MORE than 20 staff members of Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) collaborated with Green Brunei to plant 100 trees and conduct a clean-up of the Berakas Forest Reserve yesterday, as part of their efforts in raising awareness on environmental conservation.
Present at the event were YB Khairunnisa binti Haji Ash’ari, a member of the Legislative Council, who is also a Co-Founder and a Community Engagement Director of Green Brunei; and Noralinda binti Haji Ibrahim, the Acting Director of the Forestry Department.
Prior to the tree-planting activity, a welcoming speech together with a briefing was delivered by YB Khairunissa. The volunteers were also given a demonstration by staff members from the Forestry Department, to show the correct method of planting trees.
Two types of trees – the Casuarina equisetifolia and the Hibiscus tiliaceus – were planted along the Berakas beach by the volunteers, to help prevent soil erosion, while adding more foliage to the nearby forest reserve.
In an interview, YB Khairunnisa expressed her hope that such activities would inspire more local youths to be proactive in maintaining and sustaining a ‘green’ environment.
“I hope that more youths will be interested to learn about environmental issues, and volunteer together in helping to protect the local environment,” she said, while adding that Green Brunei will be organising its fifth leadership camp and 3rd Remarkable Green Race in the near future.
Marilyn Graeme, the SCB Head of Corporate Affairs, Branding and Marketing, said: “We are delighted to support the Green Brunei drive and come together to volunteer for this initiative which will have a positive impact on our environment.
“We recognise that many of our markets will be among the most affected by climate change and are already dealing with major environmental challenges such as air and water pollution, water scarcity and extreme weather events. Initiatives such as these demonstrate our commitment to the markets we operate in.”
Aside from supporting environmental causes, SCB’s key corporate social responsibilities include HIV/AIDS awareness campaigns and the ‘Seeing is Believing’ global initiative.
Source: Borneo Bulletin