ILOILO’S 2025 BOOK NOOK CONFERENCE: WHERE READERS CONNECT AND BOOKS COME ALIVE

 PHILIPPINES – Over 80 reading space advocates, storytellers, and educators across the Philippines gathered for the annual Book Nook Conference 2025, organized by the National Book Development Board (NBDB). 

 

The conference, held from August 20-22, aimed to consolidate the best practices as well as challenges faced by area coordinators for The Book Nook Project, a flagship program by the NBDB which aims to address the country’s reading crisis by setting up reading and storytelling spaces across the Philippines.  Themed Sug-álaw: A Grand Encounter of Stories, Cultures, and Communities, the three-day event discussed the best sustainability practices and community-building tips to ensure book accessibility in different regions of the country. 

 

Almost four years since its launch, The Book Nook Project has expanded its presence in different regions of the country. Over 100 Book Nook sites are currently established in various provinces, cities, and barangays, with more than 20 additional sites to be unveiled this year. 

 

“The Book Nook Project has always been committed to making quality books more accessible not just in urban centers, but also in the most remote reaches of the country,” said NBDB Executive Director Charisse Aquino-Tugade. 

The first two days of the conference included sessions and workshops centered on strengthening and digitalizing Book Nook services in the regions as well as developing effective literary engagements. For the third day of the conference, Book Nook area coordinators joined a  two-part cultural tour within Iloilo City.  

 

NBDB’S ALLIANCE CHAMPIONS A THREE-POINT STRATEGY TO ELEVATE READING CULTURE

 NBDB’s National Alliance of Reading Advocates (NARA) recently launched its 2025-2030 Agenda: Building a Reading Philippines from the Ground Up after a successful first year run

 

 PHILIPPINES - THE National Book Development Board’s National Alliance of Reading Advocates (NARA) is pushing to promote access and reading of Philippine books in the country. 

 

In its State of the Reading Nation Address (SORNA) for the first semester of this year, NARA presented its progress in its 2025-2030 Agenda to further promote the access and reading of Philippine books by expanding access, foundational skills, and remediation through community-driven solutions, sustained partnerships, and scaling up of effective models. 

 

“The NBDB continues to push for a stronger national readership by mobilizing its allies from around the country. The reading gap that we have now–as we have learned from recent surveys–deserves our immediate attention and action,” said NBDB Executive Director Charisse Aquino-Tugade. “This is exactly why we formed NARA: to mobilize both the public and private sectors in reversing this reading gap. It’s about responding to the issue at hand now, all while nurturing the next generations of readers.” 

NARA is a project of the NBDB’s Readership Development Division, composed of 152 readership advocates and serves as an integral part of the agency’s ongoing efforts to boost the love for reading in the country. The alliance covers schools, universities, national government agencies, local government units, non-profit and small-scale organizations, and advocacy arms of corporations.