News & Updates from Cordillera
Startup ecosystem, innovation programs, and founder stories from the Cordillera Administrative Region.
Two UC Senior High School Students From Baguio Won the 2026 National Robotics Championship. Now They Represent the Philippines in China.
Zyrus Whayne Naganag and John Victor Advincula of UC SHS defeated teams from 15 regions at the TechQuest National Robotics Challenge for Academia on April 16–17, 2026 in Makati, taking the champion title, the Best Robot Design Award, and a slot at an international robotics competition in China.
A €60M EU Programme Just Opened a Youth Startup Track for Cordillera Founders
Circle Works, backed by the EU-PH Green Economy Partnership's €60 million fund, opened its Baguio leg on April 13, 2026, at the University of Baguio, offering students a structured pathway from circular economy concept to funded green venture.
Baguio City Held a Two-Day Summit on March 30 to Rethink How Tourism Grows Without Breaking What Makes the City Worth Visiting
The Baguio Circular Tourism Summit, backed by UNDP, the EU, and the Government of Japan, brought together government, businesses, and communities to build a circular tourism economy, with action plans, policy reform, and a new sustainability framework at the center.
BFAR-CAR Brought Cordillera Fisherfolk Leaders to a Working Hatchery and a Crayfish Farm to Show What Aquaculture Innovation Looks Like in Practice
A two-day benchmarking and consultation workshop on April 7–8, 2026, put fisherfolk leaders from across Cordillera directly inside the MITH-i hatchery system and a regulated crayfish facility, pairing hands-on learning with policy clarity and a leadership election.
UC InTTO Brought in a Benilde Startup Expert to Run a One-on-One Innovation Clinic for Its Incubatees — and the Framework Matters
The April 8 Startup Product Strategy and Innovation Clinic at the University of the Cordilleras InTTO gave prototype-stage founders structured coaching on Bill Aulet's disciplined entrepreneurship methodology — and individual consultations tailored to each team's specific challenges.
Six Agencies Trained Over 40 Young Entrepreneurs in Digital and AI Skills Across Cordillera
The Youth Digital Champions Workshop ran from April 7 to 9 at the Baguio Digital Transformation Center, Abra, Benguet, and Kalinga at the same time — part of a six-week Digital PINAS program teaching young entrepreneurs AI tools, digital marketing, and business digitalization skills.
A Baguio Couple Built a Free Carpooling App in One Night — Because the Community Needed It and No One Else Was Going to Do It
SakayTayo Baguio-Benguet launched on April 1, 2026, offering students, workers, and farmers a free, no-middleman ride-sharing platform built specifically for Baguio City and all 13 municipalities of Benguet — including a feature designed for farmers hauling vegetables to the Trading Post.
DICT-CAR Is Planning a ₱60 Million Upgrade of the Baguio Post Office Into a Digital Hub — Without Touching Its 1918 Heritage Character
The Department of Information and Communications Technology Cordillera has submitted a Conservation Management Plan for the rehabilitation of the Digital Transformation Center and the Baguio Post Office building — a project that has to balance a modern ICT hub with the preservation of one of Session Road's most historically significant structures.
DOST-Kalinga and KSU Trained Farmers and Processors to Turn Calamansi and Peanuts Into Market-Ready Cookies and Bars
A hands-on product development training at the Kalinga State University Food Processing and Innovation Research Center on March 30 gave MSMEs, farmers, and processors practical skills to move local agricultural produce up the value chain — using ingredients sourced from their own backyards.
DTI-CARP and NIA Trained Farmers in Bugallon on Content Marketing and Copywriting — Because Growing Good Rice Is No Longer Enough
Members of the Bugallon Cabigaan and Porumba Irrigators Association in Pangasinan completed a seminar-workshop on effective content marketing and copywriting on March 24 — part of a growing push to give agrarian reform beneficiaries the digital skills to reach buyers on their own terms.
DOST-Kalinga Brought Locally Developed Products to Balawag's Kape Festival — and the Makers Include High School Students and Community Cooperatives
The DOST Smart and Sustainable Communities Program showcased processed coffee, bugnay wine, sugarcane wine, and camote bread from Balawag, Tabuk City on March 27 — products developed through DOST training and packaging support, now ready for wider markets.
Pitch Perfect Brought Two Days of Entrepreneurship Training to the Strawberry Festival Trade Fair in La Trinidad
Students from Benguet State University and Cordillera Career Development College joined local residents at the March 23 to 24 training — a practical business planning session held inside one of Benguet's most attended annual events.
Philippine Science High School Brought Student Research to the National Stage at the Higher Education Summit 2026 in Clark
PSHS campuses from Ilocos Sur, Baguio City, Davao, and Cebu showcased student research projects at HES 2026 on March 10 to 12 — giving young scientists from the country's premier science high school direct access to industry leaders and a platform to connect their work to real-world applications.
The 7th Mangan Taku Cordillera Food Fair Is Coming to Burnham Park — and DOT-Accredited Enterprises Can Still Join
The Mangan Taku Inclusion Program is open for applications, offering DOT-accredited tourism enterprises a chance to participate in Cordillera's premier food fair at the Rose Garden, Burnham Park from April 23 to 27, 2026 — and earn a recognition sticker that signals their commitment to local culinary heritage.
DTI-Apayao Brings Social Media and Content Creation Training to Conner — and Entrepreneurs Practiced With Real Products on the Same Day
A March 19 training in Malama, Conner brought together cooperatives, indigenous peoples associations, and small enterprise owners for a hands-on session on digital marketing — one of the most practical skill gaps facing rural entrepreneurs in the Cordillera today.
A Repair Café Is Coming to Tabuk City — and It's Connected to a Cordillera Program Funding Solutions Beyond Plastic
Vivita Philippines is bringing a free community repair event to Kalinga on March 21, paired with an introduction to Circle Works — a European Union-funded program supporting circular economy ventures across the Cordillera.
Baguio City Council Takes Up a Tax Holiday Proposal for Circular Economy Startups — With Real Incentives Tied to Real Impact
Councilor Paolo Raynor Salvosa's proposed ordinance offers graduated tax exemptions and rental discounts to Baguio-based startups built around waste reduction, reuse, and resource recovery — and the structure rewards founders who prevent waste at the source, not just those who recycle it.
DICT-CAR and DTI-Ifugao Bring Entrepreneurship Training to 151 Participants in Ifugao, With Women at the Center
A free online session on March 10 drew over 150 aspiring and existing entrepreneurs from Ifugao, part of a deliberate push to bring practical business mindset training to communities that rarely get it first.
UC InTTO Launches Cohort 9, Bringing a New Class of Startup Founders into Baguio's University Incubation Pipeline
The University of the Cordilleras' Innovation and Technology Transfer Office kicked off its ninth incubation cohort on March 6, with a session built around one idea: founders need the right mindset before they need anything else.
DOST-CAR and CHED-CAR Sign MOU to Launch Cordi INSPIRE, a New Startup Platform for Cordillera's Universities
The February 27 agreement at Saint Louis University formalizes a push to turn Cordillera's higher education institutions into active launchpads for technology-based startups.
Kalinga TBI Beneficiaries Win Regional Young Farmers Challenge — Validated by a Market, Not Just a Panel
Four ventures from Kalinga State University's Technology Business Incubator took home regional awards at the Young Farmers Challenge, the first real proof that a 2024 National Innovation Council grant is producing founders, not just graduates.