Sulu Garden Foundation, Inc.

31/10/2026

SGF Team featured on Born to Be Wild 🦇🪾

31/10/2026

𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗖𝗿𝗼𝗽 𝘁𝗼 𝗘𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝗢𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆: 𝗣𝗮𝗻𝗮𝘆-𝗕𝘂𝗸𝗶𝗱𝗻𝗼𝗻 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗙𝗮𝗿𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗨𝗯𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝗰𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀 𝗜𝗹𝗼𝗶𝗹𝗼 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀

As part of the celebration of Indigenous Peoples’ Month, the 61st Infantry (Hunter) Battalion and Sulu Garden Foundation (SGF) brought together 41 Panay-Bukidnon farmers for the “𝗥𝗼𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗣𝗮𝗻𝗮𝘆 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗣𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲’𝘀 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝘂𝗺 𝗼𝗻 𝗨𝗯𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻” on October 28 in Miag-ao, Iloilo. The gathering convened indigenous agricultural practitioners from the municipalities of Alimodian, Tubungan, and Leon, creating a platform for knowledge exchange, farmer-to-farmer learning, and discussions on the future of ube cultivation as a sustainable agricultural enterprise.

Through field visits, brief lecture and open forum, and the distribution of planting materials, participants explored how indigenous communities can take part in the growing ube industry while strengthening food sovereignty, conserving traditional knowledge, and creating new opportunities for their families.

Driving the initiative is the growing global demand for ube and the significant opportunity it presents for indigenous farming communities. Despite the increasing international popularity of ube-based products, Philippine production has struggled to keep pace, creating opportunities for farmers to participate in expanding domestic and export markets. As global demand for ube continues to rise, initiatives like this aim to position Panay's upland communities at the forefront of a heritage crop with tremendous potential for both local development and long-term agricultural resilience.

Read more: https://tinyurl.com/yvtss579

29/10/2026

Ube begins as a plant; not a purple dessert.

Ube, commonly known as purple yam, is a climbing plant grown for its underground tuber. Its vines and leaves are part of the growing crop, while the tuber is the part commonly used in food. The name “ube” is generally associated with 𝘋𝘪𝘰𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘢 𝘈𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘢, but varieties and planting material should be identified carefully rather than guessed from color alone.

At SGF, ube is part of a wider conversation about cultivation, community needs, and how agriculture might be considered alongside tree-growing and conservation. Those connections need evidence and careful field assessment.

What do you most associate with ube: the plant, the harvest, or the food made from it? Let us know in the comments below! 👇

🌿 Discover how we advance science-based environmental conservation: https://youtu.be/cSL2r2uRAF8?si=RJvCqQ0hm9YPpUiP

28/10/2026

SGF MUSEUM. October is Museum and Galleries Month. Before the month ends, we wish to show you our progress in creating a permanent museum about History and Heritage of Miag-ao. SGF MUSEUM is unique because historical storytelling is through the medium of 3D Design, 3D printing and the artists that transform our ideas into a visually exciting narrative of our history.

There is MORE TO COME. STAY TUNED.

See the video in this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dp4PzgtQxY

23/10/2026

1,300+ species --THE AMAZING WORLD AROUND US IN MIG-AO, ILOILO, PHILIPPINES. https://www.facebook.com/reel/3475571905982795

19/10/2026

Protecting our heritage starts with knowing how to care for it. Sulu Garden Foundation, Inc. (SGF), represented by Salvador “Jun” Acsay, joined the National Museum of the Philippines – Iloilo’s Museums and Galleries Month activity, “Cultural Heritage Protection: A Guide to RA 10066.” Participants explored heritage laws, community responsibilities, and what to do when cultural objects are discovered.

At Sulu Garden Foundation (SGF), preserving our cultural heritage is more than protecting the past; it is about keeping the stories, traditions, and history of our communities alive for future generations. Through our heritage and history initiatives, we continue to promote a deeper appreciation of the cultural identity that connects us.

SGF’s participation in the cultural heritage protection activity reflects this continuing commitment. The insights shared by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) on Republic Act No. 10066 remind us that heritage preservation is a responsibility we all share. By strengthening awareness and encouraging community involvement, SGF hopes to help safeguard the cultural treasures and traditions that make our heritage meaningful.

18/10/2026

https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1410932034528369&set=a.398337042454545

FOREST GROWERS! 🦇🌱

What if some of the Philippines' most important forest helpers are animals that fly at night?

Fruit bats play an important ecological role by dispersing seeds and helping forests regenerate, particularly in tropical environments where many trees depend on animals to spread their seeds.

When fruit bats feed on fruits, they may swallow seeds and later release them through their droppings. Others carry fruits away from their parent trees, dropping seeds in different locations.

This process, known as seed dispersal, allows plants to spread beyond the areas where they originally grew.

In the Philippines, research on lowland forest succession has documented the role of birds and bats in transporting seeds into regenerating forest habitats.

Studies involving fruit bats in Mt. Apo Natural Park have also highlighted their importance as seed dispersers, particularly in landscapes affected by habitat degradation.

By moving seeds between forest patches and surrounding habitats, fruit bats can help plants colonize new areas, support natural forest recovery, and contribute to biodiversity.

Their ecological contribution is especially valuable because some fruit bats can travel considerable distances while searching for food, potentially dispersing seeds far from their original trees.

However, not every seed they carry will grow into a tree. Successful regeneration still depends on suitable soil, moisture, light, and other environmental conditions.

Despite their ecological importance, fruit bats are sometimes feared or misunderstood. Habitat destruction, hunting, and disturbances to their roosting sites can also threaten their populations.

Protecting fruit bats and their habitats helps preserve the natural processes that sustain Philippine forests.

Often overlooked, these nighttime seed dispersers are among nature's quiet forest growers, helping the next generation of trees take root, one seed at a time. 🦇🌳

16/10/2026

SOMETHING TO PREPARE FOR NOW ! -- SUPER EL NINO IS COMING FAST TO PHILIPPINES. 'Dr Zeke Hausfather, climate scientist at Berkeley Earth, told the BBC: "We are currently witnessing an El Niño event that is unprecedented in the historical record.

"The strength of El Niño this year is spilling out of the traditional El Nino region," he added, before Dr Hausfather saying the "astonishing" projections mean records are likely to be broken by "by a remarkable amount".

The phenomenon, which takes shape over the Pacific Ocean and pushes temperatures to extreme, is fuelled by the effects of human-powered climate change and has a brutal knock-on effect on all continents.'

More than 450,000 deaths have been forecast by experts as the climate phenomenon begins to take its grip, with new records expected to be set 'by a remarkable amount'

12/10/2026

LIFE IN THE CREEK BESIDES SULU GARDEN --'TIKLING' --Barred Rail (Gallirallus torquatus also classified as Hypotaenidia torquata). This bird is our daily visitor and among the many organisms that call this creek their home. We need to protect this unique creek somehow before these creatures are all gone, like so many others.

08/10/2026

SGF researchers featured in the latest article of Manila Bulletin Agriculture Magazine 🌿

Read the full article: https://agriculture.com.ph/2026/10/07/researchers-identify-balunos-used-in-miagaos-budbud-asin-tradition/

Read our paper: https://doi.org/10.1007/s44372-026-00838-z

Derived from the Kinaray-a word budbud, meaning “to sprinkle,” Budbud Asin involves filtering seawater through prepared sand beds before processing the concentrated brine into mineral-rich salt.

Salt makers add an extract from the vine locally known as balunos to help foam and caramelize the brine, giving it the sticky consistency needed for salt crystallization.

Read more in the comments.