture that will help their community while helping them grow as a person. *Katrina is a Program Officer for Youth Venture Philippines (under Ashoka Phils.)

Some jobs are really hard to fill. Just ask employers in the country who have difficulty finding the right person for jobs such as: * accountant and auditor * computer professional * commercial and technical sales representative * mechanical engineer * professional nurse According to the Integrated Survey of Establishments, a survey done since 2006 by the Department of Labor and Employment’s Bureau of Labor and Employment Statistics, these are the top five hard-to-fill jobs. Next to these are the following jobs that are also hard to fill: * air traffic controller * aircraft pilot * navigator and flight engineer * personnel and human resource development officer * geologist and geophysicist * pharmacist * industrial robot controller * decorator and commercial designer * bacteriologist * pharmacologist * pathologist and related worker * technical and vocational instructor/trainor * safety, health and quality inspector (for vehicles, processes and products) * architect * photographer * image and sound recording equipment operator * science and mathematics teaching professional But don’t we have many unemployed graduates today? It’s not that simple, though. There has to be a fit: the right man for the right job. According to Anna Karissa B. Marcial, HR Officer of BCC Global Solutions, an HR firm, the following are the reasons why job hunters do not get the jobs: * Cutthroat market * Global competition [Some of our best workers go abroad] * Applicants do not have enough relevant/related solid experience * Applicants fail psychological exam and job interview * Applicants demand high salary even on entry level * Clients have high standards/qualifications on some of these positions Looking for the right person for the right job may feel like looking for a needle in a haystack. Once a company finds the right man, though, it should make sure the employee stays. How? Marcial gives these recommendations: * Give a good compensation and benefit package * Have motivational and developmental programs (personal and professional) * Encourage work-life balance * Have job enlargement and job enrichment so the employee won’t get bored after staying in the company for a while Makes sense.

In the past three days, I have been following Doris Dumlao’s three-part story on Negros-based Victorias Milling Corporation (VMC), the largest sugar company in the Philippines. This was the sugar company started in 1919 by Don Miguel Ossorio. In the decades that followed, VMC pursued expansion, going into non-core businesses such as engineering products and services, food processing, organic fertilizers, shipping, management and consultancy, real estate, and agribusiness. Most of these were financed by borrowing funds from banks. But then came the 1990s and there was a slump in sugar prices. The Asian currency crisis wreaked havoc on the economy. Add to that a case of irresponsible management which plundered VMC and the company soon found itself in hot water. In July 1997, VMC defaulted on its debts. Dumlao writes:

“VMC, erstwhile a prime credit, saw its debts balloon from P5.2 billion, when it first defaulted, to nearly P8 billion due to delays in the implementation of the rehabilitation plan, which was amended in late 2000 after a futile attempt to find a new investor. “Among VMC’s biggest creditors were PNB, Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co., Land Bank of the Philippines, East West Bank and Equitable PCI Bank.”

Because the big banks were exposed, the Central Bank watched VMC closely. VMC and the banks struck a deal to restructure the debts and converted some of the debts to equity. A management committee was formed to run VMC. Today, VMC is holding its head high, having posted profits three years in a row. How did they do it? Here are some steps VMC took: 1. Use high-yielding sugar varieties to enable extraction of more sugar. 2. Audit stocks and tighten inventory control. 3. Eliminate cash burns such as VMC’s own 200-km railroad system which enticed thieves to steal sugar canes. 4. Upgrade facilities to improve output. 5. Welcome a new investor in—in VMC’s case, Lucio Tan in 2003. So it can be done. With help from creditor banks and good management, a losing business can make it as long as it can fill a market need.

