In the lakeside town of Mangudadatu, nestled by the shimmering waters of Lake Buluan, a quiet revolution in environmental stewardship is taking place. At the heart of this movement is Zaddam Alim, the dedicated and visionary principal of Tumbao Central Elementary School.
Zaddam’s journey began with a dream of education. He graduated with a degree in Education in 2012, driven by a passion to uplift his community through learning. He began his career humbly as a volunteer teacher at Tumbao Central Elementary School, a public school in Mangudadatu, where he served tirelessly from 2012 to 2016. Zaddam gave his time, heart, and energy to his students without the benefit of a regular salary. His perseverance and dedication were finally rewarded in 2017, when he was regularized and appointed as the school principal.
But Zaddam’s commitment to service extended beyond the classroom.
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when face-to-face classes were suspended and schools fell silent, Zaddam found himself searching for ways to support his family and make use of his time productively. He turned to the very lifeblood of his lakeside community—fishing. Investing in a 1-hectare fish cage venture in Lake Buluan, Zaddam provided livelihood not only for himself but also for a local caretaker. The arrangement was simple but fair: the caretaker received 20% of the harvest, along with free rice, free use of wooden banca, and nylon fishing nets provided by Zaddam.
It was during one of his visits to the lake that Zaddam noticed a troubling pattern—discarded nylon fishing nets littering the shores, tangled among rocks and reeds, slowly becoming part of the environment. These nets were not being recycled or disposed of properly. They were durable and nearly indestructible, making them a silent hazard to both land and water ecosystems.
This observation sparked an idea.
Back at school, Zaddam had been grappling with another problem: managing the school’s solid waste, particularly PET plastic bottles and plastic materials. He wanted to install material recovery bins, but the cost of using traditional materials like steel matting was too high for their limited budget. That’s when inspiration struck—why not repurpose the used nylon fishing nets?
He began experimenting, working with local fabricators and community members to build recovery bins made from old fishing nets. The results were remarkable. The bins were durable, weather-resistant, and, most importantly, cost-effective. By using the discarded nets, Zaddam not only solved the issue of excess fishing waste but also created a sustainable waste management solution for his school.
Under his leadership, Tumbao Central Elementary School rolled out the first batch of these innovative recovery bins across the campus. Students were taught how to segregate plastic waste, and the bins themselves became a teaching tool about recycling, sustainability, and community responsibility.
The initiative gained attention from other schools in Mangudadatu, and Zaddam, ever the teacher at heart, began sharing his model. He conducted workshops for other principals, showing how the humble nylon net—once considered garbage—could be transformed into a tool for environmental protection and education.
Today, Principal Zaddam Alim is not only recognized as a leader in education but also as a pioneer in grassroots environmental innovation. His program continues to expand, with plans to implement similar recovery systems in all public elementary schools in Mangudadatu.
Through his vision and resourcefulness, Zaddam has shown that change doesn’t always require big budgets or high technology. Sometimes, it begins with a simple observation, a deep sense of responsibility, and a net full of possibilities.
