Surbana Jurong’s Coastal Engineering business unit works hard every day to promote sustainable coastal developments. So when the time came to pick a worthwhile team activity, it seemed fit that they contributed to a cleaner coastline too.
One Saturday morning in March, the Coastal Engineering’s team members and their families gathered for a boatride to Pulau Ubin, an island off the northeast coast of Singapore, before heading off to Chek Jawa, an intertidal flat with a rich ecosystem that is located at its remote eastern tip. Unfortunately, the beautiful scenery was marred by the litter around them.
The group made up of over 30 volunteers started removing the waste from the beach and surrounding mangrove, counting plastic bags, bottles, styrofoam, PVC tubes and medical waste among the debris. It was back-breaking work but they filled many rubbish bags in the end.
On the upside, it was a valuable teaching moment for the children of the volunteers, who learned how the oceans are being increasingly choked by plastic waste – which threatens the existence of marine life such as sea turtles, fish, seabirds and coral; they may ingest the plastics or be injured by discarded fishing lines and flotsam.
Another high point was how everyone could enjoy the songs of robins and hornbills and the lapping of waves in the distance while they worked. The event not only allowed the Coastal Engineering team to help the environment but to see a greater purpose to their work at Surbana Jurong.
This event also reminded our Coastal Engineering team of the importance of their work; to ensure that projects under their supervision carries out all mitigation measures to protect the environment.
Following three days of heavy rainfall in August 2017, Sierra Leone suffered a devastating mudslide causing 300 people to lose their lives with many more reported missing. In the days following the disaster, the SMEC Foundation contacted the mayor’s office which was managing the disaster relief, to find out how SMEC, a member of the Surbana Jurong Group, could assist.
They indicated an urgent need for safety equipment for the emergency workers to facilitate their rescue efforts and in assisting the victims of the Sierra Leone floods. As a result, the SMEC Foundation donated 600 pieces of safety gear and equipment including reflector suits, rain boots, hard hand gloves, masks and helmets to the cause.
A school for the blind in Nigeria had an urgent need for computers with facial-recognition software, and the Surbana Jurong team on the ground swung into action.
Through the SMEC Foundation, five computers with the required software that is usable by the blind were donated to the Kenneth Ulo Foundation, a non-governmental organisation that promotes the welfare of the blind by offering training and post-training support to develop entrepreneurial skills.
A handover ceremony was attended by parents of children who attend the school, head of the foundation Kenneth Ulo, and our Country Operations Manager Pious Ebubedike and Human Resource Assistant Charity Abah. The principal of the school, Florence Njoku, called the gift a dream come true.
Surbana Jurong (SJ)’s SMEC Philippines team recently took part in a tree planting programme at the La Mesa Watershed Reservation, a protected area that preserves the only major watershed in Metro Manila. Together with the Philippines’ Environment Management Bureau and Department of Environment and Natural Resources, some 50 employees planted 400 custard apple seedlings in the reserve’s eco-park.
Through the activity, made possible with the support of the Southeast Asia Divisional CSR Committee, SJ hopes to implement an Environmental Awareness Programme to educate employees and clients in the Philippines about the importance of environmental sustainability and the preservation of eco-parks. The event brought together our employees and their families to do their part for the environment and bond over a good cause.
Surbana Jurong held its first charity golf event on 9 December 2015 (Wednesday) at Jurong Country Club. The inaugural event saw a turnout of 150 golfers who managed to complete their game on a sunny day!
The event was organised in support of Surbana Jurong’s adopted charities – St. John’s Home for Elderly Persons (SJHEP) and The Yellow Ribbon Project (YRP). A sum totalling slightly more than S$120,000 was donated to the two beneficiaries to support their efforts in caring for the displaced elderly residents and providing training and education for ex-offenders. SJHEP, established in 1958, provides shelter and care for the needs of elderly persons aged 60 and above, with no home or next of kin with adequate resources to care for them. The YRP, initiated in 2004, supports ex-offenders aged 18-30 in their reintegration back into society.
We would like to express our heartfelt appreciation to all golfers, sponsors and donors for their generosity and kind support in making this event a huge success! We hope to see you at the next Charity Golf!