SDG2 – Cordillera Career Development College

𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗦𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗙𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲: 𝗪𝗪𝗙 𝗙𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺𝘀 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗽

A WWF Workshop on Youth and Resilient Food Systems was held on March 13, 2026, at Orchard Hotel, Legarda Road, Baguio City, highlighting the importance of youth engagement in addressing climate-related challenges and strengthening food systems. The activity underscored how participation in such initiatives serves as a strategic investment in both personal and professional development, equipping students with practical knowledge on climate agency, food sovereignty, and interdisciplinary approaches that connect fields such as economics and environmental science.

Through engagement with these systems, participants bridged gaps between different disciplines, gaining insights that prepared them to contribute to the evolving green economy. This approach enabled them to better understand the complexities of food systems while developing innovative responses to current challenges. The workshop also brought attention to systemic inequities present in existing supply chains. By exploring these issues, participants gained a clearer perspective on the importance of building food systems that are not only resilient but also inclusive and sustainable.

During the workshop, participants explored several key areas together, including smart city innovation, sustainable diets, hands-on learning, youth-led solutions, and local action. They examined food security and sustainable production while understanding the links between urban and rural areas. They learned how to manage food waste and adopt innovative consumption strategies. A Carbon Footprint Activity allowed them to measure the environmental impact of their food choices. In breakout sessions, students brainstormed and pitched bold ideas to address local food challenges. The forum also showcased Baguio City’s initiatives through the Baguio CVAO – Urban Agriculture Division.

The workshop successfully demonstrated that when youth are empowered with knowledge, creativity, and collaboration, they can actively shape resilient, inclusive, and sustainable food systems—paving the way for a future where both people and nature thrive.

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1st MSME Business Expo: Promoting and Building Partnerships

In celebration of the 31st founding anniversary of the Cordillera Career Development College (CCDC) with the theme “GRASSROOTS TO GLOBAL: Breaking New Grounds on Firm Foundations”, academic departments of CCDC conducted its 1st MSME Business Expo: Promoting and Building Partnerships with a Business Talk and a Bookkeeping Seminar under Sumika-Sika Tako Series. The activities took place at the Students Open Lounge, Tupay-ya Complex entrance, and CCDC Board Room last March 7-23, 2024, from 8:00am to 5:00pm. It involved a collaborative participation between the Community-Based Education School (CES) of the College of Business Education and Administration (CBEA) with the Graduate School’s Capability and Research Engagement (CaRE), College of Law’s Community Legal Aid Center (CLAC) and the College of Accountancy (COA). It was open to the community, especially:

students with small businesses,
employees with home-made businesses,
micro and small business owners,
cooperatives, women’s associations,
the adopted community of Banayakeo and Cayapes, and
other MSMEs.

A business expo for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) is a strategic platform for growth, innovation, and networking. It brings together MSMEs, entrepreneurs, investors, and industry experts, facilitating knowledge exchange, market access, and partnership opportunities. The expo aimed to address the challenges MSMEs face in accessing markets, technology, and finance. It promotes visibility, brand recognition, and market presence, enabling MSMEs to scale up, innovate, and contribute to socio-economic development.

Key participants in the expo included:

Load Manna Consumer Cooperative (LMCC): A consumer cooperative in Benguet formed by Load Manna E-Loading Dealers and Retailers.
Benguet State University (BSU) BS Entrepreneurship Students: Adding an element of academic innovation, students from the BSU BS Entrepreneurship program showcased their creative outputs, featuring innovative food products, and clothing lines infused with a Cordilleran touch.
CCDC Employees: Employees utilized the platform to exhibit and market their homemade products.
CCDC 4th Year BS Entrepreneurship Students: CBEA students demonstrated their technical knowledge and entrepreneurial spirit by displaying their projects in hydroponic farming, highlighting sustainable and modern agricultural techniques of the Cordillera region.

Business Talks
The CBEA hosted a Business Talk seminar attended by CBEA students and facilitated by experts from DOST and DTI. Dr. Sheila Marie Singa-Clever, Provincial Director of PST under the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), discussed their Small Enterprise Technology Upgrading Program (SETUP). This nationwide program provides technical assistance and funding to MSMEs to adopt technological innovations, improve product quality, and increase productivity and competitiveness. Also, Ms. Shyna Tuazon, a business counselor from the Negosyo Center of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), discussed crucial aspects of Product Labeling and Packaging. DTI, through its Negosyo Centers, frequently holds sessions on this topic, which is vital for MSMEs to comply with regulatory requirements and enhance their marketability.