WITH gas prices increasing weekly and everything else shooting up (blood pressure included), businessmen are on the lookout for ways to cut costs. I came across one new venture that will help micro-businesses and small businesses save on admin expenses. Great for start-ups too. It’s virtual business services. A new company called The Back Office just started offering this, taking a cue from the virtual assistant service offered in other countries. With this service, businesses can outsource administrative functions from writing business correspondence and inter-office memoranda, conceptualizing of ads, copywriting of marketing collaterals and ad copy, speechwriting, and public relations. You can give directions by e-mail 24/7 and The Back Office will work on all your needs. They even promise to send you back the document (business correspondence and inter-office memoranda) for your approval in 24 hours or less. According to its owners, The Back Office is backed by almost 40 years of experience in journalism, marketing, senior management and public relations. While outsourcing bookkeeping has been around for the longest time, it’s only now that a company can outsource an extensive list of services like these to one company. That will make things easier as you’ll only need to talk to one company. Virtual assistant services are offered in other countries but the fee may be expensive for small companies based in the Philippines considering the rate of foreign exchange. “Their services likewise are more confined to the non-creative types of work or routine such as data entry, etc. I haven’t noticed anyone yet offering a professional business correspondence service which I think is very important because the image of the company is enhanced largely by the communications it sends out,” says Nona Baldo, who owns the business with husband Oscar. According to the Baldos, some 33 percent of admin expenses can be saved using their services. “SMEs that have four executives with four secretaries would entail a cost of at least P48k for the four secretaries plus employees’ benefits such as SSS, PhilHealth, Pag-Ibig, overtime pay, holiday pay, night differential, and office space. With The Back Office, these SMEs only need to hire a secretary/receptionist to make and receive calls, make appointments, file documents and e-mail The Back Office. Our service costs only P5k per executive served or P20k (for four executives) or a savings of P16k which is equivalent to at least 33 percent. And the service is available 24/7.” Before I get accused of earning from this, let me point out that I don’t earn from any of the businesses I feature here in Open for Business. I’m just on the lookout for good businesses, and this seems like one of them. :) It’s a great help for small businesses who want to keep their costs down in this age of high prices.

By Tony La Viña Philippine Representative, Ashoka: Innovators for the Public Sometime in early 2006, after eight years working for an environmental think tank in Washington DC, I decided to come home to the Philippines. It was clear why I (and my family) wanted to do this – we felt we could contribute something to make the Philippines a better place – but I was not as sure about what I could actually do to make a difference. I had accepted a job as the Dean of the Ateneo School of Government, a post that would allow me to work with national and local leaders in building a prosperous and just country. But that was not enough.

Government was only half, maybe less than half of the solution. If we are to overcome our history of “uncreative repetition” (where the politics of blame ensured unaccountability and inability to solve long standing problems from poverty to social injustice), it was important to do something that would foster, catalyze, and enable social innovation. I wanted to get out of the default mode of blaming others for the country’s problems and finding ways to actually solve these problems.

