With our islands opening up to visitors and tourists, we're taking a look at the recent surge of COVID cases in Batanes. We talk with Ivatans about the physical and emotional toll of the pandemic and how we can protect our community moving forward.

As we celebrate a year of stories, and get ready for a new season, we say thank you to all of our listeners for being a part of the podcast. On this brief episode, we hear from listeners in Batanes, Quezon City, Mindanao and the U.S. on why Istorya Nu Ivatan is meaningful to them. (And what their favorite episodes were!) Get ready for more shows on the topics, issues and stories that matter to us as Ivatan people! Special dyus mamahes to our listeners for participating in this tribute: Ailene, Biba, Manny, Lelia and Camille.

For generations, Ivatans have travelled across the globe. We've been drawn to foreign lands by work, family or circumstances beyond our control. Some of us have returned. Others have put down roots far away. But Batanes remains our homeland. In this episode, we talk to Irene Dapa Horcajo, who spent two decades working in Hong Kong before returning to her native Savidug. The experience changed her life.

In honor of World Poetry Day, we celebrate our rich poetic tradition in Batanes, called Laji, with master singers, Melecio Alasco and the late Rosita Alavado.

Batanes is known as a natural paradise, but if you spend time at our beaches you know we face a big problem: plastic trash washing up on our shores. Join us to learn more about the province's new ban on plastic and community efforts to protect our local environment. Our guest is council member Ferdinand C. Elica, sponsor of the new plastic law in the province, Ordinance Number 302.    To learn more about efforts to end plastic pollution in the Philippines:   Break Free From Plastic https://www.breakfreefromplastic.org/tag/philippines/ Oceana https://ph.oceana.org/our-campaigns/plastics 350.org https://world.350.org/rhodeisland/plastics-and-climate/BAN

Happy Pyesta, everyone! In this special episode, Dorian shares a poem inspired by our town celebration in Savidug.

Wishing all our listeners a safe and peaceful holiday! This week we continue our conversation with Dr. Noel Bernardo, former Municipal Health Officer for Sabtang and Doctor to the Barrios.

Nearly a year after the first coronavirus case hit the Philippines, Batanes has managed to avoid any local transmission of the disease. But lots of challenges remain. We sit down with Dr. Noel Bernardo, Doctor to the Barrios and Municipal Health Officer to Sabtang, to talk about how we got here and what's next in the fight against COVID-19 in Batanes.

Take a walk around Batanes these days and chances are you'll hear the sound of hammers crushing rocks into gravel. It's called tik-tik bato and with tourism shut down, lots of people are doing it to earn money and get through the hard times. In this episode, we explore the trend, its history, economics and how it's an expression of Ivatan innovation and resiliency.

After nearly four months, Batanes has lifted its travel ban to welcome home local residents who were stranded in Manila, or abroad. Our airport opened for flights, boats started transporting passengers and local barangays set up quarantine sites for the new arrivals. The whole community mobilized. But for those returning home, the journey itself could be daunting, filled with checkpoints, screenings, tests and delays. In this episode, we follow one overseas worker who returns to her hometown of Basco.