On September 3, 2020, President Mr. Patiparn Sukorndhaman was honored to give a speech at the “33^rd Pathakatha Ari Wanlayasewee,” an important annual event held by the Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital at Mahidol University to commemorate Prof. Emeritus Dr. Ari Wanlayasewee, the founder and first dean of the faculty. Preeminent experts and scholars from different fields in Thailand whom the faculty has previously invited as lecturers include Dr. Praves Vasi, Dr. Amnuay Viravan, Mr. Anand Panyarachun, Dr. Somkid Jatusripitak, and Mr. Kan Trakulhoon. The event attracted a large audience both in the auditorium and online.

Mr. Patipan lectured on the role and significance of the petrochemical industry on Thailand’s development, the benefits of petrochemical products, and the trends in economic and social changes which the industrial sector must adapt to – and which have led to GC’s Circular Economy framework and guidelines that support sustainability for the Economy, Environment and Society (2E1S). He provided some examples of collaborative projects between GC and its partner agencies which include creating a new method to sort waste, waste collection and storage, recycling, and recycled product design, all of which aim to increase public awareness in support of the environment. He also talked about bioplastics, a new and important alternative from GC, which is formulating a development plan to take advantage of Thailand’s agricultural feedstocks. The company is building a bio-complex which uses sugarcane to produce biofuels, bioplastics, biochemicals as well as electricity and steam in response to the government’s bio-economy program.