It was while I was pondering on this challenge that I stumbled upon Ashoka: Innovators for the Public, the world’s oldest and largest supporter and enabler of social entrepreneurs. These are dynamic individuals who use innovation and private-sector-style entrepreneurship to create systemic solutions for complex social problems. I was introduced to Ashoka by Terri Jayme, a Filipina working for the Arlington, Virginia-based international organization. Terri, whose sister Denni once worked for me and whose uncles and aunts I went to school with in college at the Ateneo de Manila, was asked by Ashoka to study whether or not it should launch a program in the Philippines and Terri interviewed me for this assignment. I soon learned more about Ashoka, its core mission and programs, and its global fellowship of more than 2,000 leading social entrepreneurs in over 60 countries. I also got to meet its founder, Bill Drayton, a Harvard College and Yale Law School educated lawyer and management expert, who shared with me his vision of “Everyone a Changemaker” based on the realization that we are in a “historical moment” where regular citizens are poised to create and cause significant social change and progress as never before. Social entrepreneurs all over the world are thinking and implementing scalable ideas that are revolutionizing whole sectors, such as health, the environment and education. Soon after I talked to Bill, Ashoka decided to launch its programs in the Philippines and I was offered the position of Country Representative. I quickly agreed to take on this responsibility as I was convinced that the solutions for many of our most urgent social and political problems were potentially in the hands of Filipino social entrepreneurs. I wanted to accelerate this process by launching Ashoka in the Philippines. We have had a long tradition of a strong civil society that is willing to tackle the most difficult social problems. Throughout the country, we are beginning to see very promising innovative ideas take root in the different areas of social need. We can help maintain the strength and vibrancy of the Philippine citizen sector by supporting the best and most effective ideas on the ground. And with the increased involvement of business in social issues, Ashoka (whose main support comes from business entrepreneurs) is also uniquely poised to bring the business and social sectors together towards true innovation and genuine change for the country. Today, social entrepreneurs are gaining recognition, business entrepreneurs are becoming changemakers, and the most progressive companies and financial institutions are seeking ways to increase competitiveness by serving markets of the poor. The Ashoka Philippines program is in an exciting phase as we build a powerful network of partnerships and resources that will identify and support the most deserving Filipino social entrepreneurs. Ashoka would like to help harness the passion, experience, and expertise of these Filipinos by providing critical financial support and welcoming them into the Global Fellowship. Already, we have more than 20 persons identified as potential Fellows and we are positioned to elect our first set of Ashoka Fellows in early 2009. Tony is the Dean of the Ateneo School of Government and the Country Representative for Ashoka Philippines. For more information on social entrepreneurship and the Ashoka Fellowship, you can go to http://philippines.ashoka.org or send an email to philippines (at) ashoka (dot) org.

IF someone told Thomas Edison that the light bulb he invented can be lighted up using garbage, Edison would probably have laughed. But now it is no laughing matter as biogas from solid waste is indeed being used to power up lights and other appliances even in our country. It has been six months since the 100kW Biogas Pilot Power Plant was inaugurated in Cebu City. An upgrade of the Inawayan Waste Disposal Facility, the facility is designed to convert solid waste into an energy source. In fact, Philippine BIO-Sciences Co. Inc. (PhilBIO), the operator, has confirmed before that about half of the 400 metric tons of mixed solid waste taken here daily can be converted into biogas. The project has been touted to give added benefits: reduction of landfill mass, additional revenue for the city, and jobs for the people in the area. There are of course the environmental benefits of depending less on fossil fuels for energy needs and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. And before 2008 ends, the city government is planning to offer for bidding the bigger component of the Inawayan facility for a 10MW biogas-fed power plant. The energy generated will be used for the landfill facility. Iloilo has also been eyeing a similar project, eyeing the establishment of a biogas facility in Bacolod that could generate 350 kW of power, enough to light up a barangay. Closer to home, Payatas in Quezon City is also in on the biogas trend, after the Quezon City Controlled Disposal Facility was inaugurated recently in the famous dumpsite. Some 42,000MW of electricity is envisioned to be generated over a 10-year period in Payatas. And over at Magallanes Village in Makati, PhilBIO, in a project for Manila Water at the South Makati Sewage Treatment Works, will utilize microbial matter to reduce sewage sludge and create high quality biogas. Experts at PhilBIO believe that the methane gas to be recovered will be more than enough to provide electricity to the sewage treatment plant. So, yes indeed, there is power in garbage, and money in garbage too. With increasing garbage landfills all over, businesses dealing in solid waste-to-energy efforts remain viable while helping care for the environment.

Cristyl Mae B. Senajon* We all dream of a Philippines without corruption, where people pay taxes without being goaded to do it, where officials use public funds for public good, where deeply ingrained respect for others make most traffic rules unnecessary, and where each child can get quality education that will give her plenty of job options and good pay. Mary Ann Alampay, a 20-year old BS Management student from the Ateneo de Manila University, believes in this dream. How to reach it, however, was the big puzzle. Perhaps it was her love for teaching or her hope for the Filipino child that pointed her to a direction that might change a nation. Mian to her family and friends sat herself one Saturday afternoon and poured her heart out on pen and paper. The result was Bright Kids Learning Center, a social entrepreneurship project that would teach underprivileged children for free that art, colors, counting, and reading are as much fun as showing empathy and respect for others. Bright Kids won a P20,000 grant from the Coca-Cola Foundation during the First Leaders of Asia Forum’s Make It Happen! Business Plan Writing Competition last January 17-19, 2008 along with five other business plans. College friends Kookie Magno (AB-Psychology) and Mark Carillo (BS-Management) who are also now in their senior year are helping her turn her dreams into reality. Last summer, they taught five and six-year-olds at the Batasan Hills Elementary School for one hour and a half each day.

