Representatives from across Western Visayas gathered on June 19, 2026, for the official launch of a 100-volume cultural inventory, marking the completion of a massive mapping project that began in 2023.

The books were the result of a major collaboration between the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and the region’s premier State Universities and Colleges (SUCs). Led by the University of the Philippines Visayas (UPV) as the lead implementing agency, the project divided its extensive field research among the region’s top academic institutions:

Aklan State University (ASU)

University of Antique (UA)

Capiz State University (CAPSU)

Guimaras State University (GSU)

West Visayas State University (WVSU)

Iloilo Science and Technology University (ISAT U)

Iloilo State University of Fisheries Science and Technology (ISUFST)

To pull off this massive undertaking, the NCCA provided standardized training to teams of local research assistants hired by these universities. These researchers spent months on the ground in local communities, documenting everything from old ancestral houses and natural landmarks to disappearing traditions, local crafts, and oral histories.

The final 100 volumes formed a comprehensive encyclopedia of the region’s identity.

To bring these stories to life for a wider audience, the project did not stop at books. The launch also introduced a collection of video documentaries and a dedicated website (cmpg.upv.edu.ph), making the entire cultural map publicly accessible online for students, researchers, and locals alike.

The launch brought together local cultural bearers, researchers, and community leaders who made the project possible, celebrating a major step forward in preserving the unique identity of Panay and Guimaras.

This initiative was among the priority projects of the Office of Senator Loren Legarda in support of the active roles of SUCs and LGUs in the implementation of the Cultural Mapping Law.

Photo credits: Marc Leo Layson and Franz William Felicio