Featured Article
MALOU SOLVES HUNGER WITH ARK AND HONORED AT MAKE YOUR MARK
The Municipality of Reina Mercedes, Isabela proudly announces that Mayor Atty. Malou Respicio-Saguban will be honored at Make Your Mark 2025, an international recognition event to be held on November 14, 2025, in New York City by ARK Solves.
This honor celebrates Mayor Malou’s exceptional leadership in addressing hunger and strengthening community resilience through the ARK Feed Back Program, a sustainable initiative that empowers families to grow their own food and share their harvests with others in need.
Empowering Families, Building Resilience
Under Mayor Malou’s leadership, Reina Mercedes became one of the most inspiring examples of how the ARK Feed Back Program can transform communities. Through collective action, families in the municipality learned to cultivate backyard gardens, grow nutritious food, and share their produce, ensuring food security even during calamities.
“Because of Feed Back, before and after the typhoons, families already had food — no one asked for help.”
— Mayor Atty. Malou Respicio-Saguban
This powerful statement, shared by ARK Solves CEO Ayesha Vera-Yu in an interview with journalist Karen Davila, resonated as proof that sustainable food security can be achieved through proactive leadership and strong community cooperation.
Global Recognition Through ARK Solves
For more than a decade, ARK Solves (Advancement for Rural Kids) has been empowering farmers, fisherfolk, and rural communities to solve hunger and malnutrition in the Philippines through its Feed Back Program.
The program empowers rural communities to create a self-sustaining food system by teaching families to grow food in their own backyards and share it through a community-wide exchange, effectively solving problems of food insecurity, health, and income in a sustainable and dignified way.
Because of Reina Mercedes’ success and Mayor Malou’s inspiring leadership, she will represent the Philippines on the global stage at Make Your Mark 2025, joining changemakers who are building lasting solutions to end hunger.
In a featured interview, ARK CEO Ayesha Vera-Yu highlights how the Municipality of Reina Mercedes and Mayor Malou’s leadership became a shining example of sustainable, community-driven action.
About ARK Solves and Make Your Mark
ARK Solves (Advancement for Rural Kids)
It is a non-profit organization that co-invests with rural communities to address hunger and malnutrition by helping families become self-sufficient food producers. Its Feed Back Program enables households to grow their own food, share it with others, and reinvest in education and livelihood — creating a cycle of empowerment and sustainability.
Make Your Mark
It is ARK’s annual celebration that recognizes outstanding individuals and communities who have made a measurable impact in solving hunger and transforming lives. This year’s event, Make Your Mark 2025, will take place in New York City, honoring leaders like Mayor Malou Respicio-Saguban for their dedication, compassion, and innovation in community leadership.
