BAGUIO CITY — Congressman Mauricio “Morris” G. Domogan, the representative of the Lone District of Baguio City, welcomed his election as chairperson of the House Special Committee on Bases Conversion. As a long time public servant, and also as a private citizen, of a district that has gone through complex relations with Bases Conversion Authority (BCDA), he considers his new role as an opportunity to explore legislative solutions that serve both the interests of Baguio and the goals of the government. As chairperson, he is tasked to lead the committee with the legislative oversight of the BCDA and the broader policy framework governing the conversion of former military lands to productive civilian purposes. The BCDA, created by Republic Act No. 7227 or the bases Conversion and Development Act of 1992, has the mandate to transform former U.S. military bases and other military lands into economic zones. BCDA is tasked to commercialize former military lands, attract investments, support modernization of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and work with the host local government units on developmental activities. Specifically, his committee has the authority to scrutinize BCDA’s operations, including its programs, land dispositions, and relationships with the host communities.   He is considered the right man for the job. As mayor of Baguio, he worked to create common ground, albeit tedious, with the BCDA to settle long-standing disputes on the lease terms of Camp John Hay, the city’s share of revenues, and the need to align development plans with Baguio’s environmental initiatives. Interestingly, many of the conditions he negotiated with the BCDA prior to the turnover of Camp John Hay – like the 𝟭𝟵 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 – remain in legal and bureaucratic limbo until the present day. With him at the helm of the committee, long simmering grievances among communities affected by the conversion of former military bases may now find a leader who has both the empathy and experience in addressing their concerns. Now that Congressman Mauricio G. Domogan takes on the national leadership role as chairperson of the House Special Committee on Bases Conversion, he will bring with him decades of institutional experience, a firsthand grasp of the issues, and a proven unwavering commitment to transparency, inclusivity and accountability. Under his leadership, there is renewed hope for the realization of an equitable base conversion – not just for Baguio, but for all affected host communities across the country.        

  BAGUIO CITY, Philippines — The Office of Civil Defense-Cordillera Administrative Region (OCD-CAR) will be spearheading a 2-day Cordillera Regional DRRM Summit & Expo 2025 on August 11 to 12 at Ion Hotel, Baguio City. This is one of the biggest gatherings of DRRM practitioners, experts, decision-makers, and leaders in the Cordillera region. The activity aims to promote unity amongst government, private, and development/civil society sectors and empower them with proper knowledge and capacities in strengthening disaster resiliency efforts in the region while promoting people-centered/sensitive disaster risk reduction and management (DRRM) and climate change adaptation and mitigation (CCAM) services and programs. In the summit, subject matter experts (SMEs) were invited to share latest DRRM updates, policies, good practices, and other opportunities. Here are the first two (2) speakers who will share their insights and expertise on topics, to wit: ENGR. CHARLES BRYAN C. CARAME, LDRRMO IV, Head, Baguio City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO): Engineering Solutions for Earthquake Preparedness: Good Practice on Infrastructure Development; and ATTY. NOEMI P. HUMILDE, Acting Assistant Regional Director, DBM-CAR: DBM-OCD Joint Circular No. 2025-01, “Implementing Guidelines on the Utilization of the Quick Response Fund (QRF) for FY 2025 GAA and Thereafter”. This year’s 37th NDRM theme, “𝗞𝗨𝗠𝗜𝗞𝗜𝗟𝗢𝗦 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮 𝘀𝗮 𝗞𝗮𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗮𝗻, 𝗞𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗴𝘁𝗮𝘀𝗮𝗻, 𝗮𝘁 𝗞𝗮𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗻” affirms the Filipino people’s ongoing, collective commitment to disaster preparedness, safety and resilience–highlighting actions already being taken by individuals, communities, and institutions nationwide. More than a call to action, it reflects a dynamic, whole-of-nation approach that values continuous improvement, shared responsibility, and sustained collaboration across all sectors.

