GROWING abundant in our
country's backwoods and wilderness is a fern that wraps itself snake-like
around the trunks of towering trees, gnarled roots and moss-coated boulders -
the nito vine.
City folk have failed to see the
worth of these sprawling vines, but, endlessly resourceful, indigenous peoples
from all over the Philippines have stripped the plant of its leaves and used
its strands to weave baskets and purses to sell.
The Philippines' indigenous tribes
are people of the earth - relying on the rich and vibrant covers of nature for
their necessities and livelihood. The aetas of Nagpana in Barotac Viejo are no
different.
A group of young Ilonggos, seeing the
craftsmanship and hard work of the Nagpana aetas, found potential in their
handiwork and wanted to empower the weavers and artists of the tribe.
"Na-notice ko na magkadto ka sa
busay galatag na sing inugbaligya (nga purses) ang mga babaye. Kis-a mahinulat
sila. Galatag man sila, pero wala man gabakal," shares Kristine Buenavista
one of the founders of Nagpana Ethnic Jewelry.
Buenavista, a resident of Barotac
Viejo, has been a frequent visitor of the aeta community since her childhood,
participating in outreach projects and actively involved in education and
storytelling activities with the tribe.
"We thought why not mag-build on
kami sa ila culture?" Buenavista muses. Situated on more than 900 hectares of
protected forests and near the Nagpana Falls and watershed, the community is
made up around 150 aeta households. The weaving of baskets and trinkets for
additional livelihood has been a part of aeta culture for decades, but interest
for these handmade products has diminished over the years.
Conceptualized in August last year by
Buenavista and her co-founders Marrz Capanag and Carm Novilla, Nagpana Ethic
Jewelry aims to support and empower designs “imagined by an aeta,” encouraging
them to go beyond the usual products we see at flea markets and souvenir shops
to dream and come up with jewelry that are uniquely their own.
“At first the artists were hesitant,” shares
Novilla. “Hindi mo man sila mabasol, intsindihan mo man sila kay pila na ka
dekada, naanad sila nga ginaluoyan lang sila, so kung may mag-outreach toh,
mahatag lang kag malakat man kung hapon.”
Buenavista shares that, for a time,
most of their aeta artists were doubtful of their own skills and couldn’t see
the creativity in their work because they were used to just copying designs.
But the three young founders of the social enterprise continuously encouraged
them until they found their footing and their unique artistic voices.
“‘Ma’am hindi ko na kay wala ko ka-eskwela’,
kay naangdan lang nila mga puyo-puyo. Pero gapasalamat man kami kay may mga
nagdisidir, damu man ang nagganyak, kag nalipay man sila nga mangin part sila
sing social enterprise namun,” expresses Buenavista.
“Later on, na-realize man nila nga ang
ginaobra namun para gid sa ila,” relates Novilla. Nakita man nila ang amun
consistency, gabalik-balik gid kami, gatulog man kami toh, ga-immerse gid kami
sa ila community. Gusto gid namun nga makabulig nga tayuyun, hindi lang nga
pa-untat untat.”
One of their first artists was Nang Melca a
42-year-old mother of 8 children, and the resident manug-nito (nito vine
harvester) of the community.
“Before ga-obra na siya aritos pero wala
gasapak, kay hambal nila daw hindi obra ka ati, so na discourage siya for quite
some time,” shares Buenavista.
But because of Nang Melca’s
perseverance, encouraging her fellow tribeswomen to join, they were able to
grow their project ¬– now to 17 aeta weavers, these artists from
ages 17, with Evelyn the youngest, to 98, the tireless Lola Ma-am.
“Na-realize ni Nang Melca nga biskan asta
Grade 1 lang siya, may ibuga man gale iya huna-huna, kag happy gid sya nga
gina-appreciate ang work niya,” narrates Buenavista. “Kay ginapakita namun ang
photos nga may gasuksuk sing ila work happy gid na sila, kis-a gahilibi sila sa
kalipay.”
In fact one of Nagpana Ethnic
Jewelry’s earliest pieces is named “Kabakas ni Melca,” celebrating her
admirable courage and handiwork.
Recently, Buenavista, Novilla and
Capanag were cited by the British Council as part of their Active Citizens:
Leaders for Social Impact Training program. Nagpana Ethnic Jewelry was voted by
their facilitators and peers as the best social enterprise in the Visayas Leg of
the program, opening up new doors for the young Ilonggo founders.
"Culture, empowerment, environment, we try to
address also these concerns and aspects in one project. Hindi lang siya nga
economic empowerment, we want it to be holistic,” shares Novilla.
Like the nito vine, often overlooked
and disregarded, the treasures we need to value are often abundant in the
nature and our culture, we just fail to
see their vivid colors and luster - sometimes a piece of intricate woven
jewelry, sometimes a tribe that traces their history back to our oldest
ancestors.
Nagpana Ethnic Jewelry products are
sold online through their official facebook page and are also available at Café
Panay in the Molo Mansion, Damires Hills in Janiuay and the Dojo 8 Coworking
Space along Gen. Luna Street, Iloilo City Proper.
Like Nagpana Ethnic Jewelry on Facebook to know more
about their cause and order some awesome jewelry.
Photos from the Official Nagpana Ethnic Jewelry page