Bookkeeping Seminar
A bookkeeping seminar which was handled by the College of Accountancy, through their resource speaker Ms. Jaleh Lomirez, is a valuable educational opportunity for individuals and small business owners to understand basic accounting principles and bookkeeping practices. This knowledge can help entrepreneurs manage their finances, scale operations, attract investors, and seek financing. It equips participants with the skills and resources needed for financial success and stability. The College of Law’s CLAC provided on-site legal assistance to MSMEs on necessary business regulatory requirements and other legal concerns.

The activities conducted underscores CCDC’s dedication to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It aimed to venture into new partnerships with the local community and provide an avenue for our stakeholders to gain experience and promote their businesses for the community to appreciate (SDG 1, SDG 2). Similarly, students’ participation is widely appreciated for the success of these activities for the reason that they are invited to showcase and market their innovative products (SDG 4, SDG 8).

Sustainable and Healthy Food Choices at CCDC

Cordillera Career Development College (CCDC) continues to strengthen its commitment to sustainability through responsible food sourcing and the promotion of local products. Recognizing the importance of supporting community producers while providing nutritious options for students and staff, CCDC ensures that its campus food establishments prioritize homegrown and sustainably sourced ingredients.

One prime example of this initiative is the Kampaw Station Café and Restaurant, which proudly serves Admirals Farm Park Homegrown “Cinnamon Roast” Coffee—an organic, hand-picked, and manually roasted blend produced locally in Puguis, La Trinidad

By featuring locally cultivated coffee, CCDC not only celebrates Cordilleran craftsmanship but also reduces the carbon footprint associated with long-distance food transportation.

In addition, CCDC promotes plant-based and locally grown produce through its Vegetable Day program for Basic Education, held every Wednesday and Friday. This practice encourages healthy eating among students while supporting nearby farmers who provide fresh, seasonal vegetables.

These initiatives align with the college’s commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 2: Zero Hunger and SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production. By integrating sustainability into its food services, CCDC ensures that every meal served reflects its dedication to environmental stewardship and community empowerment.

Through its sustainable dining practices, CCDC demonstrates that small, consistent efforts—such as sourcing from local farms and choosing organic, homegrown products—can make a significant impact. The college remains steadfast in fostering a campus culture that values health, sustainability, and support for local enterprise.

CCDC Promotes Sustainable and Locally Sourced Food Choices

Cordillera Career Development College (CCDC) continues to strengthen its commitment to sustainability through responsible food sourcing and the promotion of local products. Recognizing the importance of supporting community producers while providing nutritious options for students and staff, CCDC ensures that its campus food establishments prioritize homegrown and sustainably sourced ingredients.

One prime example of this initiative is the Kampaw Station Café and Restaurant, which proudly serves Admirals Farm Park Homegrown “Cinnamon Roast” Coffee—an organic, hand-picked, and manually roasted blend produced locally in Puguis, La Trinidad

By featuring locally cultivated coffee, CCDC not only celebrates Cordilleran craftsmanship but also reduces the carbon footprint associated with long-distance food transportation.

In addition, CCDC promotes plant-based and locally grown produce through its Vegetable Day program for Basic Education, held every Wednesday and Friday. This practice encourages healthy eating among students while supporting nearby farmers who provide fresh, seasonal vegetables.

These initiatives align with the college’s commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 2: Zero Hunger and SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production. By integrating sustainability into its food services, CCDC ensures that every meal served reflects its dedication to environmental stewardship and community empowerment.

Through its sustainable dining practices, CCDC demonstrates that small, consistent efforts—such as sourcing from local farms and choosing organic, homegrown products—can make a significant impact. The college remains steadfast in fostering a campus culture that values health, sustainability, and support for local enterprise.

ELS pupils continue to practice ‘vegetable day’

Every Wednesdays and Fridays, pupils from the Cordillera Career Development College – Elementary Laboratory School (CCDC-ELS) are asked to bring their own lunch, not just any lunch but viands of pure vegetable during the ‘vegetable day’.

During lunchtime, the school asks parents to prepare pure vegetable viands for their children. The activity is being monitored by the advisers according to Juvy Baso, Program Coordinator for Primary schoolers.

At the start of the school year, ELS writes to the parents regarding its various programs that includes the activity, which is in line with CCDC’s aim of participating in the fulfillment of the Sustainable Development Goal 2, that promotes zero hunger and achieving food security and improved nutrition, as well as promoting sustainable agriculture.

