Stefan Phang is the Regional Director for Sustainability & Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), for the Asia-Pacific, Middle East, Africa, Latin and Central America, at Diversey.

He is a strong advocate of CSV – Creating Shared Value – by addressing societal needs with a business model.

He specializes in helping needy communities create sustainable livelihood programs as a means to lift them out from poverty. Currently,

Mr Stefan leads over 150 active projects in over 30 countries, mostly projects on child protection, anti-human trafficking, livelihood programs and disaster relief and rehabilitation.

Diversey in Fiji

Diversey Holdings Limited is an American provider of cleaning and hygiene products. It serves the hospitality, healthcare, food and beverage, food service, retail, and facility management markets.

The company had pioneered an innovative programme in Fiji; Soap For Hope, to recycle used guest soap and distribute them to the poor communities across major cities around the world.

The program’s objectives are three-fold – (1) to save lives through promoting hygiene by hand-washing with soap; (2) enhancing livelihoods to the local community through recycling soap; and (3) help hotels reduce waste by turning used soap into reconstituted soap bars.

Linens For Life – discarded hotel linens are channeled to communities, where these linens are converted into saleable products such as bags, aprons, school uniforms.

In Fiji, Diversey’s partners Fiji Chemicals Limited are implementing and running these programs with several hotels (Hilton, DoubleTree, Rainforest, Shangri La, Namale) and partner charities (Solo Moms, Father Law Home, CATD, ).

They had collected condemned linens from Shangri La Yanuca and had provided these linens to several partner charities, namely Centre for Appropriate Technology (CATD) in Nausori, Father Law Home in Lomi and Solo Moms Project in Suva. The Solo Moms, for example, had produced dresses

Disadvantaged women that are at risk, those living around the slum areas have limited access to basic health amentities such as soap, benefit from this project.

Through Soap for Hope and Linens For Life, we are able to promote a more hygienic environment and also alleviate financial hardship by imparting a new skill to generate livelihoods that earn up to US$150 per month instead of the usual US$10.

Diversey covers all logistics costs and provides all the equipment including tools and soap-press machine, as well as disinfectant required for re-processing soap and in the case of Linens For Life, Diversey provides sewing machines as well.

Its local employees and partners such as Fiji Chemicals provide the training to local communities on soap-recycling and sewing and maintain the partnership with local NGOs and hotels.

In the long run, it is our aim to help communities make a sustainable livelihood from these programs by selling the items in the tourism industry by our partner hotels (which generate these wastes in the first place)

Where in Fiji you would take Visitors to? 

The Nausori Highlands.

Towering over the coastal flats of Nadi are the high peaks of Koromba to the south and Koronayitu in the north, both over 1000m and forming part of the spectacular Nausori Highlands.

A view from the Nausori Highlands.

What is your favourite place for coffee/pie?

Mana Coffee Kava Bar and BnB in Central Suva.

Their Tandoori chicken pie, beef curry pie are to die for!

Chicken and Tandori pie at Mana Coffee.

What is your favourite backyard spot? 

My friend and buddy Trevor’s house backyard.

I don’t think he will open this place for tourists though

Stefan Phang enjoying a kava bowl at his buddy’s backyard.

What is one place in Fiji that is on your bucket list?

I would love to visit Qamea, especially during the lairo season where thousands of land crabs migrate to the sea.

That phenomenon would be a sight that would be seared in my memory forever, if I get the chance to ever see it.

Qamea

Feedback: sosiveta.korobiau@fijisun.com.fj