Taclob: Giving jobs to Yolanda survivors one bag at a time

by Camille Banzon

(Courtesy Taclob/ Facebook)

Doing something about the rehabilitation and recovery of Yolanda-hit victims has been one of the priorities of many businesses, whether big, small, or independently owned. Aside from donations, projects are laid out to recuperate the livelihoods of people whose lives have been wiped away by the said typhoon.

Yadu and Khumbmela, brands that manufacture upcycled, eco-friendly bags, launched a project called “Taclob” which aims to give jobs to residents and provide kids with weather-resistant bags in Tacloban, one of the regions mostly affected by Yolanda. Taclobanons are slowly rebuilding their lives, and in order to maintain this growth, they need jobs to support their families.

Taclob, meaning “to cover” in Bisaya, promotes bags called “Courage” and “Compassion.” These are made by Tacloban residents who underwent trainings and seminars. The bags are designed by Khumbmela/Yadu, a 37-year-old Filipino bag manufacturer with markets in Singapore, Australia, California, and New York.

The Courage bag is a multi-functional school bag made of water-resistant nylon fabric and double-stitched with military grade nylon. Courage will be given out to children to serve as a “disaster prepared” weather proof bag. It doubles as a flotation device through its PET bottle compartments, in case something like Yolanda happens again. The Compassion bag is made of heavy-duty Japanese truck tarpaulin and up-cycled denim jeans and can safely fit a 13” Macbook.

 

 

The Taclob initiative aims to raise $157,000 USD via Indiegogo.com through pledges and perks. A $50 donation “gives Courage” ensures that a bag filled with school and art supplies will be given out to one child. A $100 donation gives a Courage bag to one child and a Compassion bag to the pledger.

“The concept behind creating the bags was to make a disaster-resilient industry versus an economy of dependency for the survivors; a bag that the world would want and, at the same time, survivors of disasters would deeply appreciate.” says one of the guys from the Taclob team.

Luckily for the Taclob team, celebrity ambassadors are helping spread the word for them and inspiring others to join this meaningful project. Host Ryan Agoncillo, singers Rachel Alejandro and Barbie Almalbis are some of their ambassadors, each pledging $100 to kick start the project.

The Taclob team is working closely with TESDA (Technical Education and Skills Development Authority) to provide additional technical skills training for the survivors. Taclob is also working with DAKILA, who will be conducting the climate-change awareness workshops, and with other NGO’s for their disaster preparedness trainings.

 

 

Taclob is about transparency, with a promise to personally deliver the bags to schools and have each one accounted for by the headmasters. Pledgers will be constantly updated through e-mail correspondence and through Taclob’s social media accounts. The team will also hold disaster preparedness workshops and seminars for the children each time they hold a bag-giving event.

To find out more about Taclob, visit their Facebook page, their website, or their Indiegogo page to make a pledge.