Aside from the vegetable day program, CCDC-ELS also imposes the use of personal water bottle as containers. This is to help in the prevention, reduction, recycling, and reuse and reduction of food waste in support of the Sustainable Development Goal 12 (responsible consumption and production) via environmentally sound management of waste.

“We have water only for our drinks: colored drinks such as C2, sprite, coke, Chuckie, and the like are discouraged,” Baso said.

She added that for the snacks, they ask the parents to remove the wrappers or peelings of their snacks before placing them in a lunch box. They encourage their children to bring healthy snacks like fruits, bread, cookies, and pastries and no junk foods.

“We hope to create an engaging and healthy environment for our children. The parents’ participation and compliance with this matter will give their child an enjoyable experience,” Baso said.

Addressing Student Hunger: CCDC’s Initiatives Toward Zero Hunger

The Challenge of Student Food Insecurity

Student food insecurity – the lack of reliable access to sufficient, nutritious food – is a growing concern in many colleges and universities. When students are unsure where their next meal will come from, their academic performance and health can suffer. In fact, even at Cordillera Career Development College (CCDC), “many students face the constant worry of affording basic necessities like food”, a burden that “can really take a toll on their studies and overall well-being”. Recognizing that hunger should never hinder education, CCDC has begun taking steps aligned with the United Nations’ Zero Hunger goal to support student nutrition and welfare.

CCDC’s Commitment to Zero Hunger

CCDC has publicly committed to doing its part to combat hunger as part of its educational mission. One prominent effort is its alignment with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2: Zero Hunger, demonstrated through community partnerships and campus policies. The college understands that ensuring students and communities are well-nourished is essential for them to thrive academically and personally.

Community Gardening for Food Security

CCDC students and faculty join community members in establishing vegetable gardens in urban settings, a sustainable approach to improving food security. With the Cordilleras as primarily a vegetable farming region, CCDC is also promoting urban gardening for students.Through its National Service Training Program (NSTP) and extension services, CCDC partnered with government agencies to promote sustainable agriculture and combat malnutrition in local communities. In 2024, CCDC joined the Department of the Interior and Local Government’s “Halina’t Magtanim ng Prutas at Gulay” (HAPAG) project, encouraging households to grow their own food. This community gardening initiative engages students, faculty, and residents in planting vegetables in backyards and communal plots. “The goal is to create self-sufficient homes, reducing food insecurity, malnutrition, and poverty,” explained Barangay Kagawad Mercidonna Alos during one planting activity. CCDC’s NSTP Coordinator noted that the program’s primary aims include “helping reduce food insecurity and hunger” and supporting local feeding programs by providing sustained access to nutritious produce. By teaching communities to cultivate at home crops like pechay (bok choy), string beans, and taro, the college contributes beyond campus to a future where no family or student goes hungry. This outreach reflects CCDC’s broader commitment to “helping to end hunger, achieve food security, and improved nutrition” in the region.

Measuring Food Waste: CCDC’s Commitment to Sustainability and Zero Hunger

Cordillera Career Development College (CCDC) is strengthening its role as a sustainable campus by addressing an often overlooked issue: food waste. In educational institutions, measuring and managing food waste is crucial not only for environmental sustainability but also for supporting the fight against hunger. Every meal served in a school cafeteria carries with it an opportunity to educate students on responsible consumption and to ensure that no food goes unnecessarily to waste. By carefully tracking how much food is discarded, schools can reduce their environmental footprint and reinforce global goals like Zero Hunger (SDG 2) and Responsible Consumption and Production (SDG 12). CCDC recognizes that monitoring food waste is a key step in instilling in students a deep respect for our planet’s resources and in promoting mindful eating habits that benefit both people and the planet.

Importance of Food Waste Measurement in School Settings

Measuring food waste in schools serves multiple important purposes. First, it highlights the scale of excess food being thrown away, raising awareness among students and staff about the value of food.Such data-driven awareness aligns with CCDC’s educational philosophy of nurturing responsible, community-conscious individuals. Second, tracking food waste helps the school identify ways to reduce disposal costs and environmental impact.

CCDC’s Commitment to Sustainability and Zero Hunger

CCDC has visibly integrated sustainability and social responsibility into its campus operations and academic agenda. This commitment is reflected in initiatives like community gardening and food security projects. For example, CCDC partnered with government agencies in the “Halina’t Magtanim ng Prutas at Gulay” (HAPAG) program to promote household vegetable gardens, helping local families grow their own nutritious food. By encouraging urban gardening, the college not only addresses hunger and malnutrition in the community, but also emphasizes the value of food – every tomato or bunch of pechay grown and eaten is food not wasted.

