LAKE Sebu, a town in South Cotabato province named after the body of water that it encompasses, has long been celebrated as the eco-cultural capital of southern Mindanao. It is also the watershed that irrigates farmlands not only in South Cotabato, but also in Sultan Kudarat province.
Located about a thousand meters above sea level, Lake Sebu’s highland geography features rainforests and breathtaking natural scenery, earning it praise from the Lonely Planet television documentary series as a community nestled in a “bowl of forests and mountains.”
Recently, Lake Sebu reaped more acclaim after it was recognized as the Philippines’ first United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Village. The town joins a growing global network of 300 rural communities “whose local solutions are helping shape the future of sustainable agrifood systems,” the UN said.
Launched in 2025, the FAO Villages Recognition Initiative honors rural communities “that are advancing sustainable agrifood systems, conserving biodiversity, preserving food traditions and local knowledge, and fostering inclusive rural transformation.”
Mario Samaja, who spearheaded the development of the FAO Villages Recognition Initiative, said Lake Sebu’s agrifood systems “encompass the interconnected components involved in the journey that brings food and nonfood agriculture products like abaca from farm to consumers.”
The success of Lake Sebu’s agrifood chain is attributed to the T’boli and Ubo-Manobo, two Indigenous groups that have been the joint stewards of the town’s traditional rice and crop varieties, forests, lakes and cultural lore.
Isolated from the lowlands, the two tribes have resisted external influences, allowing them to not only co-exist, but also preserve their cultural heritage.
This remarkable collaboration is evident in Sitio El Lumet in Luhib village, where community seed banks, rice breeding and improved seed conservation ensure that 102 “heirloom” rice varieties thrive in the face of climate challenges.
“Our traditional crops are not just food. They are our life. They are our ancestors’ legacy, and our children’s inheritance. They are our living treasure,” one Lake Sebu farmer said.
Rice seedlings from Lake Sebu have been sent to the Philippine Rice Research Institute Genebank in the Science City of Muñoz, Nueva Ecija province, for conservation.
Sharing the spotlight are the T’Boli women who have preserved the art of T’Nalak weaving. These “dreamweavers” look to Fu Dalu, the god of abaca, for inspiration and guidance in weaving colorful and ornate T’Nalak designs.
“I learned that being a woman is not a hindrance. When our enterprise was built, I stood up for our women members so we will have our processing center,” said Chita Sulan, president of the Lake Sebu Indigenous Women and Farmers Association, composed of more than 100 women weavers and farmers.
At the unveiling of the FAO Village marker at the Lake Sebu Rice Museum on July 16, Climate Change Commission Vice Chairman and Executive Director Robert E.A. Borje said the recognition highlighted how local communities could provide practical models for adapting to climate change.
“Something worth strengthening. Something worth protecting. Something from which the rest of the world can continue to learn. In that sense, this recognition is not only about Lake Sebu. It is also about our shared responsibility,” Borje said.
“Not that Lake Sebu is perfect. Not that every challenge has already been overcome. Rather, that this community continues to demonstrate something the world needs to see more of — that development, culture, food systems and environmental stewardship need not compete with one another. They can strengthen one another,” he added.
Borje also believes adaptation “cannot remain a document in Manila. It must live in communities. Ultimately, adaptation is an act of confidence that communities deserve not merely to survive change but to shape it according to their own values.”
Lionel Dabbadie, the FAO’s representative in the Philippines, believes the significance of the recognition extends far beyond Lake Sebu: “Some places are recognized for what they have achieved. Others are recognized because they hold solutions the world urgently needs. Lake Sebu is both.”
What Lake Sebu has achieved highlights the fact that effective solutions for sustainable food systems are not always provided by modern-day technologies. Some are already being practiced by rural communities that have long ago learned how to live in harmony with nature while preserving their cultural identity.
