MAKATI CITY, Philippines – AIA Philippines recently held the AIA Healthiest Schools (AHS) Changemaker Summit 2026 at AIA Tower in Makati City, gathering student finalists from across the country to present health and sustainability projects built around the real needs of their schools and communities. 

The AHS program gives students aged 5 to 17 the tools and framework to take action across four areas of well-being: physical activity, healthy eating, mental wellbeing, and environmental sustainability. Through free, curriculum-linked resources and guided activities, students and teachers develop projects tailored to their own local contexts. The Changemaker Summit is the program's annual culminating event, where finalists present their work and top schools earn the opportunity to represent the Philippines at AIA’s regional competition in Bangkok, Thailand in July 2026.

This year's top honors went to Hicming Elementary School in Virac, Catanduanes for the grade school category and Granada National High School-Ballesteros Extension in Carles, Iloilo for the high school category. These two school projects grew from specific, local challenges into initiatives with measurable community impact.

“It was inspiring to see students take real ownership of their communities’ health and sustainability challenges, and lead with purpose and conviction to create meaningful change,” said Melissa Henson, Chief Marketing Officer, AIA Philippines.

“The projects showcased at our Changemaker Summit show what’s possible when young people are given the tools and space to lead. This underscores AIA’s commitment to helping future generations live Healthier, Longer, Better Lives by equipping schools to champion physical, mental, and environmental well-being through AIA Healthiest Schools.”

Hicming Elementary School's project began as a response to plastic waste accumulating in their community. Students collected non-biodegradable materials and compressed them into eco-bricks, which were put to immediate use in building a medicinal herbal garden. Over time, the initiative drew in parents and local farmers, evolving from a school activity into a broader community practice. 

The school’s island location in Catanduanes shaped the project’s direction. With no pharmacy on the island, community members turned to the students’ herb garden to source practical, accessible solutions for basic health needs. 

More than gardening or recycling, the project focuses on one goal: strengthening community health resilience by using sustainable, locally available solutions, especially in areas where access to formal healthcare is limited by geography, climate, and social conditions. 

Granada National High School started with a campus waste problem: dried leaves and biodegradable material had been piling up with no system for managing them. What others might have seen as a simple safety hazard, the Project Compostech team saw as an opportunity. The students studied the soil on their island and found that it is not conducive to farming. This led them to develop an organic fertilizer from the collected waste—what they would eventually call their “black gold.” The fertilizer improved soil quality and enabled the school to grow its own produce on campus, which now supports a feeding program for around 70 malnourished students and their families, including beneficiaries of the government's 4Ps program. 

For many of them, Project Compostech has meant more consistent access to nutrition that would otherwise be out of reach. To keep the initiative self-sustaining, students package and sell the fertilizer, using the income to fund the program's continued operation and growth. 

Launched in the Philippines in August 2024, the AIA Healthiest Schools program has so far reached over 32,000 students and trained nearly 1,000 teachers across five regions in the country. In the Philippines, the program is implemented in partnership with the Corazon S. Atayde Memorial Foundation (CSAMF).

The top schools from the 2026 Changemaker Summit will go on to represent the Philippines at the AHS regional competition in Bangkok, Thailand in July 2026, where they will compete with representatives from other countries where AIA is present. AIA Philippines continues to expand the program's reach, with the goal of equipping more young Filipinos with the awareness and skills to live healthier, longer, better lives. 

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About AIA Philippines
AIA Philippines (AIA Philippines Life and General Insurance Company Inc.) formerly AIA Philam Life (The Philippine American Life and General Insurance Company), is the country’s premier life insurance company. Originally established on 21 June 1947 and became popularly known as Philam Life, AIA Philippines has earned the trust of customers for its financial strength, strong brand name, and ability to deliver on its promises.

AIA Philippines has PHP 257.76 billion in total assets and PHP 57.35 billion in net worth as of 31 December 2024 while serving nearly 1.2 million individual policyholders and nearly 800,000 insured group members. AIA Philippines understands the needs of its customers and provides holistic solutions that include life protection, health insurance, savings, education, retirement, investment, group, and credit life insurance. It also offers bancassurance through its subsidiary, BPI AIA Life Assurance Corporation (formerly BPI-Philam Life Assurance Corporation).

Based on the unaudited reports submitted to the Insurance Commission as of 31 December 2024, the combined total premium income of AIA Philippines and BPI AIA was at PHP 29.77 billion. AIA Philippines is a member of AIA Group Limited, the largest independent publicly listed pan-Asian life insurance group.

AIA PH and BPI AIA are regulated by the Insurance Commission.

About AIA

AIA Group Limited and its subsidiaries (collectively “AIA” or the “Group”) comprise the largest independent publicly listed pan-Asian life insurance group. It has a presence in 18 markets – wholly-owned branches and subsidiaries in Mainland China, Hong Kong SAR⁽¹⁾, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, New Zealand, the Philippines, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan (China), Vietnam, Brunei and Macau SAR⁽²⁾, and a 49 per cent joint venture in India. In addition, AIA has a 24.99 per cent shareholding in China Post Life Insurance Co., Ltd.

The business that is now AIA was first established in Shanghai more than a century ago in 1919. It is a market leader in Asia (ex-Japan) based on life insurance premiums and holds leading positions across the majority of its markets. It had total assets of US$345 billion as of 31 December 2025.

AIA meets the long-term savings and protection needs of individuals by offering a range of products and services including life insurance, accident and health insurance and savings plans. The Group also provides employee benefits, credit life and pension services to corporate clients. Through an extensive network of agents, partners and employees across Asia, AIA serves the holders of more than 44 million individual policies and over 16 million participating members of group insurance schemes.

AIA Group Limited is listed on the Main Board of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited under the stock codes “1299” for HKD counter and “81299” for RMB counter with American Depositary Receipts (Level 1) traded on the over-the-counter market under the ticker symbol “AAGIY”.

Notes:
⁽¹⁾Hong Kong SAR refers to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
⁽²⁾ Macau SAR refers to the Macau Special Administrative Region.