ABOUT
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Situated in the heart of Baguio City, a mountain town in the Cordillera Administrative Region of Northern Luzon, Philippines, the Bahay Ugnayan Research Center benefits from proximity to indigenous communities. This location facilitates direct engagement with ethno-linguistic groups, aligning with national frameworks like the Indigenous Peoples' Rights Act of 1997 (IPRA), which protects ancestral land domains and promotes cultural rights
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HISTORY
BURC was founded in 2023 by Mercedes U. Zobel and the Mahalina Foundation to support independent and collaborative research in the Cordillera region. Initially focused on documenting the Mercedes Zobel Collection of Indigenous Philippine Textiles & Objects—acquired from collectors like Ricardo Baylosis, Floy Quintos, and Patis Tesoro—the Center has evolved into a broader platform for cultural preservation. The collection required dedicated study, documentation, and output transformations to preserve appreciation of Philippine heritage, culture and biological diversity.
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MISSION
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To prioritize research, documentation, archiving, and preservation of indigenous cultures, traditions, and practices across the Philippines; conduct outreach programs to improve conditions for indigenous peoples; engage communities in collaborative projects; and disseminate findings through publications, programs, exhibitions, and digital platforms to empower ethnic identities and raise awareness of Philippine cultural practices.
VISION
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To become a leading global hub for Philippine cultural preservation, fostering emergent ideas on materiality and outreach that galvanize professionals, artists, artisans, and communities to sustain divergent cultures amid social, cultural, and environmental challenges.
PHILOSOPHY
At its core, the Bahay Ugnayan Research Center seeks to be a site for conversation, collaboration and the creation of emergent ideas on Philippine Cultural Preservation, Materiality and Outreach, to be a space that helps to galvanize and activate professionals, artists, artisans, cultural bearers and community members into producing nuanced research, activities and ideas that are contextualized through both historic and present social, cultural and environmental issues.
The center is open to partner with all disciplines and individuals, locally, regionally or internationally, that seek, align and support the sustained growth and preservation of divergent communities and culture of the Philippines.
RESEARCH
Prioritize research, documentation, archiving and preservation of indigenous cultures, traditions and practices across the Philippines.
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The Center's research will not compete with other entities but seek to partner, filling gaps in knowledge, funding, and research areas to develop public archival repositories accessible to all.
OUTREACH
Conduct outreach programs independently or in partnership with individuals and organizations to better the conditions and opportunities available for indigenous peoples. Activities that empower and strengthen communities' appreciation of culture and arts across the Philippines, motivating new generations to value their own heritage.
Through public programs, workshops and fellowships, the Center uses research outputs to address limitations in government agencies and funding bodies.
A secondary aim employs social enterprise modeling, granting access to Center-produced research materials so community collectives can create new income streams to improve livelihoods.
COLLABORATE
Engage and work with various communities in the Cordillera and NCR region (initially) to forge research collaborations, conduct cultural preservation activities and partnership projects that ensure longevity of traditions with a range of stakeholders.
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As a priority, the Center will always seek and favor projects conducted in partnership with organizations, foundations, NGOs, LGUs, museums, researchers, educational institutions, or individuals.
The aim is to produce public consumption outputs collaboratively.
PUBLISH
Disseminate research findings from the academe into the public sphere via publications, popular material releases, public programs, exhibitions and digital programming to engender and empower the ethnic identity of the people(s) of the Cordillera region, raising awareness of Philippine cultural practice.
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Outputs can take many forms, the key aspect is the conversion of findings into mediums (or multiple formats) for distribution to source communities or stakeholders for promotion, education, and development.
Sensitivity Disclaimer
The Bahay Ugnayan Research Center and The Mercedes Zobel Collection of Indigenous Philippine Textiles & Objects compiles digital and physical materials from diverse institutions and collections, including textiles, objects, and historical records. Some of this material may reflect colonial perspectives or the social attitudes of the time it was collected or documented, and may contain words, terms, or phrases that are inaccurate, derogatory, or harmful to Filipino and Filipino diasporic communities. These may appear in catalogue transcriptions, book titles, exhibition labels, object descriptions, or historical records, and have the potential to cause physical or mental distress or evoke strong emotions.
Due to the scope of our collection, the process of implementing sensitive-content warnings and ensuring the accuracy of all displayed data is ongoing. Our research is a work-in-progress, much of the current documentation is based on when and how items were acquired. While we strive for accuracy, some content may contain errors or reflect outdated perspectives that do not align with our current views.
The material within our collection does not reflect the stance of Bahay Ugnayan Research Center Staff or its connected parties. We maintain a strong anti-colonial and anti-racist position and are dedicated to centering the humanity of historically marginalized and disenfranchised communities.
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We are actively collaborating with communities, scholars, and stakeholders worldwide to help us interpret the collections under our custody and seek to promote a deeper understanding of Philippine heritage.
Through consultation, we are committed to revising or removing information that is inaccurate or inappropriate.
We strongly welcome and encourage feedback from our site visitors, members of the public, community representatives, and researchers, please do contact us to confirm, clarify, or discuss data found in our collections.
Your insights are invaluable as we work to honor and responsibly steward this cultural legacy.
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Thank you.