Bringing Value from the Sea to Filipino Homes: Ligo

Watching documentaries and seeing the plight of fishermen in the provinces made me realize how some of our fisherfolk's practices are not sustainable. We consume quite a lot of sardines, as it is one of the most affordable food items we have that is properly kept, canned and lasts a long while. In a 2017 survey, they listed 9 out of 10 pinoys actually consume it.

As commercial fishing boats become a norm, overfishing is becoming a huge problem. The amount of sardines they take out from the sea just wouldn't be able to sustain production. Add to that climate issues, and it's a tragedy waiting to happen.

Century Pacific Food Inc. who produces various sardine brands like 555, Lucky 7, Fresca, and well loved brand Ligo launched a campaign called "Sustendido Bulan" at Bulan in Sorsogon. This aims to make sure that sourcing raw ingredients including fish is sourced sustainably. They also want to make sure fisherfolk are educated about processes and make sure the long term supply of it.   

They also went over and beyond by doing community work with their products, teaching nutrition to empower the community and have an even better resource management practices in this location. CPFI and Ligo wants to enable they understand that there could be a supply chain that could benefit them all. Through various partnerships, education and innovation, they would be able to balance the needs of people to bring value from the sea to Filipino homes too.

Putting their call "Lamang ka sa Ligo" is a practice that gets both consumers and suppliers at a beneficial standpoint. Something that would not harm the planet and not have overfishing at these locations.

As of now, they have trained 250 fishermen and women about sustainability. They also accredited 500 families as suppliers. They also now created over 850 posts to employ them in plants across the region and had 1075 kids benefit from their school feeding programs. They also noted how rejection rates of fish went from 13 to only 3% and hopefully have eliminated resource strain because of the "Sustenido Bulan" efforts. They are following UN Sustainable Development goals and hope to maintain these gains in the coming years. We fervently hope this becomes beneficial for future generations and be practiced at different locations. It doesn't have to be in one place of course!

Ligo certainly brings value not only from the sea, but to Filipino homes nationwide!

Teach Kids About Biodiversity Through MIND S-COOL Special

There exists a Biodiversity crisis and there's certainly no opportune time to teach kids about its dangers but now. If you don't know how, the Bonifacio Art Foundation Inc. and United States Agency for International Development have come together to bring you a special edition of MIND S-COOL TV. They also have put up a Biodiversity Crisis Escape Room which you can try, so you and your kids would be able to get hold of your role before tragedy strikes.

We got to experience the escape rooms earlier. It teaches you how each of us affects the balance between agriculture, aquaculture, the land we live in. This would be a good thing to do especially with young adults and kids. The activity costs Php 150 in Mind Museum, but may be free when brought to other areas.

It is ultimately a collaboration, of what you, your government, and other people could do to act on it. The Biodiversity Crisis Escape Rooms (BCER) would teach participants to work together in order to achieve goals and solve the crisis. This same setup will be done in different parts of the country including Subic, Puerto Princesa and Davao. Community leaders including decision makes are encouraged to join. The 3 rooms are actually connected, and they'd have to work together to solve it with different measures, each one needs to do their part.

A special about this will also be broadcasted on May 26th at 11am on. OnePH. This will also be replayed at 4:30pm on the same day. During the launch, Kathy Watchala of USAID Sibol and Maria Isabel Garcia of BAFI welcomed everyone and urged more people to come on dates indicated on posters. You may email them at mindscool@bafi.org.ph if you want to know more about the project, so you too can get involved!

Your Future Beach Home: Hamilo Coast Pico Terraces

Things are certainly busy and traffic has been at an all time high especially over the holidays. Ever thought about getting your own home away from the city? I bet you would love to have sand on your feet, a huge coastline you could walk on during sunset and a few hours of listening to crashing waves, changing your mood like a vacation... but you actually live there. Well, that can happen to you at Pico Terraces, Hamilo Coast's latest development at Pico de Loro in Nasugbu, Batangas.

It's a quaint residential community, carefully planned by Costa Del Hamilo Inc. under SM Prime. They made this especially for those who think about their mental health, and overall well being because Pico Terraces can certainly do wonders for that. They've got available units at the second building, and those who currently reside there love the positive impact it has been able to give while being there. The property spans 2.3 hectares, lots of room to walk around and appreciate mountain views, outdoor spaces and nature.

Pico Terraces also has lots of amenities like pools, cabanas, clubhouse, places where kids could roam around and play, several nature trails, outdoor fitness spaces, and barbecue areas. These are all dedicated to Pico Terraces home owners, a treat for those who want to live comfortably. Their units come in 1-3 bedroom arrangements, to fit different family sizes, with large windows and ventilation to make the space brighter and fresher. If you get a unit, you also get to be a member of Pico De Loro Beach and Country Club and get the perks that go with it.

Pico Terraces certainly would be a good future beach home, if you fancy or get the urge to live here, get more information from the Hamilo Coast FB page or hamilocoast.com.