08 July 2013 - Delegates of the Filipino-American Youth Leadership Program (FYLPro) toured the facilities of the Gawad Kalinga Enchanted Farm in Barangay Encanto, Bulacan on Sunday, July 07as part of the three-day immersive program especially designed towards giving them a better appreciation of the Philippines.

 “I hope you see the Philippines as land of the homes and not of the homeless,” said Antonio Meloto, the 2006 Ramon Magsaysay Awardee for Community Leadership who is also the founder and Chairman of Gawad Kalinga.

The delegates’ tour of the Gawad Kalinga gave them the opportunity to learn of various projects being undertaken by the institution under participatory development.

A remarkable social engineering project, The Enchanted Farm showcased to the delegates the Filipino ingenuity and creativity. The 14-hectare village, formerly a barren terrain, now houses a Farm University, a Silicon Valley for social entrepreneurship, Hyundai Center for Green Innovation and a Disneyland for tourism.  Residents in the village are not only recipients but are partners as well in building a sustainable community.

The delegates had an interesting exchange with Mr. Meloto and Gawad Kalinga volunteers and had the chance to share their constant desire to come home and do their part in community building.

Gawad Kalinga is a community development foundation with goal of lifting 5 million Filipinos out of poverty by 2024.

FYLPro is an initiative of Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose L. Cuisia, Jr. to harness the desire of outstanding young Filipino Americans throughout the United States to further engage the multi-faceted Filipino American community and contribute to further progress in the Philippines.  The program involves a three-day visit to the Philippines where the chosen delegates are provided the opportunity to meet and dialogue with senior government officials, corporate executives, community development advocates, and leading figures in culture and the arts.  END