Philips 2009 Annual Report Download - page 56

3 Our planet, our partners, our people 3.6 - 3.6
56 Philips Annual Report 2009
Making a difference to children
Building on our heritage of working with
the communities where we operate, we
have launched our first global social
investment program. It’s called
SimplyHealthy@Schools.
With SimplyHealthy@Schools, Philips employees are going to classrooms
around the world to upgrade lighting to enhance learning and energy saving.
And they’re working with teachers to show children simple ways to improve
their health and well-being with light, water, air, sleep, oral hygiene and
exercise. All employees can volunteer to improve school lighting or help 9 to 12
year-olds become ‘Health Warriors’.
The program got off to a flying start in eight countries – India, Indonesia, Japan,
Malaysia, Philippines, Russia, Singapore and Thailand – reaching about 5,000
students in 37 schools. It’s slated to expand globally in 2010.
Building on our work with students worldwide
Community involvement is not new to Philips. We have been running programs
in all regions for many years.
In Brazil, for example, hundreds of employees have reached out to tens of
thousands of students since 2001 when they began raising awareness about
HIV/AIDS and teen pregnancy through the ‘Donate Life’ project. Our
volunteers have taught young people about the environment since they started
‘Learning with Nature’ in 2002. Then, with the support of the São Paulo
Municipal Secretariat of Education, we began ‘Speaking from the heart’ in 2006
to educate students about cardiovascular health. These are just a few of the
many projects in Brazil where Philips is well-known for its social investments
focusing on global issues.
Students who attended our Eco-Camps in Malaysia in 2009 learned about
energy efficiency and how they can reduce their ‘Footprint in Nature’ by making
simple changes in their everyday lives. The goal always is to plant the seed for a
mindset that will preserve the environment for future generations.