APLFI
Our Journey

A history of giving opportunity forward.

APLFI grew from a commitment deeply rooted in Apl.de.Ap's own life: an opportunity received should become an opportunity shared.

Over the years, that commitment has taken many forms - scholarships, classrooms, music and computer facilities, vision care, disaster response, digital learning and partnerships supporting young people and underserved communities.

Apl was given an opportunity that changed his life. APLFI exists to help create that opportunity for others.

Before APLFI

One person's passion for giving, before there was an organization.

Giving back has been a core part of Apl's life from the very beginning. Long before the foundation was established in 2012, Apl personally took on the responsibility of organizing and funding these early donations.

What began as one person's innate passion for giving eventually blossomed into a dedicated organization: the Apl.de.Ap Foundation International. Entries marked Before APLFI below record that personal work.

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  1. 2011Before APLFITechnology & SkillsProgram

    Opening Doors in Pampanga

    Education and YouthAngeles City, Pampanga

    With his own resources, Apl rebuilt the learning spaces at the schools that shaped him - a library, computer lab and music room at Sapang Bato National High School, and a music library and recording studio at Holy Angel University, open to the whole community. He added technology access, music instruction and scholarships. These early investments led directly to the creation of the Apl.de.Ap Foundation International.

    Reported15Scholars at the time of the facility openingAs reported by Philstar, 2011
    Sapang Bato National High SchoolHoly Angel UniversitySto. Cristo Elementary SchoolAyala FoundationHewlett-Packard
    View the project →
    Sapang Bato series · 2024: Returning to Sapang Bato with New Tools for Learning →
    Sources
    Inquirer →Philstar →GMA News →
  2. 2011–2012EducationProgram

    A National Classroom Drive

    Philippines

    Named special ambassador for education by the Ninoy and Cory Aquino Foundation, Apl launches We Can Be Anything - a joint advocacy with NCAF backing private-sector efforts to close a 66,800-classroom national backlog. The first school rebuilt is Balulang Elementary in Cagayan de Oro, destroyed by Tropical Storm Sendong.

    Committed20 classroomsMindanao to Luzon
    Ninoy and Cory Aquino Foundation57-75 Education Reform MovementSan Miguel CorporationAGAPP FoundationPLDT-Smart FoundationOne Meralco FoundationPhilippine AirlinesPAGCOR
    View the project →
    Sources
    Campaign video: We Can Be Anything →Philstar: Apl.de.ap sends message on education to Filipino youth →Inquirer Lifestyle: Apl.de.ap helps build Pinoy classroom →
  3. 2012Milestone

    The Foundation Begins

    Philippines and United States

    Apl formally establishes the Apl.de.Ap Foundation International to support underserved children and communities in the Philippines and across Asia. Education becomes the foundation's first priority, reflecting Apl's belief that access to learning can change the direction of a child's life.

  4. 2013EducationCampaign

    Macaroons for a Cause

    Macaroons for a CausePhilippines, beginning in Zamboanga

    The foundation partners with Red Ribbon and Franklin Baker on Macaroons for a Cause, a nationwide fundraising campaign supporting school construction: seven pesos from every fifty-peso pack goes to the foundation. The campaign builds a fourteen-classroom public high school in Barangay Talon-Talon, Zamboanga, serving more than 600 students in arts and technology, with an emphasis on music.

    Delivered14 classroomsBarangay Talon-Talon, Zamboanga · 600+ studentsWith Red Ribbon and Franklin Baker
    Red RibbonFranklin Baker
    View the project →
    Sources
    Inquirer →Good News Manila →
  5. 2013–presentHealthProgram

    Apl of My Eye

    Apl of My EyePhilippines

    Apl of My Eye is the longest-running project of Apl.de.Ap Foundation International and the founding effort of the Campaign for Filipino Children. It addresses retinopathy of prematurity, a leading cause of preventable childhood blindness among premature babies. By placing retinal imaging cameras in regional hospitals and training local physicians, the project has moved care closer to the babies who need it. The first camera outside Manila was installed in Davao City in 2015; the second went to Pampanga in 2019. The third and final camera, for Iloilo, is now being fundraised.

    13 yearsour longest-running project, still active
    Children's Hospital Los Angeles Vision CenterPhilippine Academy of OphthalmologyKnights Templar Eye FoundationWestern Union
    View the project →
    Sources
    Inquirer Entertainment →Philstar →
  6. 2014Disaster ResponseResponse

    Standing with Families After Typhoon Haiyan

    Pinoy ReliefPhilippines

    Apl participates in the Pinoy Relief Benefit Concert at Madison Square Garden. Funds raised support Typhoon Haiyan survivors through livelihood recovery, classroom construction and shelter delivered by partner organizations working in affected communities.

