Kalinga Day Care Center in UP Diliman: Before and after

It's girl power for the reconstruction of Kalinga Day Care Center (KDCC) at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City!

On Jan. 10, the all-girl members of the UP BS Interior Design Class of 2020 presented their finish work for the major facelift of KDCC through the program dubbed "Project Kalinga: Nurturing Spaces for the Future".

The team behind "Project Kalinga" dedicated their services to the state university's own KDCC, under the Center for Women's and Gender Studies.

The batch chose KDCC as the beneficiary of this year's special project, seeing that the age group of the students in here marks the significant development in children as they transition to the educative system.

The design considered the value of sensory design and the social aspect in the said age group. Aligning with the vision of KDCC, batch 2020 strived to achieve gender-fairness in their vision of the space.

The designers, with the help of the teachers, revisited what it meant to be a child and how they interact with each other and with a space.

It was also considered how the teachers play a vital role in the expansion of the children's ideas and experiences, making sure that the project was inclusive of their needs to allow them to work their best as well.

The spaces covered by the renovation include the Reception Area, the Teacher's Room, the Recreation Area, the Kitchen, the Storage Room, and the Restroom. An introduction of a designated Breastfeeding Area as well as a Dining area was also provided.

All these were made possible not only by the students and professors who work on annually executing the capstone course, ID 179, but also with the help of generous people who continuously support and believe in the cause of the project.

Some of the groups that helped the project materialized include Hulma Manila Fabrication, Inc., Global Visions Events & Marketing, Inc., Saxum Et Sal, Inc., and Kuysen Enterprises.

"There are many more ways we can help in nurturing children's future, and we welcome you to the batch's way of contributing to this vision through the interior design discipline," the batch said in a statement.

The UP BSID Class of 2020 is a team comprised of graduating students enrolled under the UP Interior Design degree program’s capstone project, ID 179: Special Project.

With the value of service imbibed by the University of the Philippines, the senior students apply their learnings from their previous years in the institution under the guidance of their licensed interior designer course adviser.

This service-learning does not only promote honor and excellence in their output but also in advocating the essence of their chosen beneficiary.

Some of the senior students - Angela Titular, Erielle Ekong, Sophia teano, and Clement Ignacio - said that it was gratifying experience to be work for this project.

"Talagang nag-push kami na ibigay ang lahat para sa project na ito kahit kulang ang tulog namin para magawa lang namin ito. Mahalaga iyong may purpose ka at nagawa mo ito," Ignacio said.

"We worked together to achieve this advocacy. At kailangan namin saluhin ang weaknesses sa isa't isa. Service is something you cannot achieve on your own. It's something that doesn't stop. Tinuruan kasi kami sa UP na dapat ang gagawin mo ay pangmatagalan. It's for the good of someone," said Teano.

"As designers, we have the ability to affect people. It's something that we have to remember as designers...how we designed spaces that contribute a lot to the well-being of the person. Even with interviews with our teachers, we learned about the provisions kung ano ba ang mga kailangan ng mga bata. It's important that as we design, it will also serve as our legacy to the people whose lives we touched," Ekong added. (Robert Requintina)