US supports indigenous efforts at Mt. Kitanglad

The US Embassy Manila’s United States Agency for International Development (USAid), through its Biodiversity and Watersheds Improved for Stronger Economy and Ecosystem Resilience (B+WISER) Program, awarded a P2.8 million grant to the Kitanglad Integrated NGOs, Inc. (KIN) to document traditional systems, knowledge and best practices in order to conserve biodiversity and manage natural resources within the Mt. Kitanglad Range Natural Park.

The grant will facilitate the first attempt to document the customs and traditional management systems of the Talaandig, Bukidnon and Higaonon ethnic groups in the 47,270-hectare Mt. Kitanglad Range Natural Park. These indigenous practices have contributed considerably to Mt. Kitanglad’s stature as a protected area and as an Asean Heritage Park. The results of the documentation will be presented to the Kitanglad Protected Area Management Board (PAMB) for adoption and will be shared with other indigenous communities and to the public.