WE SURF THE WAVES OF LOVE, JUSTICE, AND PEACE
We are riding the Great Creator’s waves of love, justice, and peace as fieldworkers, dreamers, and builders. Joji, with her academic grounding and professional work in Canada, later returned to Mindanao and founded Coffee for Peace, empowering Indigenous and women farmers to flourish amid adversity. I trained in theology and Asian Studies, pastored across continents, and now walk alongside young leaders in peace, reconciliation, and community transformation in the Philippines. Together we surf these waves of the Great Creator — committed to justice-based peace and reconciliation, knowing that the Creator is already making waves of hope in individuals and communities we serve. Through Waves and Coffee for Peace, we invite others to join us: to catch the waves of justice, to learn with us, to serve, give, and walk together toward a world of dignity, peace, and abundance.
Bai Kasunayan
Bai Kasunayan (colonial name Felicitas ‘Joji’ Bautista Pantoja, and also known as Lakambini Mapayapa) earned her B.Sc. degree from the University of Santo Tomas in 1979 and pursued further studies in International Relations at the University of the Philippines. In 1986, she migrated to Canada, where she built a successful career in the investment and financial sector.
Two decades later, in 2006, Bai Kasunayan chose to return to the Philippines to focus on peacebuilding and social entrepreneurship. As president and CEO of Coffee for Peace, Inc., she worked alongside farming communities, 80 percent of whom are women. In recognition of this effort, she received the N-Peace Award from the United Nations Development Programme – Impact Investment Exchange Asia (UNDP-IIX Asia) in 2015, representing the women farmers of Coffee for Peace. She was invited to the N-Peace Awards Ceremony held at One UN Hotel in New York City.
In October 2017, Bai Kasunayan completed her Master of Entrepreneurship in Social Enterprise Development at the Ateneo de Manila University – Graduate School of Business.
In 2020, she was named one of the three global laureates of the Oslo Business for Peace Award. The Business for Peace Foundation cited her for “dedicating her career to building peace in conflict zones and improving the lives of marginalised groups through economic stability.”
When asked why she left her thriving career in Vancouver, Canada to return to Mindanao, Bai Kasunayan replied: “It’s because I can’t imagine having a summary of my life printed on my tombstone as: ‘Spent her life managing rich people’s money.’ I want to be remembered as: ‘A person who walked with the people as they find dignity through sustainable economic development.’”
Datu Pugawang
Datu Pugawang (colonial name, Luis Daniel ‘Dann’ Alba Pantoja, and also known as Lakan Sumulong) completed a B.A. in Theology at Febias College in 1979 and earned an M.A. in Asian Studies from the University of the Philippines in 1982. While serving as a pastor in Olongapo City, he became politically active in opposing the Marcos dictatorship.
In 1986, he and his family migrated to Canada. Three years later, in 1989, he began serving as Lead Pastor of Grace International Baptist Church in Vancouver, BC. In 1995, he was appointed Director of Global Ministries of the Baptist General Conference of Canada. Continuing his studies, he completed a Master of Theology degree at the Vancouver School of Theology, University of British Columbia, in 2002.
In 2006, Peace Mennonite Church in Richmond, BC commissioned him and his wife, Joji, to return to the Philippines as International Peacebuilding Partnership Workers. Their assignment was administered by Mennonite Church Canada, where he served faithfully until June 2026.
Today, Pugawang has retired from his formal employment and voluntarily serves as a mind-setting mentor at the Bagobo Tagabawa community in Binaton at the foothills of Mount Apo, as an Elder of PeaceBuilders Community, and as Chief StoryPractitioner at Coffee for Peace, Inc.
When asked what fuels his hopeful outlook on life, he responds: “It’s the influence of Jesus, a first-century Palestinian Jewish carpenter who was executed by the imperial power of his time. He said: ‘Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.’”
We warmly welcome you to this video interview, an edition of Ateneo de Davao University’s Coffee Circle Conversations: Tales of Peace with Coffee for Peace. Together, we share the inspiring stories of individuals and communities who have embraced coffee not just as a drink, but as a bridge for healing, connection, and reconciliation. Through these heartfelt narratives, we witness how everyday moments and shared cups of coffee can spark peace, foster unity, and nurture hope in our beloved Mindanao. We invite you to join us in this journey, as we celebrate the power of community and the simple, profound ways that peace can be cultivated.