“Sometimes it takes just one simple step for something great to happen. I think that sometimes you have to take risks. You can't just live your life in your own comfort zone. Nothing will ever happen if you live that way. If you want to do something for the country then find a way to do it. It's that simple," Mian says.

Mian recalls spending long hours with a young girl who told her classmates their work was ugly and they were stupid because of the way they colored their artwork. "Values should be taught to a kid at a very young age or else they will bring those bad habits with them when they grow up. It was fortunate that we were able to address this issue as early as that time. But how about other kids who grow up in the same kind of environment? It is really important to be involved in the formation of these children so that they would not grow up with a wrong set of values," Mian says. The lack of early education is the kind of social problem that Bright Kids is trying to address. “I saw that the family has a big influence on the learning and value formation of the children” says Mian. While doing craft work to create nimble fingers and nimble minds, Mian teaches basic Filipino values such as "po" and "opo". The idea is that the path to attaining national growth is for each Filipino to learn to show empathy towards “kapwa Pilipino” and that simple acts of humanity can cure a flawed nation so mired in poverty. Working with children that only have rice and ketchup for breakfast has opened Mian's eyes to reality and closed her heart to apathy. Her first summer art workshop this year was where her dream ended and the glorious part of action began. *Cristyl is program assistant of the Youth Leadership and Social Entrepreneurship Program at the Ateneo School of Government. For those who wish to learn more about social entrepreneurship and how to become an effective social entrepreneur, the Ateneo de Manila University-School of Government together with Ashoka-Philippines will be running Beyond Bottomlines: An Introduction to Social Entrepreneurship this coming July 12,2008 (Saturday), 8 am to 5 pm at the Ateneo de Manila-Professional Schools campus in Rockwell, Makati City. If you are interested to attend this seminar, you can send an email to youthventureph (at) gmail (dot) com or contact Katrina Wy at (02) 683-0262 local 141.

ON A TRIP to an Asian country sometime ago, we joined a tour of the city’s sights. One of the stops was at a nameless shop selling top quality leather bags. They were really handcrafted well, and sported brand names from Gucci to Louis Vuitton. “Hay naku, kung may orig ka, maiinis ka,” (If you have an original, you’d be pissed) said one of those on the tour with me. And I can see why. Those bold and beautiful bags were selling for just a fraction of the price of the real thing. And with the craftsmanship, who can tell the real from the fake? Well that’s exactly why unscrupulous business people have raked in the cash from the sale of fake leather goods over the decades. It’s hard for the untrained eye to distinguish the fake from the genuine article. But as the saying goes, you reap what you sow. Just a few days ago, a businesswoman at 168 shopping mall in Manila got in trouble for selling fake LVs. Louis Vuitton is pressing charges. Apparently, the luxury goods maker scrutinizes the world market for sellers of fake goods, Manila included. And if you think the Internet is safe to sell off those knock-offs, it isn’t. The auction website e-Bay has just been fined $63 million for facilitating the sale of fake LVs. True, the makers of Louis Vuitton can afford to go to court anywhere in the world and make counterfeiters accountable for the unfair business practice. Other companies don’t even bother, so tiangge vendors are very bold in selling fake stuff at places like Greenhills and St. Francis Square, peddling “Vans” shoes for P400 and “Nike” shorts for P150. But why copy when you can make your own brand? The creative and innovative entrepreneur who can come up with something original will be amply rewarded. You reap what you sow.