If 2025 had a headline at Kultivate Labs, it would be this: contraction with purpose.

This year asked a lot of us. We made difficult decisions, said goodbye to spaces we loved, and rebuilt our operations around a leaner reality. And still—through all of it—our community showed up. Not just to attend events, but to carry culture forward when conditions made it harder than ever.

What follows is an honest look at what 2025 demanded from us, what it revealed about our resilience, and why we’re stepping into 2026 with steady hope.

As Kultivate Labs reimagines what cultural hubs can look like in 2026 and beyond, we’ve been in deep conversation with the people who shape the work most: our artists. From our recent in-person outreach session to reflections on long-standing creative communities—and even the rise of unexpected cultural hubs like Seafood City—one thing is clear: Filipino arts spaces are evolving, and our community is evolving with them.

This piece captures three threads of that story.

A year ago, at our 2024 Hiraya event, we shared a bold vision with our community: to transform the struggling SF Centre (formerly Westfield Mall) into a vibrant cultural and economic hub for Filipino businesses. We believed this was a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reclaim space in the heart of San Francisco for our community. This blog post outlines what happened, what we learned, and how we continue to move forward.

As we prepare to close Kapwa Gardens on Saturday, July 26, we want to take a moment not just to reflect on the past, but to share the exciting and heartfelt future that lies ahead.

Cultural survival is on the line. Here’s how sponsorship can help.

For years, Filipino American organizations like ours have carried the weight of cultural preservation on our backs—with little funding, lots of unpaid labor, and an enduring belief in the power of community.

The arts community is entering a critical moment. Across the country, organizations committed to racial equity, cultural preservation, and community voice are seeing the fallout from escalating attacks on DEI. Here in the Bay Area, and nationwide, several groups are already experiencing cuts in National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) funding—and Kultivate Labs is among them. These losses are not just financial—they’re a chilling signal about whose stories are seen as valuable.

At the same time, we’ve faced internal transitions of our own. The closure of Balay Kreative and the departure of cherished team members marked a hard season. These changes were painful—and deeply felt throughout our community.

Yet through this reckoning, something new is taking shape.

Join Kultivate Labs for Be Free Festival 2025 on June 13 in SOMA Pilipinas, San Francisco—a celebration of Queer Joy and Filipino Pride featuring food, art, music, drag shows, and cultural vendors. Learn how to get involved, become a vendor, or join our board to help shape the future of SF’s creative community.

After four transformative years, Kultivate Labs celebrates the impact of Marketing Manager Kaithleen Apostol, whose leadership helped shape our voice, grow programs like Brownthought Academy, and amplify stories from the Filipino and BIPOC creative community. As she transitions to exciting new roles with Make it Mariko, Minted SF, Executive Order, and MOSA, we reflect on her legacy and welcome Jimmie Gabiola as the next storyteller in our journey.

In the heart of San Francisco Japantown, a revolution is brewing, not with loud protests or clamorous demands, but with brushes, colors, and the silent whispers of change carried through art. The KOHO Creative Hub is at the forefront of this transformation, envisioning a future where Japantown emerges not just as a neighborhood rich in history but as a beacon of artistic innovation and community collaboration.

What does it mean to Be Free? And how can we get to that freedom? If you are unsure of where to start, we have gathered advice from 4 community organizers from the Bay. Their stories will show you how the fight is far from over, but freedom for those in the Philippines and in Filipino America are in the palm of our collective hands.

As the Winter/Spring 2022 Web Intern, Anjenica (aka “Nikki”) reflects on post-grad life, navigating new processes, and growing as a UX designer through Brownthought Academy.

As the Winter/Spring 2022 Content Writing Intern, Chloe reflects on her creative intentions, writing for a brand’s voice, and gaining confidence as a writer through Brownthought Academy.