“FUNNY as it sounds, VegStable wasn’t something that I planned.” At 19, Bianca Ysabel Onod did not set out to start a legacy project. All she had was an idea — unpolished, unplanned, but deeply felt. Project VegStable started as a seed she dropped in the soil of service. What sprouted was far more than she expected.
Bianca, a student leader and nominee for Junior Chamber International (JCI) Davao’s Most Outstanding High School Graduate (MOHSG) Batch 58, hails from Lyceum of the Philippines University – Davao. She also serves as part of the institution’s supreme student council.
A key part of the MOHSG journey is the project pitching. When her school conducted its internal screening to select a representative, Bianca admitted she came up with the project idea on the spot. But what sounded spontaneous was, in fact, a cause planted long ago.
Project VegStable is a community-driven initiative promoting urban agriculture to help ease malnutrition and food insecurity. The concept was to turn underutilized land into productive gardens while empowering locals with hands-on agricultural education.
“It really just started out as some sort of dream or goal I had as a little kid… that I just happened to pick during an impromptu session of what my project would be,” she said, crediting her family’s love for urban gardening as inspiration.
The project launched on March 21, 2025, in Barangay Panacan with a seminar on urban gardening to equip residents with practical skills and spark self-sufficiency. Leading the session herself, Bianca shared insights she had gained from workshops she previously attended such as the Training of Trainers on AgriCrops Production by the Villar Foundation.
What Bianca did not anticipate was that her project would be chosen by JCI Davao for full support and implementation.
“What makes Bianca's project stand out among all the projects being proposed… is about food security, which is one of our key projects for this year — advocacy on food sustainability,” said Mr. Rom B. Batestil, JCI Davao’s Project Chair for VegStable. He also emphasized its alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: Zero Hunger, Responsible Consumption and Production, and Sustainable Cities and Communities.
From June 13-14, the project entered its implementation phase in partnership with the Davao City Agri Office and the Department of Agriculture, featuring a seminar-workshop followed by the planting of crops in the Gulayan sa Barangay, which is expected to yield its first harvest soon.
As handlers of the gulayan, members of the Panacan Association of Women — composed of over 40 members — were joined by volunteer JCI Davao MOHSG58 nominees, and local and supreme council officers. Agronomist Mr. Johnatan Sadjail from DCAO led the technical session, demonstrating container hydroponics as an alternative to vertical gardening using recycled plastic bottles.
Volunteers got hands-on experience, from clearing the land with sanggot to preparing the plots, while beneficiaries received starter kits and seeds, including pechay, kangkong, cucumber, lettuce, okra, eggplant, ampalaya, and sweet corn.
These could be cultivated not only to promote healthy food sources and secure nutrition but also to support small-scale livelihoods through entrepreneurial use after harvest.
“Nothing good comes in a short time. We have to wait for greatness to occur,” Bianca reflected. She acknowledged that food security is not achieved overnight, but through continuity, patience, and collective effort.
With JCI Davao’s support, she hopes to expand the project through more partnerships, eventually replicating it in other communities. She is currently mentoring a successor from her local council to sustain Vegstable within the institution, guided by her adviser and the LPU Davao REDO Head, Dr. Claribel Avila.
One defining moment for her came during the implementation, when torrential rain poured over their open-space seminar. Soaked, unsure, and on the verge of postponing, she was met with cheers from the Panacan Association of Women: “Go, Ms. Bianca!”
“Kung unsa imong desisyon, go ra mi ana!”
In that moment, she saw it clearly — what began as an unlikely seed had taken root, and she hoped it would grow far beyond her and outlive her title, thriving in the hearts and homes of her community.