The Roots Commune: Building a Creative Community of Entrepreneurs for Local Growth and Sustainability

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Can sustainable living be, in fact, sustained? A small band of local entrepreneurs is certainly pushing to make it so.

To promote sustainability and local creativity, the Roots Collective, in partnership with the Peace
and Equity Foundation (PEF), will hold a special retail exhibit and fair at Uptown Bonifacio mall at the end of September. Called the Roots Commune, it is to showcase a wide array of ethically-made products – from farm-to-cup herbal blends to zero-waste necessities, to handcrafted accessories, to all-natural foodstuffs.

This seven-day event will also feature founders of social enterprises, as well as key members from their partner communities, who will be talking about their journeys together in building long-lasting collaborations towards a better future for the next generation.

The Roots Commune is part of the Roots Collective’s efforts to create a space where entrepreneurs can come together and work towards local growth and sustainability. Through this fair, the participating enterprises can provide greater market access and funding opportunities for their partner communities.

It will house several well-loved local brands such as Tsaa Laya, HABI Footwear and Lifestyle, Gouache[AC1] , Woven, Hiraya Chocolates, Wholly Grain, BalaiKamay, Lakan Lubi VCO and many more. Each of these enterprises collaborates with a community of skilled workers – from farmers to rural weavers to urban artisans – to create mindful and impactful yet useful and quality products. More than the bottom line, these entrepreneurs give importance to their respective social missions and their shared goals of inclusive growth.

According to Jamir Ocampo, CEO of the Roots Collective, “We realized there’s really a need for a community hub. It’s just more than a space – we help each other figure out together how to grow big. If there’s anything that this new generation of social enterprise did at Roots, it’s growing together.”

The Roots Commune will be held at the Atrium of Uptown Bonifacio mall in Taguig from September 30 to October 6, 2019. On Wednesday, October 2, the Sibol Fund Kick-Off will be held at the space, featuring development funders PEF and Forest Foundation Philippines (FFP). The Sibol Fund is a special grant facility that will enable start-ups to develop or enhance the social impact of their business for poverty alleviation and environmental conservation.

Apart from that, there will be creativity workshops, advocacy talks, and recycling drives all throughout the week.


About the Roots Collective

What began as a co-working space-cum-boutique in Katipunan has grown into a pioneering community of entrepreneurs working for the sustainable and inclusive development of the Philippines.

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