    Pinoy ReliefMadison Square Garden benefit concert partners
    View the project →
    Sources
    GMA News →Inquirer →Pinoy Relief →
  7. 2020Disaster ResponseResponse

    Unbreakable: Adobo in Action

    Unbreakable: Adobo in ActionLos Angeles, California

    In December 2020, APLFI and HiFi Kitchen turned Apl's family adobo recipe into a one-day fundraiser for typhoon relief in the Philippines. Under pandemic restrictions, Chef Justin Foronda cooked takeout meals in Historic Filipinotown, with proceeds sent directly to PeDRO as communities recovered from Molave, Goni, Vamco, and other storms. The pop-up showed how the Foundation could use something familiar and accessible to connect the Filipino diaspora to urgent needs back home.

    One dayA single-day adobo pop-up on December 5, 2020, with proceeds directed to PeDRO for Philippine typhoon relief.APLFI project records; Asian Journal.
    HiFi KitchenPeDROChef Justin Foronda
    View the project →
    Sources
    Asian Journal →Asian Journal →
  8. 2021–2022HealthResponse

    Responding to the Pandemic

    UP-Philippine General Hospital, Manila

    In 2021, APLFI and the University of the Philippines Alumni Association of San Francisco helped move nine tons of COVID-19 test kits from California to UP-Philippine General Hospital. Donated through Yobie Benjamin and Zymo Research founder Dr. Larry Jia, the kits were non-invasive, shelf-stable, and compatible with the hospital's existing equipment. Coordinated across the diaspora and accepted by UP President Danilo Concepcion, the shipment showed how Filipino networks abroad could mobilize quickly to fill a critical public-health gap at home.

    Delivered227,722Zymo Research saliva collection kits delivered to UP-Philippine General Hospital, valued at US$2.85 million
    UP Alumni Association of San FranciscoUniversity of the PhilippinesPhilippine General Hospital (UP Manila)Yobie BenjaminZymo ResearchSonia Delen
    View the project →
    Sources
    Inquirer →University of the Philippines →University of the Philippines →
  9. 2024Technology & SkillsPartnership

    Returning to Sapang Bato with New Tools for Learning

    Sapang Bato Digital LearningAngeles City, Pampanga, Philippines

    In March 2024, APLFI expanded its support for Sapang Bato National High School into a partnership built around digital access and skills. Khan Academy Philippines brought free coursework, Accenture Philippines donated fifty laptops and coding programs, and APLFI provided the internet connection that keeps the system working for the school's 1,664 students. The launch connected a rural Pampanga school to a broader national effort to prepare Filipino learners for technology-driven opportunities.

    Reported1,664students with access to the platformAs reported by APLFI and partners, March 2024
    Khan Academy PhilippinesAccenture PhilippinesSapang Bato National High School
    View the project →
    Sapang Bato series · 2011: Opening Doors in Pampanga →
    Sources
    Rappler →GMA News →GMA News →
  10. 2024PartnershipsMilestone

    A Seat at the Table in Manila

    Manila, Philippines

    In March 2024, APLFI joined the first U.S. Presidential Trade and Investment Mission to the Philippines as the delegation's only independent nonprofit foundation. During the mission, APLFI signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Asian Development Bank, witnessed by U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and senior Philippine and U.S. officials. The agreement moved the Foundation into a new phase of workforce development, focused on preparing Filipinos for the country's growing mobility sector.

    Reported22U.S. companies and organizations; APLFI the only independent nonprofit foundationAs listed by the White House, March 2024
    Asian Development BankU.S. Department of CommerceUniversity of Michigan William Davidson Institute
    Sources
    The White House →U.S. Department of Commerce →Philippine News Agency →
  11. 2024PartnershipsPartnership

    Creating with the Sisters of Mary Schools

    Sisters of Mary x APLFIPhilippines

    In 2024, APLFI brought a professional recording studio experience directly to students at the Sisters of Mary Schools after hearing them perform on campus. Grammy-winning producers Keith Harris, David Quinones, and Edgar "Artek" Sinio worked alongside students to write, record, and produce an original Filipino Christmas song, while exposing them to the wider creative roles behind a music release. The project turned a school performance into a hands-on introduction to careers in music and showed students that those pathways could be within reach.

    Sisters of Mary SchoolsKeith HarrisDavid QuinonesEdgar "Artek" Sinio
    View the project →
    Sources
    Catholic Vote →Detroit Catholic →Tatler Asia →
Today

The Next Chapter of APLFI

APLFI is bringing its history into a focused whole-family mission. Its experience in education, healthcare, disability inclusion, emergency response and skills access now informs four connected pillars: Strong Start, Strong Families, Secure Food and Resilient Futures.

Strong start
Strong Start

We support early childhood development, maternal and child nutrition, healthcare access, caregiver education, school readiness, vision care and disability inclusion - giving every rural child the foundation to thrive.

Strong families
Strong Families

We strengthen the health, knowledge, agency and economic security of women and caregivers so they can support their families and build stronger futures across generations.

Secure food
Secure Food

We strengthen access to nutritious food, local production, nutrition knowledge and the community systems that help rural families remain nourished through everyday life and times of disruption.

Resilient futures
Resilient Futures

We prepare rural people and institutions for changing economies by building the skills, leadership and local capacity needed for resilient agriculture, renewable energy and related rural livelihoods.

The work has taken many forms. The reason behind it has never changed.

Potential is everywhere. Opportunity should be too.

Help build the next chapter →