Travel + Leisure Co. supports program for endangered turtles in Bataan

AMERICAN firm Travel + Leisure Co. has teamed up with the Pag-asa Pawikan Protection and Conservation Center (PPPCC), a group that protects marine turtles in the town of Bagac in Bataan. 

Under the partnership, Travel + Leisure’s employees have adopted nests in the organization’s turtle hatchery, where each nest has 40-120 eggs, the company said in a press release on Wednesday.  

“As a leader in the global leisure travel industry, Travel + Leisure Co. proactively contributes to advancing environmental, social, and economic issues at our destinations,” said Gloria Llamas, director of operations of Wyndham Services Asia Pacific Philippines, Inc.   

Wyndham is part of Travel + Leisure’s almost 20 travel brands across its resort, travel club, and lifestyle portfolio.     

The company also said over 50 associates from the Travel + Leisure Co. business units in Clark, including Wyndham Destinations and RCI (Resort Condominium International), recently joined the PPPCC’s orientation on turtle protection and the safe releasing of 70 hatchlings to the sea.  

The team has also collected funds amounting to P25,000 across its offices in Asia Pacific to sponsor 50 turtle nests.  

“It is empowering to see our team members actively engage in our environmental advocacy. This has been our third event on turtle conservation, and we have received overwhelming support from our staff, not just from the Philippines but also from our global offices,” Ms. Llamas said.   

PPPCC is a community-based group of volunteers who patrol the shores of Bagac, located about 100 kilometers from the Clark Freeport in Pampanga, to protect the turtles that breed in the area, particularly the green, olive ridley, and hawksbill turtles, which are classified as endangered.  

The group also rescues injured turtle, and holds educational campaigns on turtle and environmental protection. — MSJ