M O N D AY : F E B R U A R Y 2 9, 2 0 1 6
29th Anniversary editorial@thestandard.com.ph
GROWTH THE ultimate purpose of change is growth. In life, business and society, all change must result in growth if it is to have meaning. As The Standard looks forward to more years in the service of the people, we know that our goal is to grow, and in so doing, help build the nation into a bigger, more formidable version of itself.
I1
I2
M O N d aY : F E B R U a R Y 2 9, 2 0 1 6
29th Anniversary editorial@thestandard.com.ph
This generation is witness to the fastest changes and developments in communication that the world has seen. Not only have these changes made the various aspects of life much easier and much more convenient, they have made world a smaller place for everyone creating the true global village.
CommuniCations: DRiVinG GRoWtH Alexander Graham Bell was the inventor of the one tool many new innovations have sprung from: the telephone. From its clunky rotary dial, its coiled cables and wires that would more often than not find itself all twisted and tangled as if it had a life of its own, this technological breakthrough has been connecting people in more ways than anyone could have ever imagined at the time. It has since gone through numerous iterations, slowly but surely becoming more compact, easier to use, and more versatile. Fast forward to what we have today, and good old Bell’s handset and dock have virtually been rendered obsolete, even archaic, as we now have telephones that we can bring with us everyday, everywhere, using it in a plethora of ways that was well beyond anyone’s dreams, at that time. More than just the units (or devices as they are called now) it is the telecommunications networks and companies that are perhaps responsible for effecting the biggest changes we are seeing in all aspects of our lives. Many of the biggest developments we see and applaud these days spring from the early work of those who have laid the foundations of a working communications network. In fact, the many revolutions we have witnessed would not all be possible without their work. Decades ago, movements sprang from a telephone call. Years after, pager messages, then afterwards SMS and now social media are sparking movements that change the world around us. The Philippines, for the most part, is fortunate to have kept up with the growth of CoNTiNued oN i4
M O N d aY : F E B R U a R Y 2 9, 2 0 1 6
29th Anniversary editorial@thestandard.com.ph
AnnA Meloto
And the Growth of A SociAl enterpriSe Seven years ago, Dylan Wilk and Anne Meloto-Wilk, daughter of Gawad Kalinga’s Tony Meloto, went to the US to set up a network of volunteers for Gawad Kalinga. During this time, Anna noticed the popularity of organic products penetrating the local supermarkets and thought of replicating this in the Philippines. Anna, together with her sister Camille started brainstorming on how to provide affordable, locally-made natural beauty products for the Filipinos. After much research and a few collaborations, they started a social enterprise called Gandang Kalikasan, Inc, a company that would become the biggest producer of natural personal care products under the brand name Human Nature. Beginnings of a Social Entrepreneur Anna’s love for the country started at a very young age. Her parents would bring
her and two younger sisters to different places in the country to let them appreciate the beauty of the Philippines. Her father would also expose her to the slums to show what life is on the other end of the spectrum. She narrated the time when her father brought her to Bagong Silang at age sixteen to interact with the juvenile delinquents of the area. “Needless to say, it was a life-changing moment for ConTinUeD on i4
I3
I4 COMMUNICATIONS... From I2 telecommunications around the world. It has piggybacked on these developments, creating the many innovations that a developing country needs to grow. The growth of tech-based businesses in the country, the booming Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry, and even the more traditional industries all owe their existence to the growth of communications. Developments in telecommunications are solving the persistent problems that the nation has been facing. We know very well that change is the only constant, the only thing in the universe with permanence and persistence, and we have to understand that all these mean that what we have at our beck, call, and convenience, will inevitably be reborn into something far better than it always was. And the
ANNA MELOTO... From I3 me. I realized that we are all the same, each person is our equal and we need to treat everybody with dignity and respect.” Anna had visions of climbing the corporate ladder after graduating from Ateneo de Manila University in 2000. She tried her luck in media and advertising but something inside her wanted more. She knew that she wanted to be an agent of change and make an impact in the lives of people. She knew that many people can do her job in advertising but few are given the chance to do something that can make an impact to the nation. Pro-Philippines, Pro-Poor, and Pro-Environment According to Anna, the desire of Human Nature is to help improve the lives of the Filipinos. Its vision is to be a leading force in restoring the dignity of people and eradicate poverty in the country. Being pro-poor, Anna believes in hiring from the poor and investing in their training and human de-
M O N D AY : F E B R U A R Y 2 9, 2 0 1 6
29th Anniversary editorial@thestandard.com.ph
telecommunications industry is the sector that has constantly taken this to heart. The same companies who brought this technology to us are keeping up with the changes, constantly innovating to drive growth and effecting change– from the trivial requirements of a student online studying for a degree that will dictate his future career, to the heavy demands of companies who control entire economies and nations. From unlimited bandwidths, to faster data transmission speeds, to reliable connections, and futureproof hardware and more, all made easily accessible to everyone, everywhere, it would be safe to say that we are headed towards the right direction. All these implements, infrastructures, and technologies are steadily bringing healthy and sustainable change to our lives, opening new avenues of opportunity and bridging the gaps we need to cross to be heard in the entire world. velopment. A third of the employees come from poor communities of Gawad Kalinga and they are given wages that are double the minimum wage required by the government. “Minimum wage is not enough for them to live quality lives.” Anna added that more than the money, people should be taught financial stewardship to make the most of their earnings. In a commencement speech she delivered in 2012, she stressed the importance of supporting Filipino social enterprises and buying Filipino products. “Make business decisions that will benefit our country. Love of country is good for the economy and great for business.” Anna had a dream, “to become the first multinational social enterprise” and “to use business to build a better Filipino society, especially the poor.” The dream is now becoming a reality as Human Nature is on its way to becoming the leader in distributing natural and organic cosmetics and personal products to the Philippines and to many parts of the world.
