Planting Seeds of a Decentralized Future in Cagayan de Oro

Few weeks ago, I had the honor to lead a Solidity & Blockchain Bootcamp for students and builders in Cagayan de Oro (CDO) — a fast-growing innovation hub in Mindanao. This wasn’t just a workshop. It was the ignition of a mission: to build world-class Web3 talent from the ground up, region by region, community by community.

This bootcamp was made possible through a powerful partnership between:

• Bitskwela — Web3 education for every Juan.

• Davao DeFi Community — grassroots builders pushing the frontier.

• DICT Region X — a government partner investing in digital futures.

• Sonic (formerly Fantom) — our onchain playground and partner chain.

We didn’t just talk tech. We activated minds.

We guided 116 participants through:

• Blockchain fundamentals

• Wallet setup & usage

• Hands-on smart contract development using Solidity and Remix IDE

• Deployment to Sonic Blaze Testnet

• Exploratory discussion on decentralized apps and blockchain utilities

Most of these students were touching smart contract code for the very first time.
But by the end of the workshop, they weren’t just spectators — they were builders.

✅ 93% of attendees said they learned something they’ve never touched before.
✅ 91% rated the experience as highly valuable.
✅ 84% now want to explore deeper blockchain development.

These aren’t vanity numbers. They’re signals of something shifting in our regions.

Web3 is often seen as something happening in global capitals — Silicon Valley, Dubai, Singapore.

But true decentralization means enabling every talent-rich but resource-light city to participate in the next tech revolution.

CDO isn’t “behind.” It’s just unactivated.
And last week, we flipped the switch. ⚡

This bootcamp was the beginning.

We’re already planning deeper tracks and exploring more activations. We’ll continue mentoring, building open resources, and enabling young builders to create real-world impact.

We’ll keep scaling — Cotabato, Zamboanga, Iloilo, Baguio, La Union — we’re coming.

I’m not here just to build startups.
I’m here to build talent density, community density, and founder velocity in the Philippines.

To our 116 students in CDO — if you’re reading this, I believe in you.
Your ideas matter. Your code will count.

And the next great DApp may come not from BGC — but from you, somewhere in Region-X.

Let’s keep building.

Koleen Baes Paunon
Founder & CTO @ BPxAI
Web3 Vision Builder | www.koleenbp.com