Last month, in celebration of the Philippines’ Environment Month, our team packed away their work devices for a day, to venture out into the greeneries.

Destination: the beautiful Malasag Reforestation Site!

Forget office to-do lists, their only mission for that day was to plant trees. 🌱

Malasag Reforestation Site 

Nestled within the slopes of Cugman Watershed in Cagayan De Oro, Masalag Reforestation Site is a massive 800 hectares of land dedicated to replanting trees and preserving wildlife.

The site was cared for in partnership with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

We had over 100 Narra seedlings to plant. And as a team, we made a commitment to not only plant them, but also to sustain them. We’ll visit it quarterly and see it grow! 💚

From the words of our team members:

‍A Commune with Nature

From where we were, we enjoyed a breathtaking view of the Macajalar Bay. The ants around us had quite a bite, but we were grateful to be there, and we did learn a thing or two (or four):

1. Teamwork 

This activity gave us the opportunity to work together towards a common project — that’s not work-related, while enjoying the outdoors. 

We truly felt the saying, “We cannot do things alone, we are stronger together.” The things that seemed hard became easy when we work together. 🤝

2. Togetherness

Many of us haven’t seen each other much because of COVID-19 lockdowns and working from home. Some of the team members even joined during lockdowns and have yet to spend much time together in-person with their colleagues!

Not only was this a golden opportunity to make new and more friends, it also gives us a better understanding of each other outside of the workplace. 

3. Giving back to the community

Being in nature does give you a sense of peace — a unique sense of purpose, if you will — as an employee, a citizen and a part of the community. We were there because we love our community and want to see it thrive. 

Giving back is a gift, and we were thankful to be given the opportunity to do so. 💗

4. Connectedness

After that day, not only did we feel more connected to our team and nature, but also much more deeply to ourselves. Nature really is a happy pill. 💊😊