BAGUIO CITY, Philippines — To help meet the growing demand for skilled professionals in the country’s digital and creative industries, Aboitiz Renewables Inc. and Aboitiz Foundation Inc. partnered with the University of the Philippines Baguio to award scholarships to 12 students pursuing degrees in Computer Science and Communication. “With this scholarship grant, we aim to boost enrollment in our Communication and Computer Science programs,” said UP Baguio Chancellor Dr. Joel M. Addawe. “It opens doors for bright and deserving students from the Cordillera and fuels our vision of shaping a new generation of creative professionals who will drive progress and national development.” Baguio City, a UNESCO-recognized Creative City since 2017, is an emerging regional hub for creative and tech-based industries. In 2023, the Philippine Statistics Authority-Cordillera said that its economy grew by 9%, driven by a strong services sector. As demand grows for talent in tech-enabled creative industries, this initiative helps ensure that access to quality education and opportunities to contribute to the nation’s digital future is extended to students residing outside of metropolitan areas. To qualify for the scholarship, students must pass the University of the Philippines College Admission Test, be endorsed by the Aboitiz Foundation through UP Baguio’s Office of Scholarships and Financial Assistance, and maintain a general weighted average of at least 2.0 with no failing or incomplete grades. Each scholar receives a monthly stipend, a gadget allowance, and an academic excellence incentive, including an additional cash bonus for students who graduate with Latin honors. Support also includes board exam subsidies and access to mentoring and internship opportunities, ensuring not only financial aid but holistic development. “For over two decades, Aboitiz Foundation’s scholarship program has become more than just a financial grant but also a platform for transformation,” said Aboitiz Foundation Impact Lead for Education Jowell Ann Cruz. “We invest in potential. We invest in who these scholars can become.” “At Aboitiz Renewables, we believe true progress isn’t just measured in megawatts or infrastructure—it’s also measured in people. It’s measured in lives transformed and dreams realized. Education is one of the most powerful investments we can make,” added Aboitiz Renewables’ First Vice President and General Manager for Hydro Operations Noreen Vicencio. In Benguet, Aboitiz Renewables, the renewable energy arm of Aboitiz Power Corporation (AboitizPower), currently operates nine run-of-river hydropower plants. Support for education and livelihood programs continues to drive its CSR efforts, empowering shared growth within its host communities and magnifying AboitizPower’s purpose of Transforming Energy for a Better World.        

BAGUIO CITY, Philippines –The City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (CDRRMC) reported more than P40 million worth of damage to public infrastructure from July 17 to July 31, due to heavy rains and strong winds brought by typhoons Crising, Dante and Emong, along with incessant southwest monsoon rains in Baguio City. The CDRRMC also reported that one person died, two were injured, one is missing and 378 families consisting of 1,593 individuals were affected by flooding and landslides in various parts of the city. In the Rapid Damage Assessment and Needs Analysis (RDANA) data as of July 31. there were 98 soil erosion, landslide and rockfall incidents including one possible sinkhole subject for further validation by the Environment Management Bureau (EMB). A total of 91 fallen and leaning trees were removed in various locations in the city. A total of 34 families consisting of 138 individuals continue to seek shelter in various barangay evacuation areas while 128 families consisting of 370 individuals are temporarily staying with their neighbors or relatives due to damaged houses. Engr. Charles Bryan Carame, head of the CDRRMO, said most of the damaged properties were due to landslides and fallen trees. There were nine houses that were totally damaged and 57 partially damaged houses while one vehicle was completely destroyed due to falling rocks. The Benguet Electric Cooperative (Beneco) also recorded P7.2 million in damage to their power lines as of July 31, 2025.

By Gaby B. Keith   BAGUIO CITY, Philippines — In strengthening climate and disaster resilience, the city government joined the Making Cities Resilient 2030 initiative, a global United Nations Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR)-led program, and committed to achieving resilient city status by 2026. Through Executive Order number 94 series of 2024 issued by Mayor Benjamin Magalong, a technical working group was created  to start the transition according to City Mayor’s Office chief-of-staff Samantha Jean Hamada in her State of Local Governance Report presentation at the Executive-Legislative meeting, July 14, City Hall, aimed at briefing newly-elected local officials. She said a major advancement in the city’s flood preparedness is the Flood Early Warning System (FEWS), launched in partnership with Asian Development Bank, Ramboll, and Practical Action. Operational since 2023, the system uses real-time hydrological sensors across key river basins and feeds data into the Baguio Smart City Command Center, enabling the city to issue flood alerts with up to 20 minutes of lead time, Hamada added. In addition to FEWS, she said the city implemented a Landslide Early Warning System (LEWS) in Barangay Dontogan developed by the CALAMI-T Project of the University of the Cordilleras in partnership with DOST-Philippine Council. “LEWS uses sensors to track soil movement, soil moisture, rainfall, and temperature, providing essential data to mitigate landslide risks,” Hamada explained. She said Baguio was recognized as “Beyond Compliant” in both the 2023 and 2024 Gawad KALASAG Awards and was commended by the National Resilience Council in 2023 for its leadership in sustainable urban resilience.                  

