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Our Story

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Balaiwari Immersive and Gamified Experiences, Inc. is borne out of the need to respond to the changing landscape of education and the crucial role of culture in promoting such. Balaiwari founder Gian Carlo de Jesus, with the organic development and evolution of the Bahay-bahayan system and philosophy, led the organization in applying the principles of theater, gamification, immersion, and transmedia storytelling to create value for various stakeholders.

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It is true that creativity springs from adversity. Gian Carlo de Jesus developed the overarching principle now being used by Balaiwari as a distillation of the lessons and insights he gained throughout the years - from school-based performances to community-based theater, which later led to applications in cultural tourism, pedagogy, and organizational training and development.

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From a community-oriented cultural enterprise, Balaiwari evolved into a cultural entrepreneurship organization with the addition of Prof. Glenn N. Baticados of the College of Economics and Management, UPLB and business consultant Mr. Rodel Anunciado to the team. Balaiwari developed its business model, offering a unique value proposition to the market, while remaining true to its origin - that of serving the community through transformative culture-based education. 

 

Our mission is to help transform education in the interrelated disciplines of theatre, tourism, teaching, and training, using the Bahay-bahayan system and philosophy. We see our hub developing immersive tourism sites using play and theatre in every town and city in the Philippines. We envision communities being able to tap their own creative potential, draw from the spring of their own history and heritage, realize the culture in the ordinary, and champion all these through the development of a sustainable model of community-based tourism. We see our hub helping organizations, such as schools, NGOs, corporations, civil society groups, being able to use play and theatre for transformative education, may it be in helping design lesson plans for 21st century learning, or in organizational capacity strengthening and values formation. All these lead to our vision - to be the leading organization in ushering and fostering creative hubs and communities.

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