a lot of first as the year ends...

...I reflect on some photos that made an impact in my 2012

Hala Bira!!

My first time in attending this colorful festival in Kalibo, Aklan. Ang saya maki sadsad hehe party all day and night in the streets is a good way to begin the year

A miner's life

I was given an opportunity to do a story on the small scale gold mining in Camarines Norte under the NGO Ban Toxic. Its a eye opener story about the dangers of the mines and their health risk in being exposed to mercury. This inspired me to do a long term story on this issue.

City of dancing lights

My lola and cousin travel Hongkong for 5 days its a tiring trip but worth it :)

Like a miniature city

Riyadh on top view my last photo of Saudi

Caramoan!!

Its like little Coron hehe its good to swim again  :)

Sustainable mining

The second part of the mining story is a small mining town called Gaang in Kalinga. Here the miners have been practicing mercury free mining for a year now. I really admire the effort of the Banao people in their high regards to health safety and protecting the environment. Hope to be back on this place next year even though the climb up there is sooooo harddd!!! hehe  its worth it especially if I'm able to take home something that is more than gold.

New hairdo ^_^

What can I say hehe got myself a new haircut and i love it!!

Wedding vows

The first wedding I've ever attended and its in India weeh!! Congrats my dear friend Nishant :)

Run for your lives!!

The first ever zombie run in the Philippines! Its exhilarating and full of thrills :) I'm planning to join next year as a runner hopefully I can survive it

Tour of the Firelies- Bike for Sustainable Energy!

My first time to bike around Metro Manila hehe so fun!!!

 Goddesses No More

I thank the Lord for giving me an opportunity to be part of the 8th Angkor Wat Photo Workshop. I was able to do a story of culture and to meet this beautiful and talented dancers. Kudos to the art of dancing!!

The Last Mambabatok

What good way to welcome the end of the world by making a story about the last mambabatok or traditional tattoo artist in Kalinga. More power to you and your art master Pangud!


As the year closes to an end I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Lord for giving me the gift of photography without it I won't be able to meet this amazing people :) Domo arigatou gozaimasu ^_^

Responsible mining: Best Practice of the Banao Tribe

In the province of Kalinga lies the mining community called Gaang. Most of the people living in this town are from the Banao tribe, one of the gentlest tribe in the Mountain Province and a proud tribe of blacksmiths. They been mining for more than two decades now since the gold rush in the 80s. At first they use Mercury (Hg) for easy processing of gold but they notice the bad effects of it on their health and their rivers. Even a mercury seller for 15 years now gave up her business because of these effects

Since last year the Ban Toxics held a workshop for the miners about the non-mercury practice where all they need to do is to go back in the old processes by using sluice box, panning devices and just simple borax. At first they had a hard time adapting it because it takes more time to process the gold than just using mercury, but as time passes by they begin to see the benefits from it. They notice the high quality of gold that they got from this mercury-free method and they don't have to worry about getting sick anymore.

Its been a year now since the mining town of Gaang is practicing this mercury free method its still a challenge to implement it in other places but its a good start for everyone and a good sign that there is hope for a cleaner and safer future for the miners.

What Lies Beneath- a story on small scale mining in the Philippines

What Lies Beneath

The Philippine deposits of gold, copper, chromium and nickel are considered as the 5^th largest in the world. In 2009, the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) estimated the country’s gold reserves at 5,080,785,289 tons, based accordingly on the bureau’s consolidation of resource inventory data supplied by mining companies. Forty provinces that have gold deposits practice different ways of mining gold that has been hand down from their ancestors since 3^rd century.[1]

The Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining (ASGM) is very common to the rural areas of the Philippines because of the constant surge in the price of gold and easy way out of poverty. ASGM, which occurs in more than 70 countries, provides income to an estimated 10 - 15 million miners including 4.5 million women and 1 million children.[2] The sector produces about 500 to 800 tonnes of gold per annum, which accounts for about 20 to 30 percent of the world’s gold supply.[3] Despite of this, destruction of environment and human health is at stake.

The use of mercury (Hg) in ASGM posed a very dangerous threat to the health of the miners. It contains potent neurotoxin that impairs brain function, lowers intelligence and causes hearing loss. It also affects women in terms of miscarriages and birth defects. This element also destroys the environment by polluting freshwater bodies. Moreover, small scale mining practices such as the use of dynamite in making tunnels is one of the cause of landslides and degradation of the mountain.

This photo story will focus on the environment and health issues pose by the artisanal and small-scale gold mining practices in the Philippines and it will also showcase how the players such as the miners, townspeople and the government are dealing with it. My objective in making this story is to educate the people about the reality that small scale mining is dangerous but a kind of livelihood that is essential in the national development of the country. It aims to call on the attention of the government to regulate and supervise this kind of livelihood for the benefit of the miners and the companies.

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[1] Ban Toxics report: The price of gold, 2010

[2] Module 3, Mercury Training Module, United Nations Environment Programme, 2008

[3] Export Bans and Reducing Mercury Consumption in Artisana land Small Scale Gold Mining, Kevin Telmer, University of Victoria