10/09/2026
πππ. πππππ πππππ ππππ ππππ ππππ ππππ-ππππππππ ππππππ, πππππππππππ πππππππππππ ππππ πππ
π
QUEZON CITY β Sta. Clara International Corporation is marking its 50th anniversary not with an extravagant celebration, but with a gesture designed to live well beyond the milestone itself, planting trees as a symbol of gratitude, partnership and environmental responsibility.
The major Philippine engineering and construction company has chosen tree planting as a centerpiece of its golden anniversary observance, underscoring a long-term commitment to sustainability that also finds expression in its institutional partnership with the Million Trees Foundation, Inc. (MTFI).
Sta. Clara Chairman and Managing Director Nicandro G. βNicβ Linao, in a letter to MTFI President and Executive Director Melandrew T. Velasco dated September 8, said the company wanted to commemorate five decades of growth βwith simplicity and purpose.β
Rather than stage a grand celebration, Sta. Clara will plant and name trees in honor of partners who have contributed to the company's journey and growth over the years.
The initiative carries special significance for MTFI as Sta. Clara has been one of the Foundation's institutional partners since its inception in 2021, supporting its continuing advocacy for reforestation, watershed protection and environmental stewardship.
The partnership is being further strengthened with Linao expected to join the MTFI Board of Trustees as a new trustee, bringing to the Foundation decades of corporate and infrastructure experience as well as Sta. Clara's institutional commitment to environmental sustainability.
For MTFI, Linao's entry into the Board reflects an important principle behind the Foundation's work: protecting the environment requires sustained collaboration among government, the private sector, civil society and communities.
Sta. Clara has been among the private-sector organizations supporting MTFI and its environmental programs, including activities associated with the Annual Million Trees Challenge, the multisectoral initiative that has mobilized partners in planting and nurturing millions of trees in critical watersheds and other areas.
Its golden anniversary tree-planting initiative therefore represents more than a commemorative event. It reinforces the idea that corporate milestones can be transformed into environmental legacies.
In his anniversary message, Linao said Sta. Clara's success over the past five decades had been made possible by the trust, support and partnership of its clients, suppliers and other stakeholders.
The company expressed the hope that the trees planted for its anniversary would βtake root and flourishβ and become living symbols of relationships nurtured through the years and of a shared responsibility to future generations.
That philosophy closely complements MTFI's own approach to tree growing, one that goes beyond ceremonial planting to emphasize propagation, maintenance, survival and the long-term rehabilitation of watersheds.
MTFI President and Executive Director Mel Velasco welcomed Sta. Clara's anniversary initiative and Linao's forthcoming participation in the Foundation's Board, describing the partnership as an example of how corporations can integrate environmental responsibility into their institutional legacy.
βFifty years of building infrastructure is already an extraordinary corporate achievement. By choosing to celebrate this milestone through trees, Sta. Clara is also helping build something for the next generation, a greener and more sustainable future,β Velasco said.
With Linao serving as a new MTFI trustee, the relationship between Sta. Clara and the Foundation is expected to deepen further through environmental programs that promote tree growing, watershed rehabilitation, sustainability education and private-sector participation.
As Sta. Clara enters its next half-century, its anniversary message is fittingly expressed not only in the structures it has helped build, but also in something more organic and enduring: trees planted today that can continue growing for generations.
