The indigenous Talaandig community of Miarayon, Bukidnon was Cartwheel’s first partner area when it was founded in 1999. Beginning with the construction of a pre-school for its young learners, work that started with the Talaandig has borne much good fruit: the Adult Capability Building Program for parents and elders, and the Young IP Leaders Program for college students.

With local stakeholders taking on the programs together with the Talaandig community, Cartwheel has been happy to fully transition ownership to them in the recent years. Other indigenous communities across the Philippines have since then been like-hearted partners, working closely with the foundation in bringing culturally-relevant education where it is needed most.

Last July 2014, Education Coordinator Bricks Sintaon, a Talaandig from Miarayon himself, went back to his hometown to facilitate the opening of Miarayon Community Daycare where 33 children have enrolled. Together with the learners’ parents, the Talaandig alumni of Cartwheel’s Young IP Leaders Program have committed to contributing funds and pooling other available resources to sustain the day care’s operations on their own. With technical assistance from Cartwheel, all efforts to implement such a program for their early learners have been initiated and followed-through by the Talaandig community members themselves.