Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP) Foundation is shifting into environmental high gear as it adopts a National Greening Program (NGP) mangrove reforestation site in Pasuquin, Ilocos Norte. The move blends climate ambition, community uplift, and a hint of corporate swagger.
The project forms part of the audacious vow of chairman Alfred V. Ty to plant and nurture one million trees by 2030, a promise he made during the Foundation’s 35th anniversary like a gauntlet made of saplings. And if Pasuquin’s shoreline is the testing ground, TMP is proving it can walk the talk, even on muddy coastal terrain.
About 110 volunteers from the TMP network, Mariano Marcos State University–College of Industrial Technology (MMSU–CIT), DENR–CENRO Bangui, MENRO, and Barangay Davila plunged into the muck with purpose to mark the site adoption. By day’s end, 1,750 mangrove seedlings—Lapis-lapis and Arinaya—stood newly rooted, looking very much like green foot soldiers awaiting orders from Mother Nature.
The ceremony wrapped with a tripartite agreement among the Pasuquin municipal government, MMSU, and the TMP Foundation.
Under the memorandum of agreement, the two-year coastal conservation push targets 3,500 total native mangrove plantings across two hectares—essentially turning shoreline real estate into a leafy fortress against storm surges and a five-star nursery for marine life.
“This project seeks to empower local communities, enhance stakeholder capacities, and promote shared stewardship of these coastal forests,” said TMP Foundation president Jose Maria Aligada, as the ink dried and the seedlings settled in.
And because mangroves thrive on consistency, not just applause, TMP Foundation is backing a People’s Organization with monthly financial support to handle monitoring and maintenance. It’s long-term care with long-term vision—proof that when it comes to sustainability, TMP isn’t just planting trees; it’s planting commitments.
