Indigenous Communities and local partners gathered in October 2021 to reconnect and update on how they are, after almost two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. We held a series of in-community gatherings with Partners in Northern Mindanao, and culminated with an online meetings together with Partners from other parts of Mindanao.
We cordially invite you to "Lasa at Kuwento ng Pamayanang Pilipino" (Taste and Tales)
Celebrating International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples “Leaving no one behind: Indigenous peoples and the call for a new social contract”.
Leaving no one behind means building a just, equitable and inclusive society, in which Indigenous Peoples and local communities hold rights to their territories and are responsible for their own well-being.
Frequency of Love: This was one of the reasons Ruwi would never get tired to go on a #Nokening journey, because it never ended with a short love story. Everyone who is involved in #Nokening journey remain in the same frequency, what’s the Frequency? It’s the frequency of love He said. “I then shared that I experienced the beauty and richness of forest, rivers, swamp, the delicious food of sago, tubers, fish, banana, and so many more, and most importantly the friendliness, the openness, the welcoming, the joyful, the artfulness of and the singing and dancing Papuans communities”.
The Panlablaba Youth Association (PAYO) and the Kababaihan sa Panlablaba (KASAP) women’s group planted trees together last May 23, 2021, in Awang, Misamis Oriental. At that time PAYO, with the help of their Elder, Datu Marcus, already had around 4,000 seedlings of various endemic species. They had started their tree nursery in 2019, and last year, at the height of COVID-19 lockdowns, the youth spent their time expanding their nurseries. They still plan to re-plant the surrounding hills in their sitio (village) which had become barren over the years.
In the heart of Sentani Lake, there lies a small island. Tourists call this island "Teletubbies Hill" because it has smooth bumpy hills just like in the Teletubbies TV series. The actual name is Yotoro Yoman Jo Hill. Approximately 50ha, it is home to the Kwadeware Village in Waibu District, Jayapura. On top of the hills, one can witness the beautiful scenery of Lake Sentani and the Cycloop Mountains, the far-reaching savanna grasslands and local houses at the edge of the lake surrounding the island. Sunsets and sunrises are naked to the eye because there are no shades to cover the sky.
#GenerationRestoration
#nurturingGeneration
#findingresilience
In Laos, the Green Community Volunteers (GCV) set out to build an earth brick house, to be the abode of learning for children, women and elders alike. The bricks are made from raw earth found in the village, mixed with husk and water. Mixed mud is used to hold together the bricks to form the structure. The practice of making an earth house is not very common anymore. The earth house in the village of Phonsavanh was built by community members volunteering, many of them are from the ethnic groups, such as Khmu, Hmong and Lao Loom.
The COVID-19 pandemic did not deter Higaonon and Bukidnon communities in Northern Mindanao in sustaining community conservation.
The map below indicates the location of the indigenous tree nursery, women community gardens and tree-planting activities that were spurred on in the ICON Project (Indigenous Governance at the Forefront of Conservation Project, supported by Forest Foundation Philippines).
To accelerate the recognition of indigenous territory, in September 2018, the Jayapura regency government issued a District law for the recognition, protection and empowerment of indigenous peoples, establishing a special task force called the Indigenous Peoples Task Force (GTMA). The task force focuses on preparing social and spatial data, providing capacity building to institutions related to the recognition and protection of indigenous peoples' rights to natural resources, and policy analysis which strengthens the implementation of this program.