Kalma lang, Pilipinas!

photo from SpecialAchievers

I scrolled my facebook news feed today and I saw that there’s a general discontent with the election results.  

Some of my friends even want to migrate!  It’s that bad.

I completely understand my friends’ lament.  

The good guys lost.  Many traditional politicians won.  I heard some of the leaders elected lack even the basic qualification to apply for a saleslady’s job.  

It’s that bad. 

“What will happen to our country now?”, asked one friend.

Here’s my fearless prediction.  

image from onewithnow

We will go on.  Just as we have moved on even from the fiercest storms. 

We will hold these elected leaders accountable.  We will be vigilant that they do what they promised and that they use the funds entrusted to them appropriately.

We will not rely on our leaders though.  We will solve the problems in our community with ingenuity and the "bayanihan" spirit we know so well.

image from verywellmind

What makes me so optimistic you asked?

I’ve been in the field of community development in the last 4 years.  I want to incite change so bad I decreased my clinic hours and I used my own money to help out (and I’m not rich). 

I don’t want to crow.  It's just that I feel restless if I don’t do anything when I have an antidote to a problem.  So, more than anything, it’s really for me- for my peace of mind. 

Recently, I met people like me.  

These people can’t stand still and just watch the world go dark.  They are not politicians.  They are social entrepreneurs whose businesses have a social and/or environmental mission.  

I want you to meet them, too.

Pamela Mejia is the founder of Phinix, a brand which upcycles old clothes into high quality shoes & bags and employs persons with disability and local shoe & bag artisans.    

DC De Castro of DC De Castro Designs makes custom street style and urban "citywear" pieces. Recently, he has decided to go into the sustainable fashion route in the hopes of minimizing textile waste in our planet.

Prince Ventura is the founder of Wear Forward, a fashion recommerce and social enterprise which promotes circular fashion and collaborative consumption through swapping, lending, selling, and donating pre-loved and upcycled clothes and accessories.

Joy Gomez of Joy of Marketing helps start-ups scale while breaking the marketing myth that scaling needs a HUGE marketing budget.

Bianca Gregorio is the founder of Re Clothing, a sustainable clothing brand which aims to give secondhand clothing a new life and bring back the connection we had with our clothes and its makers through transparency and creativity.

Vannah Pacis of Maud & Virginia Atelier seeks to provide women beyond retiring age and out of school youth an alternative livelihood by training and employing them to sew.  

Sheila Mae Fuentes is the founder of Forth Co., an online platform for sustainable fashion selections in the Philippines.

Marianne Sobierra of ThreadStory designs clothes which are both versatile and functional, uses reclaimed fabrics and employs home-based mothers from Taytay Rizal.

Carissa Torres is the founder of Wear Monono, a brand which gives garments a second life.  She sells locally sourced vintage, thrifted, and secondhand clothing items.

Jean Abijay of Love, Iloy, uses locally sourced organic silk and cotton in making children's wear.  The artisans of this enterprise are single mothers in Tramo and mothers in the Visayan region.

Jamie Naval of Ten Twenty Kids promotes creativity and sustainability to kids by creating and educating. She transforms textile wastes into educational toys and materials.

Maurice Ondoy is the founder of SOLELead Tribal Footwear, a social enterprise which upcycles scrap vehicle tires and turns it into high value products such as footwear by incorporating it with Mindanao’s authentic tribal textiles.

Danica Ranola of Sewstain incorporates used clothes to reclaimed fabrics to produce a unique design per clothing.  She also wants to bridge the gap of the different social classes through collaboration.

Camille Albarracin is the founder of Gree-ne-las, a greener alternative footwear which aims to contribute to the zero-waste solution as products are 99% compostable. Every purchase of gree-ne-las provides a sustainable enterprise to the various sectors of the marginalized communities in Bicol and Metro Manila.

Ina Morales is the founder of A•Co, or Accessories in Collaboration, an aspiring social enterprise with the women of Brgy. Culiat, Quezon City.  A•Co's pieces are handcrafted by women artisans using recycled materials such as clothing scraps, plastic bottles, or tin cans. 

Jessa Mae Visaya of Matter Dem recycles old denim jeans into bags to help the environment and reach out to the community.

Paula Pioquinto-Dimaano of Piesa creates 

accessories which  celebrates all facets of a woman.  

All their pieces are handmade and proudly crafted in the 

Philippines by college students.

Krizia Jimenez is a purveyor of intricately designed and thoughtfully curated fashion and accessories.  She produces pieces which are sophisticated, street, and strong while practicing slow fashion and small production.





In my NGO work, I also met generous individuals and organizations who just want to give- without expecting anything      in return.

Martin Sy is an art director and brand strategist who provides probono marketing consultancy to non-government organizations.  

Lei Mitchen Sta Maria is part of the core team of Child’s Pose Yoga Project, a nonprofit organization which aims to create sustainable change in children through yoga, sports, and life skills.

Annah Margarita Montesa spends her time developing health and safety programs for workers.  She also uses her network to connect organizations and companies to social causes.

The Association of Philippine Medical Colleges – Student Network (APMCSN) is an assembly of Philippine medical students which promotes an active role for students in the development of medical education. 

Child Haus provides a temporary shelter for children with cancer and their caregivers who are seeking treatment in Manila.  

These are just a few.  There are a lot of individuals and organizations changing the playing field and shaking the ground.  

There is hope.

Kalma lang, Pilipinas!  

meditation by Release Your Wings