GROWING UP... From I7 exclusive stories. The call for us is to rise to the occasion even as we embrace technological advances. The digitization of media is an opportunity to come back to our core mission and values: empowering citizens by providing them with the news and information necessary to make informed decisions in society. This is what we aim to do every day at The Standard. This is what makes battling the awful EDSA traffic to get to our Makati office worth it. This is why I remain a journalist.
GLOBE TELECOM LONE PH TELCO RECOGNIZED AT GSMA MOBILE CONNECT RECEPTION IN BARCELONA, SPAIN Globe Telecom was the only Philippine telco to have been recognized by the GSMA during the Mobile Connect Reception Founders Accolade and Networking held at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain as part of the GSMA-led Mobile Connect initiative. Globe was awarded as one of the founding Mobile Network Operator (MNO) partners for GSMA’s Mobile Connect: Project 1 Billion initiative. GSMA announced that the GSMA Mobile Connect mobilebased authentication solution is now available to 2 billion consumers globally. Since the solution was introduced at Mobile World Congress 2014, 34 mobile network operators (MNOs), including Globe, have launched the service in 21 countries. As part of its commitment to enable the shift to a digital nation and empower Filipinos around the world to fully embrace their digital lifestyle, Globe joined the global initiative to protect its customers from the growing number of fraudulent activities and scams in the digital space. Working with the GSMA closely, Globe launched Mobile Connect in the Philippines in light of the rapid growth of data and internet penetration in the country, exposing more users to online fraud and scams. GSMA’s Mobile Connect aims to securely authenticate, authorize and identify a subscriber accessing content using the inherent security of the mobile device owned and carried by the end user. “With Mobile Connect, Globe is adopting a globally-accepted standard to protect our customers from the various cases of cybercrimes via a safe and secure platform. In today’s digital world, this initiative will definitely bring about sustainable and long-lasting impact to the global economy, and we at Globe are very happy to bring this innovation to Filipinos to ease them away from the worries of online fraud,” says Glenn Estrella, Vice President for
Receiving the award at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain is Globe Vice President for Product Management Vince Yamat.
Digital Media at Globe. Mobile Connect enables customers to create and manage a digital universal identity via a single log-in solution. The service securely authenticates users, enabling them to digitally confirm their identity and their credentials and grant safe on-line access to mobile and digital services such as e-commerce,
banking, health and digital entertainment, and e-government, via their mobile phones. It works by employing the user’s unique mobile number, combined with a unique PIN for more secure use cases, to verify and grant online access anywhere they see the Mobile Connect logo. It also provides secure and convenient access to digital services that can be unlocked with the use of a secret PIN. It functions like Google’s TwoFactor authentication where the subscriber is asked to enter the code they get via SMS or USSD, to verify that they have the device with them when accessing a site or an app. While initially focused on secure and convenient log-in to digital services, Mobile Connect is evolving to deliver secure authorisation of digital transactions and to add context and attributes about the user and the transaction to increase convenience, trust and security for the users and the online service providers, while respecting the users’ privacy. Operators offering services based on Mobile Connect include América Móvil, Axiata Group (Bangladesh, Indonesia, Sri Lanka), China Mobile, China Mobile Pakistan (Zong), China Telecom, China Unicom, DNA, Elisa, Indosat Ooredoo, Mobilink, Mobitel, Orange (Egypt, France, Morocco, Spain), Sunrise, Swisscom (Switzerland), Telefónica Group (Argentina, Mexico, Peru, Spain), Telenor Group (Bangladesh, Malaysia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Thailand), TeliaSonera (Finland), Telkomsel, Telstra, TIM and Turkcell (Turkey). The Mobile Connect Reception Founders
Accolade and Networking celebrated some of the biggest milestones achieved by the initiative as well as recognized key contributors and partners. It also allowed partner MNOs to network and meet with the Mobile Connect ecosystem.