BAGUIO CITY – With the theme “Food at Nutrition Security Maging Priority! Sapat na Pagkain Karapatan Natin! of the 51st Nutrition month celebration,  the Barangay Nutrition Scholars (BNS), Outstanding Barangay in Nutrition and Service Awardees were honored during the culminating program and awarding ceremonies at the Pedro Dumol Benguet Electric Cooperative (BENECO) hall, on August 1. Executive Assistant Leandro Tabilog delivered Mayor Benjamin Magalong’s inspirational message wherein he expressed gratitude to the nutrition workers for alleviating the difficulties of the barangay constituents, even in times of inclement weather. The nutrition workers’ support most especially to the vulnerable: children, elderly and those with limited access to healthy food is well-appreciated, the mayor said. The cooperation, vigilance, and disaster preparedness is a reflection of a deeper spirit of service which spurs us all, to ensure that everyone has access to healthy food and clean water and safety year-round, the mayor ended. Outstanding BNS and their respective barangays are the following: Joana Caslangen of Atok Trail; Jonalyn Cadiay of Lokan Liwanag; Rowena Asperin of Burnham-Legarda; Demetria Padadac of Kias; Cayonila Esteban of Country Club; Merlinda Pulas of Andres Bonifacio; Marilyn Barren of AZCKO; Genaline Henson of Balsigan; Elizabeth Elefante of Upper Gen. Luna; Monalisa Bansan of Green Water Village; Evangeline Sherwin of  Happy Hallow; Agnes Paleyan of Kias; Carla Castaneda of Upper Market Subdivision; Jocelyn Arroy of Pinsao Pilot; Melanie Chadsi-ing of Lower Quirino hill and Jovee Calsiman of Sto. Rosario. The five Outstanding Barangays in Nutrition with their respective Punong Barangays are: Atok Trail, PB Federico Codley; Aurora Hill Proper;PB May Gonzales; AZKCO, PB Jefferson Cheng; Dominican-Mirador, PB Carol Domogan and Victoria Village, PB Roger Balicha. Other awardees or finalist are  Alfonso Tabora, PB Virginia Pugong; Andres Bonifacio, PB Janet Tiamzon; South Central Aurora Hill PB Levy Lloyd Orcales; Camdas PB Janet Floresca; City Camp Proper, PB Jaime Bustarde; Country Club, PB Nestor Almag; Dizon Subdivision, PB William Haight; Holy Ghost Proper, PB Murphy Maspil; Irisan, PB Arthur Carlos; Kayang Extension, PB Nerissa Bayan; Legarda-Burnham PB Teodoro Castro; Loakan-Liwanag, PB Abraham Urmaza; Lourdes Subdivision Proper, PB Rowena Gelisanga; Magsaysay Private road, Debbie Banagui; Outloook Drive, PB Isidro Aquino; Rizal Monument, PB Arnaldo Miranda: Lower Rock Quarry, PB Silvino Comina Jr,; Upper Rock Quarry, PB Joey David; San Antonio Village, PB Nicanor Nialla; SLU-SVP, PB Imelda Tibalao and Upper Quezon Hill, PB Dinah Campos. The outstanding Barangays in Nutrition awardees were evaluated and selected by the City Nutrition Evaluation Team (CNET) City Veterinary and Agriculture Office (CVAO) Supervising Agriculturist Marceline Tabelin, Department of Education (Dep-Ed) Nurse Cynthia Cadawan, and Dr. Judith Maingpis Tacudog of the Philippine Dental Association (PDA) Baguio Chapter. The Service awardees are; Merlyn Cacay of Irisan; Elizabeth Elefante of Upper General Luna; Christine Godoy of Scout Barrio; Gina Rose Lacatango of Pinget; Noemi Santillan of Sta. Scholastica; Eusebia Calderon of Pinsao Proper; Caria Castaneda of Upper Market; Beatriz Rita Dagul of Balsigan; Natividad Ramos of Asin Road; Mercedes Sito of Leonila Hill; Jovee Calsiman of Santo Rosario Valley and Flordeliza Comising of Central Guisad. The best community gardens were also awarded, as with the nutri-vlog challenge winners. As judged by CVAO Supervising Agriculturist Tabelin, Dep-Ed Nurse Cadawan, PDA officer Dr. Tacudog and City Social Welfare and Development Office Day Care worker Perla Rimaros; the Best Community Vegetable Gardens are from the barangays of Bakakeng Central, Camp 7, Happy Hollow, San Antonio, Atok Trail and Burnham Legarda. The Nutri-Vlog winners are from the districts of Campo Filipino, City Camp, Atab, Lucban and Loakan-Atok Trail. All health district personnel with their respective barangay officials attended, with the presence of Councilor Betty Lourdes Tabanda, Committee Chair on Social Services, Women and Urban Poor; and Councilor Elmer Datuin, Committee chair on Health and Sanitation, Ecology and Environmental Protection. – jgfianza, with reports from CHSO, Nutrition Division      

