AI can remember—but can it carry our memories? Kalinga writer wins national essay tilt

FEATURE

TABUK CITY, Kalinga — From the wisdom of Kalinga elders to one of the most transformative technologies of the modern age, an iKalinga writer and educator is showing how Indigenous knowledge can help shape the way society thinks about artificial intelligence.

Rexon Hora Gaston, an assistant professor at Kalinga State University (KSU), has won first prize in the prestigious 2026 Komisyon ng Wikang Filipino (KWF) Mananaysay ng Taon for his essay, “Ang Paglimot sa Panahon ng Pag-alala: Paniyaw, Ngilin, at Bain sa Panahon ng Artificial Intelligence.”

Gaston will receive the award during Bunyi: KWF Gabi ng Parangal 2026 on August 27 at Hotel Lucky Chinatown in Binondo, Manila.

For Gaston, however, the recognition is more than a personal milestone. It is an opportunity to bring Kalinga stories, values, and Indigenous ways of thinking into a national conversation about a technology that is rapidly changing how people work, learn, create, and remember.

In an interview with GURU Press, Gaston recalled feeling both joyful and emotional when he learned that he had been named the 2026 Mananaysay ng Taon.

But after the initial excitement came something deeper—gratitude. “Nang itawag sa akin na ako ang itinanghal na Mananaysay ng Taon 2026, siyempre, naroon ang tuwa at pag-iyak. Ngunit pagkatapos ng tuwa ay dumating ang mas tahimik na damdamin, pasasalamat. Naalala ko ang mga taong nagturo sa akin, ang aking mga mag-aaral, ang Kalinga State University, ang mga pamayanang naging bahagi ng aking pagkatuto, at ang Kalingang patuloy na nagbibigay sa akin ng mga kuwento at tanong na karapat-dapat isulat,” said Gaston.

When Kalinga wisdom meets artificial intelligence

At the heart of Gaston’s winning essay is a question that appears simple but carries profound implications:

As technology becomes capable of remembering more, what are humans gradually forgetting?

Rather than simply asking how artificial intelligence can be used to document and preserve culture, Gaston examines the more difficult questions of what should be preserved, how technology should be used, and where its limits should lie.

For him, the conversation about AI should not be limited to what technology is capable of doing.

“Sa mundong paulit-ulit na nagtatanong ng ‘What can AI do?’, nais kong idagdag ang isang mas makataong tanong: ‘Dahil kaya natin, nangangahulugan bang dapat natin itong gawin?’” he said.

Gaston acknowledges that artificial intelligence can play an important role in preserving cultural knowledge, particularly stories, languages, songs, literature, and Indigenous traditions that could otherwise be lost.

But he cautions that storing information is not the same as carrying cultural memory.

“Maaari itong maging kasangkapan ng pag-alala, ngunit hindi kapalit ng ating sariling alaala,” he said.

For Gaston, this distinction is crucial.

A machine may store words, recordings, images, and other forms of information, but cultural knowledge is also carried through relationships, lived experiences, values, practices, and the people who give those traditions meaning.

His essay therefore positions Indigenous knowledge not merely as something that belongs to the past, but as a source of wisdom that can help communities navigate the future.

Paniyaw, ngilin, and bain in the age of AI

At the center of Gaston’s essay are three Kalinga concepts—paniyaw, ngilin, and bain—which he believes offer valuable principles for an increasingly technology-driven world.

For him, these concepts embody responsibility, restraint, respect for boundaries, and consideration for others.

“Ang ‘paniyaw’ ay nagpapaalala na hindi lahat ng kaya nating gawin ay nararapat gawin. Ang ‘ngilin’ ay nagtuturo ng pagpipigil, paggalang sa hangganan, at pananagutan. Ang ‘bain’ naman ay nagpapaalala na ang ating kilos ay hindi lamang tungkol sa sarili; may kapwa at pamayanang dapat nating isaalang-alang,” he said.

These values, Gaston argues, remain relevant even as artificial intelligence continues to expand its capabilities.

In an age when technology can generate information, imitate human expression, and preserve vast amounts of data, Indigenous wisdom can provide something technology itself cannot easily supply: a moral framework for deciding how that power should be used.

“The stories the world is looking for may already be in your home”

Gaston also encouraged aspiring writers, particularly teachers and students from Kalinga and other Indigenous communities, to look inward for stories worth telling.

He believes writers do not have to look far to find meaningful material. Their languages, elders, communities, memories, and everyday experiences can provide stories that deserve to be heard beyond their villages.

“Huwag ninyong isipin na napakaliit ng inyong pinanggalingan para maging mahalaga sa panitikan. Makinig sa inyong matatanda. Balikan ang inyong wika. Pakinggan ang mga kuwentong tila ordinaryo lamang dahil araw-araw ninyo itong naririnig. Maaaring ang kuwentong hinahanap ng mundo ay matagal nang nasa inyong tahanan, pamayanan, at sariling alaala,” Gaston said.

His own achievement is a testament to that belief. A story rooted in Kalinga—written in response to a global technological phenomenon—has now earned national recognition.

More than an award

For Gaston, the KWF recognition adds another milestone to his literary journey, but he sees it as something much bigger than a personal accomplishment.

He considers the award an affirmation that stories and knowledge rooted in Kalinga have a place in the broader national conversation.

The recognition, he said, has also deepened his responsibility to the community that continues to inspire his work.

“Ang pagkilalang ito ay may pangalan ko, ngunit hindi ako lamang ang naririto. May pamayanang kasama sa bawat salitang naisulat. At marahil iyon ang pinakamahalagang kahulugan ng pagiging Mananaysay ng Taon para sa akin: nabigyan ako ng pagkakataong magsalita, ngunit ang nais kong marinig ay hindi lamang ang aking tinig kundi ang mga tinig at karunungang pinagmulan nito,” said Gaston.

In a world increasingly fascinated by what artificial intelligence can remember, perhaps Gaston’s work offers a timely reminder: Technology may help preserve information, but people must continue to remember the wisdom, values, and communities that give that information meaning.