Thirty years into championing corporate citizenship, the League of Corporate Foundations (LCF) called on businesses to treat corporate social responsibility (CSR) not as a side effort but as part of it's operations to ensure shared value that is proactive and responsive to social and environmental crises today.
LCF made the call at a press launch on April 16, where it formally announced the theme for this year’s CSR Conference and Expo: Adapt. Align. Accelerate. The theme is the 30th Anniversary of the League that is championing responsible business and strategic philanthropy in the Philippines.
LCF marks 30 years by raising the bar, challenging Philippine businesses to move from well-intentioned programs to CSR that is authentic, strategic, and embedded in organizational identity. [L-R: Reginald “Rej” M. Andal, Executive Director of Manila Water Foundation; Edric Calma, Vice Chairperson of the League of Corporate Foundations and the Knowledge Channel Foundation, Inc.; Roberta Lopez-Feliciano, Managing Director, ABS-CBN Foundation; Eleanor P. “Lingling” Lansang, Vice President of SM Foundation; Jeffrey “Jeff” Tarayao, President of One Meralco Foundation; Kana Manglapus, Deputy Executive Director of the JVR Foundation; Shem Jose Garcia, Executive Director of the Vivant Foundation and Chairperson of the League of Corporate Foundations; Melody M. Del Rosario, President of the Metro Pacific Investments; Katherine Anne A. Khoo, Head of Strategy and Impact of the Ayala Foundation; Atty. Norman Roland E. Ocana III, Government Affairs Director and Territory Sustainability Leader of Schneider Electric Philippines; and Philip Francisco U. Dy, President of the Metrobank Foundation]
"Thirty years in, the question is no longer whether businesses should invest in communities. Rather, it is whether those investments are built to last and designed to solve," said Shem Jose Garcia, Chairperson of LCF and Executive Director of Vivant Foundation, Inc. He also considered the league’s longevity not only as a milestone, but also as a call to the sector to “raise the bar that it established.”
At the same event, LCF unveiled a new logo — a multicolored pinwheel reflecting its belief that impact is never created alone, with each color representing the foundation's diverse sectors and advocacies, and the gradient transitions symbolizing the convergence of perspectives and resources.
The 2026 CSR Conference will be held during the CSR Week on July 1-2, 2026 at Bayanihan Center, Pasig, Metro Manila, while the CSR Expo will be held on October 1-2, 2026 at the Glorietta Activity Center, Makati City, Metro Manila. The theme, as LCF frames it, aims to showcase the corporate sector's capacity to adapt to a rapidly changing world, align their programs with genuine community needs, and accelerate impact through collective action, with the end goal of raising the overall standard of CSR in the Philippines.
Against this backdrop, the 2026 conference challenges the corporate sector to respond strategically, collaboratively, and with measurable outcomes. The call comes at a time when the Philippines is experiencing multiple crises—rising costs of living, energy shocks, climate-related disasters, and persistent poverty—that are demanding more from the private sector than one-off programs.
In his welcome remarks, Shem Jose Garcia, Executive Director of the Vivant Foundation and Chairperson of the League of Corporate Foundations, introduced this year's conference theme—Adapt. Align. Accelerate.—underscoring that good corporate citizenship demands constant adaptation: rethinking models, reflecting company purpose, and aligning with standards to deliver outcomes that address real community needs.
"The world has been changing rapidly and CSR must change with it," said Garcia. "What we need to evolve is to align our programs with real needs and accelerate our impact where it matters most."
Still, Garcia pointed out that achieving that impact takes more than any single business or sector can do on its own.
Leaders of LCF emphasized in the panel discussion the shift in CSR from isolation to collaboration — aligning shared strengths, common metrics, and a unified purpose to drive lasting impact. [L-R: Shem Jose Garcia, Executive Director of the Vivant Foundation and Chairperson of the League of Corporate Foundations; Melody M. Del Rosario, President of the Metro Pacific Investments; Katherine Anne A. Khoo, Head of Strategy and Impact of the Ayala Foundation]
Katherine Anne Khoo, Head of Strategy and Impact of Ayala Foundation, Inc., echoed this sentiment, as she looked forward to what this year’s conference could unlock for the sector. “I think [success would look like having] more collaboration. We often take for granted the fact that we are members of this network and that we're all friends. But I feel like there's so much more opportunity to actually do things together.”
This collaboration, as Melody Del Rosario, President of the Metro Pacific Investments Foundation, noted, should also reach beyond familiar circles and engage the expertise of those closest to the problems being solved. “For CSR to be relevant, you have to make sure that you have experts and scientists to back up most of your programs,” she said.
As part of its commitment to elevating CSR excellence, LCF will present the Guild Awards during in June 30. The Awards will recognize outstanding initiatives by its members that have significantly impacted communities. The Medal of Recognition will be accorded to non-LCF members whose work has made a difference across seven thematic areas: Arts and Culture, Disaster Resilience, Education, Environment, Enterprise Development, Financial Inclusion, and Health.
Moreover, the Conference will provide a space for businesses, national government organizations, academe, youth groups, and government agencies to engage and collaborate around CSR innovations.
Members of LCF “raising the bar” in CSR together at the AIM Conference Center, Benavidez Street, Legazpi Village, Makati City, Metro Manila
LCF represents 96 corporate members and foundations across the Philippines, making it the country's primary network for responsible business and strategic philanthropy. As it marks its 30th anniversary, the organization renews its push to raise the collective standard of corporate citizenship in the country.
"At 30, we are not here to celebrate what has been done, we are here to challenge what comes next. Beyond the legacy we have built, we must ask ourselves: what more can we do to create impact that is not only good, but necessary?” Garcia said.
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