By Jordan G. Habbiling   A proposed ordinance aims to transform governance in Baguio City by making it more inclusive, transparent, data-driven, and city-centered through the institutional use of digital technologies and artificial intelligence (AI). Authored by freshly elected Councilor Paolo Raynor Salvosa, the proposed measure seeks to integrate AI into public consultation platforms, allowing the city to collect and analyze large volumes of citizen feedback, identify common concerns and consensus points, and guide evidence-based policy-making. Salvosa cited successful international models like the platforms and systems used by Taiwan, Canada, and Estonia which use AI to process citizen input and shape tech-related policies, interpret public sentiment in urban planning, and enhance service delivery. According to the proposed ordinance, online platforms will be widely used for the conduct of public consultations by the city government. However, AI systems must prioritize feedback from verified residents and voters and include residency verification tools in weighing public input. This prevents tourism-related feedback or outside influence from distorting governance decisions in order to preserve a policy-making mechanism that prioritizes the community. Such AI systems must be inclusive, simple, and feedback-driven. In terms of enhancing the accessibility of public records, the ordinance mandates that official documents such as ordinances, resolutions, and issuances be made available in machine-readable formats and not just scanned PDFs to enable AI-assisted search and filtering. This will also make data-mining more efficient for citizens and decision-makers. Likewise, the ordinance encourages pilot testing of AI tools and competitive partnerships with tech providers. It also encourages youth engagement through hackathons and design consultations. However, Salvosa emphasized that AI must serve the citizens and not the other way around. The ordinance proposes a human-centered design where AI supports and not replaces human decision-making. The ordinance also includes security measures like bot detection, deepfake identification, anomaly tracking, and sentiment analysis to safeguard platforms from manipulation; data privacy compliance, following the Data Privacy Act of 2012; and modern mechanisms to protect users from cyberbullying and digital harassment. The proposed ordinance has been approved on first reading by the Baguio City Council and referred to the Committee on Laws and Governance for review.    

By Aileen P. Refuerzo   BAGUIO CITY — The City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) has been attending to the victims of the successive weather disturbances and the lingering southwest monsoon in the city since July 19, 2025. CSWD Officer Liza Bulayungan said that as of July 29, 2025, they have served a total of 378 families composed of 1,593 individuals who were affected by flooding and landslides in different parts of the city due to incessant rains and winds caused by severe tropical storm “Crising,” tropical storm “Dante,” typhoon “Emong” and the “habagat.” Of this total, 204 families with 870 individuals were displaced while 175 or 753 individuals stayed in place. There were 109 families that stayed in the city’s eight evacuation centers while 94 moved in with relatives. As of July 29, only 17 remained in the centers. As per the report, there were 66 affected houses, nine of which were totally destroyed and 57 were partially damaged. The office also provided assistance to the casualties — one deceased, two injured and one missing person. A total of P607,470 was disbursed as assistance to the victims, P337,787.50 came from the Dept. of Social Welfare and Development Cordillera (DSWD-CAR); P264,682 from the city government and P39,500 from donations. The government assistance came in the form of cash assistance, food assistance and family, hygiene and sleeping kits. Mayor Benjamin Magalong thanked the social workers who worked tirelessly despite the rains and perils posed by the weather disturbances. “They went about their duties — going on the ground assessing calamity victims’ situations, distributing family food packs and hygiene kits, monitoring evacuation centers and providing emotional and all kinds of support — with purpose and heart.” “They all subscribe to their service dictum, ‘In times of crisis, compassion knows no rest.’”      

By Aileen Refuerzo   BAGUIO CITY — Mayor Benjamin Magalong is urging the city council to adopt an ordinance that will regulate the so-called “spaghetti” wires in the city. Magalong said the measure should include stiff penalties for misdeeds like irresponsible laying of utility cables, poor maintenance of these fixtures and failure to comply with the standard height requirements. He said this is the only way to correct this pesky malpractice of some utility companies and finally address the dangling, sagging and tangled wires that has been causing eyesores and public safety and nuisance issues in the city. The mayor expressed frustration that despite aggressive corrective measures done through the dangling wire clearing campaign, no improvement can be seen in the manner and system of wire installation of most telecommunication companies. “Cables remain unkempt, unserviceable or dead wire remain unattended as if we’re not learning. We have no recourse but to impose penalties to compel them to improve their system,” he said. He however said that the ongoing dangling wire correction program will continue in the different parts of the city. The city council said spaghetti wires are among the nuisance covered in City Ordinance No. 36-2024 or the Baguio City Anti-Public Nuisance Administrative Board of 2024. The measure, authored by Councilor Jose Molintas, mandates the creation of the board which is tasked to receive complaints and declare acts as public nuisance and upon approval by the city council “petition the Regional Trial Court for permanent injunction and collect damages incurred in the implementation of the order to abate the nuisance.”