On campus, CCDC’s sustainability ethos is evident in its policies. The college enforces eco-friendly practices such as banning single-use plastics and Styrofoam in campus cafeterias and events. This policy, instituted via College Memorandum No. 7 s. 2019, encourages students and staff to use reusable food containers and water bottles, reducing the waste generated from food packaging. By eliminating disposable plastics and promoting refillable containers, CCDC attacks the waste problem at its source – an effort that indirectly also tackles food waste by creating a culture that values sustainability. While these measures target packaging waste, they set the stage for a broader conversation about reducing all forms of waste, including leftover food, in daily campus life.

Monitoring and Measuring Campus Food Waste

CCDC has taken concrete steps to measure and manage the waste generated on campus, laying the groundwork for tracking food waste from its cafeterias and events. In line with the national Ecological Solid Waste Management Act (Republic Act 9003), the college implemented a data-driven waste disposal policy that actively monitors the volume of waste generated, segregated, and disposed of on campus. This means that all waste – including leftover food scraps from canteens and faculty lunchrooms – is accounted for in CCDC’s waste monitoring system. The school maintains detailed waste disposal records through its General Services Office, and it conducts regular waste audits to track how much waste is being produced and where it goes. Such audits cover the entire waste lifecycle on campus, from the point where a student tosses an unfinished meal into a bin, to the final disposal or recycling of that waste.

CCDC’s on-campus Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) supports segregated waste collection. Biodegradable waste (such as food scraps), recyclables, and residuals are sorted at source, reflecting the college’s comprehensive approach to monitoring and reducing waste.

Through its Materials Recovery Facility and segregated bins placed around the campus, CCDC separates waste into biodegradable, recyclable, and residual categories at the source. Food waste from the cafeterias – being biodegradable – is collected separately in designated bins, which allows the school to measure how much organic waste is generated from daily food service. By tracking the weight or volume of these “biodegradable” bins over time, CCDC can identify trends (for instance, if certain meals result in more leftovers) and work on solutions to minimize that waste. The waste tracking is comprehensive: quarterly self-monitoring reports (SMRs) submitted to environmental authorities show that CCDC measures the volume of waste generated across all departments and facilities. This includes not only general trash but also specific streams like food waste, used cooking oil from canteen kitchens, and even electronic waste, ensuring nothing is overlooked. In fact, CCDC’s reports for 2024 demonstrate that waste is measured and tracked in all operational areas of the college and reported regularly, underscoring a culture of accountability in waste management.

Data, Outcomes, and Benefits of Waste Tracking

While CCDC’s public statements do not yet provide specific figures for “food waste” alone, the college’s comprehensive waste monitoring program has yielded positive outcomes that hint at success in controlling all waste streams. According to CCDC’s 2024 Self-Monitoring Reports, the college maintained full compliance with national waste management requirements throughout the year. All campus waste storage and disposal facilities passed inspections with no reported violations or improper accumulation – a strong indication that even organic waste like food scraps are being handled promptly and properly. Notably, the school ensured that items like used vegetable oil from campus food services were properly accounted for and disposed of through accredited handlers, reflecting a responsible approach even to by-products of food preparation[15]. These efforts show that CCDC’s system is not just tracking waste for the sake of data, but actively using that information to meet environmental standards and prevent pollution.

Finally, measuring and reducing food waste supports CCDC’s social responsibility goals. Though not formally announced yet, such ideas are a natural extension of CCDC’s existing outreach – like the Panbadangan Project that provides nutritious meals to students in a remote community while boosting local farmers’ livelihoods. In the long run, the data gathered from campus food waste monitoring can guide CCDC in launching targeted campaigns (for instance, a “Clean Plate Challenge” or composting workshops) that further reduce waste and enhance food security awareness among students.

Building a Culture of Sustainability: Next Steps and Call to Action

CCDC’s current policies and actions lay a strong foundation for sustainable campus dining and waste reduction. Moving forward, the college is poised to deepen its commitment by possibly setting explicit food waste reduction goals as part of its sustainability roadmap. This could mean introducing composting for cafeteria waste, conducting studies on plate waste to adjust serving sizes, or organizing donation drives for excess food. Given CCDC’s track record of proactive environmental stewardship – from creating a dedicated Sustainable Development and Linkages Office to extending green policies to all its suppliers and partners– it is likely only a matter of time before food waste prevention becomes an even more prominent focus.