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Growing Health, Growing Hope: Roots to Shoots Deepens Impact in Aeta Communities

February 13, 2026

Since 2023, the Phase II Aeta Family Care Center – Roots to Shoots (RTS) Program has addressed malnutrition, food insecurity, livelihood vulnerability, and limited access to clean water in Bamban, Tarlac and Mabalacat City, Pampanga.

Now in its second year, RTS continues to translate integrated support into measurable community outcomes.

As of 2025, the program has reached more than 2,000 individuals since inception. These include children, caregivers, farmers, and community leaders. Through a coordinated approach that combines nutrition rehabilitation, sustainable agriculture, enterprise development, and water access, RTS is strengthening both households and local systems.

Strengthening Child Nutrition in the First 1,000 Days

Recognizing that early childhood nutrition shapes lifelong health, RTS enrolled 135 underweight children in the Positive Deviance/Hearth rehabilitation program. To date, 59 children have been successfully rehabilitated from undernutrition, with continued growth monitoring in place for the rest.

To reinforce behavior change at home, 462 caregivers completed Go Baby Go parenting sessions focused on responsive feeding, hygiene, and maternal care. In parallel, 84 barangay health workers and volunteers were trained, strengthening community-based health systems that sustain progress beyond program cycles.

Nutrition recovery is no longer limited to short-term intervention. It is now supported by local capacity and community ownership.

Advancing Food Security and Livelihood Resilience

Sustainable nutrition depends on stable food supply and income security.

In 2025, RTS delivered the following:

• 433 farmers trained in Integrated Farming Bio-Systems and provided with farm inputs
• 401 caregivers trained in home gardening and equipped with garden tools
• Three community gardens established and sustained by residents
• 231 individuals upskilled in livelihood development
• Five community-based groups, composed of 224 members, supported in enterprise development

Families are now diversifying income streams through sari-sari stores, livestock raising, rice retailing, and other micro-enterprises. These initiatives strengthen household resilience, particularly amid rising commodity prices and economic uncertainty.

For Gina Sibal of Sitio Burog, livelihood support meant stability. With assistance to establish her sari-sari store, she transitioned from recurring debt to managing a sustainable small business that supports her children’s needs. Her experience reflects the broader program objective: reducing vulnerability by expanding opportunity.

Expanding Access to Clean Water

Infrastructure investment further reinforces health gains.

In Sitio Burog, a deep well water system with 25 distribution points has been constructed and is awaiting electrification, targeted for completion in the first quarter of 2026. Once operational, the system is expected to serve approximately 700 individuals across 123 Aeta households.

A community WASH group has been organized to manage and maintain the system, embedding accountability and sustainability at the local level.

Reliable water access strengthens nutrition outcomes, improves hygiene practices, and supports overall community well-being.

Powered by Partnership

Roots to Shoots operates through a consortium model that leverages sectoral expertise:

• World Vision Development Foundation leads the Mother and Child Care component
• Pilipinas Shell Foundation, Inc. leads Food Security and Livelihood
• Manila Water Foundation leads WASH interventions

Working alongside local government units, national agencies, academic institutions, and private sector partners, RTS ensures interventions are locally grounded and system-strengthening.

In 2025, RTS was recognized as the Most Outstanding CSR Project in Collaboration at the League of Corporate Foundations CSR Guild Awards, affirming the value of multi-sector partnership.

A new collaboration with Thaison Builders and Development, Inc. also launched RTS Light in Sacobia, expanding complementary support in adjacent communities.

Toward Sustainable Community Systems

As RTS enters its final year in 2026, sustainability planning is underway. Capacity-building workshops, strengthened LGU engagement, and structured transition mechanisms are being implemented to embed nutrition, food security, and water access systems within local institutions.

By integrating health, livelihood, and environmental stewardship, Roots to Shoots demonstrates that child nutrition improves when families are economically stable, communities have reliable water access, and local systems are empowered.

More than a project milestone, RTS represents a long-term investment in resilience. Healthier children. Stronger households. Self-sustaining communities.

Pilipinas Shell Foundation, Inc. (PSFI), together with Shell Pilipinas Corporation and the City Government of Batangas, formally marked the ceremonial turnover of the Wildlife Learning Hub and Gift Café at the EBD Eco-Park and Wildlife Rescue Center. The initiative aims to promote environmental conservation, wildlife awareness, sustainable tourism, and community-based livelihoods through a shared space for education, advocacy, and locally made Batangas products.

Hope Takes Root Through New Livelihood Opportunities in Bamban and Mabalacat

Families in Bamban, Tarlac and Mabalacat, Pampanga are embracing new opportunities through the Roots to Shoots (RTS) initiative, where 100 caregivers and farmers received starter goats as part of a sustainable livelihood program. Supported by Bloomberry Cultural Foundation, Inc. and Thaison Builder & Developer Inc., the initiative aims to strengthen food security, improve household income, and help communities build a more hopeful and stable future.

Shell LiveWIRE Strengthens Fisherfolk Safety and Coastal Resilience in Cagayan de Oro

Pilipinas Shell Foundation, Inc. (PSFI), together with Shell Pilipinas Corporation, strengthened fisherfolk safety and coastal resilience in Cagayan de Oro through the turnover of protective and rescue equipment under the Shell LiveWIRE Philippines program. The initiative supports local fisherfolk organizations by enhancing emergency preparedness, improving safety during fishing operations, and helping sustain coastal livelihoods through community-centered development.

A Mother’s Determination: Building Hope Through Roots to Shoots

hrough the Roots to Shoots Program in Sacobia, Editha Salazar transformed a small livelihood assistance package into a growing sari-sari store that now helps support her family, her children’s education, and her child’s ongoing therapy, proving how opportunity and determination can create lasting change.

Shell LiveWIRE Empowers Cagayan de Oro Fisherfolk Through Sustainable Payao Deployment in Macajalar Bay

Shell LiveWIRE, through Pilipinas Shell Foundation, Inc. (PSFI) and Shell Pilipinas Corporation
, strengthens sustainable livelihoods in Cagayan de Oro City through the successful deployment of three payaos in Macajalar Bay, empowering local fisherfolk with safer and more sustainable fishing opportunities through community collaboration, capacity building, and responsible fisheries management.

Roots to Shoots: Pasacao 2.0 Helps Mothers Build Sustainable Livelihoods

Through the Roots to Shoots (RTS) Pasacao 2.0 Program and with the support of Metrobank Foundation, Pilipinas Shell Foundation, Inc. (PSFI) officially opened the SONATA stitching and sewing production facility in Pasacao, Camarines Sur. The initiative aims to empower mothers and families by providing sustainable livelihood opportunities, technical skills training, and long-term enterprise development support for the community.