Enriching Weaving Culture
The Philippines every October celebrates National Indigenous Peoples (IP) Month as a way of honoring the culture, heritage, and the still existing contributions of its Indigenous Cultural Communities and Indigenous Peoples, who inhabit the different parts of the country. The theme for this year “Weaving Culture, Enriching Future: Empowering Indigenous Communities as Bedrock of Sustainable Development” is accentuating the fact that native identities and customs are the main factors of sustainable development and the social fabric of the country. The event coincides with the anniversary of the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act (IPRA) which legally recognizes ancestral domains, cultural integrity, and collective rights. Among the activities that are going on throughout the entire month, the performing of traditional dances, music playing, and rituals are the most relevant ones that display the living practices linking communities with their ancestors and their surrounding nature. Local e...