M O N D AY : F E B R U A R Y 2 9, 2 0 1 6
I6
29th Anniversary editorial@thestandard.com.ph
GROWING UP IN THE STANDARD MARCH 28 • JUNE 8 • SEPT. 21 • DEC. 14
By Joyce Pangco Pañares
I WAS 19 years old when I joined Manila Standard (which later became Manila Standard Today, and is now The Standard) in 2003. I received a call from then editor-in-chief Jullie Yap-Daza sometime in July that year, asking me—a fresh graduate covering the education beat for another newspaper—if I’d like to join her team. A month later, I was covering the Department of Foreign Affairs for the Standard, trying to keep up with diplomatic jargon and the need for formal wear, though I never got to wearing heels.
RESERVE YOUR AD SPACE NOW! CONTACT US AT 832-5547 or 832-5554/56/58 or 832-5550
MARCH 28 • JUNE 8 • SEPT. 21 • DEC. 14
RESERVE YOUR AD SPACE NOW! CONTACT US AT 832-5547 or 832-5554/56/58 or 832-5550
Being a journalist, as a colleague once described it, is the ultimate Peter Pan job – the stories that we write every day (no holidays, mind you, except during Holy Week, and only on days that Jesus Christ is believed to be dead) keep us young. This job has also kept us humble, knowing that our bylines are there only so our readers would know who to hold accountaNEXT PAGE
M O N D AY : F E B R U A R Y 2 9, 2 0 1 6
29th Anniversary editorial@thestandard.com.ph
GROWING UP... From I6 inaccuracy or grammatical error, or worse, who to slap with a libel case. In 2005, while I was finishing my post-graduate degree, I was transferred to the Malacañang beat. My decade-long coverage of the Palace allowed me to write memorable stories – the coup attempts against former President Gloria Arroyo; some of the strongest typhoons to hit the country (Milenyo, Reming, Ondoy, Sendong, and Yolanda); the Maguindanao massacre that left 58 civilians dead, including 32 media workers; and the Luneta hostage crisis during the first year of the Aquino administration, among many others. The job, for sure, has its perks – it gave me a chance to cover various events in countries as far as Russia and parts of Europe, and in most of Asia, thanks to the annual meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. A story I wrote on sweatshops in Myanmar and Cambodia afforded me a slot as finalist in the 2013 Asian Development Bank-Developing Asia Journalism Awards in Tokyo. There were, of course, bad days
just as there were good ones. I remember that after typhoon Sendong hit Mindanao, President Benigno Aquino III decided to make a quick visit to Iligan City from Cagayan de Oro. We took off – eight choppers at least – and in the middle of the flight, smoke filled our helicopter (the old Huey that media have, tongue in cheek as we ride them too, branded as flying coffins). And because my weird brain told me I should not die with an oily face, I took out my pressed powder and did a quick re-touch. Thankfully we were able to land safely, and the copilot announced, confidently, that it was just an electrical problem. In the first quarter of 2015, the heavens (or to be more accurate, the gods-that-be in our new office in Makati) decided it was time to pay my dues by joining the desk. From the fast-paced coverage that marked my stint as a journalist, it was now time to be at the other side of the fence. As city editor, I would call my reporters to plan the coverage for the day, what stories to follow up, which angle to pursue. The desk is an entirely different battlefield. Or as a senior editor once said: Edit ruthlessly. Every word must pay for
its passage. For more than 12 years now, The Standard has been a second home to me, one that I have come to love. If my work has taught me anything, it is that the print media, in particular, and traditional media, in general, remain relevant today, if not more relevant, in the age of digital platforms and clickbait. When super typhoon Yolanda hit the country, power lines were down and there was no Internet connection. When disaster strikes, people still turn to traditional media. Transistor radios were the only source of news of Yolanda victims during the first few days after the super typhoon struck. These are exciting times for print journalists who must ensure that the edge of the medium remains. This means providing context, making sense of cold facts, and sharpening our analytical tools. Since our medium does not allow real time correction that is enjoyed by our online counterparts (if we make a mistake, we issue a late erratum the next day), print journalists are required, more than ever, to get our facts straight. There is more demand to produce CONTINUED ON I4
I7