Balakat tree finds home in Boracay

BORACAY -- In a continuing commitment to save and propagate the vanishing Balakat tree (Zyzypus Talanai), members of the Kapampangan Boys Club (KBC) spearheaded a tree planting project in this world-renowned tropical island on Saturday.

KBC members led by its club president Terrence T. Dimalanta, planted the seedlings of the Balakat tree at the luxurious Shangri La’s Boracay Resort and Spa, making this youth organization to be the very first to introduce the plant in the southern part of the country.

The said plant, after which the town’s name of Mabalacat was derived, has been included in the Red List of Threatened species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

As young members of KBC, the group advocates the protection and preservation of the environment and strengthens the significant role of its fellow youth in taking part in the campaign to mitigate the ill effects of climate change. 

For her part, Shangri La's Boracay Resort and Spa Assistant Communications Manager Marla de Asis lauded the members of KBC for a remarkable endeavor of saving the rare plant and upholding a noble advocacy of taking care of nature.