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“Ecothon helped us turn a meaningful idea into a disciplined, scalable, and globally relevant venture.”

That’s how iBoard Living founder Zey Verunque beautifully sums up her team's journey. They initially joined Ecothon Philippines 2025 simply looking for a bit of knowledge and clarity in their work, but ended up discovering so much more along the way!

At the time, their startup was going through a major pivot—shifting gears from a general property management system to creating curated, student-centered living spaces. Since they were already retrofitting properties, Zey had a lightbulb moment: why not weave sustainability right into the process?

Ecothon Philippines turned out to be the perfect place to nurture that shift. “The mentorship challenged us,” shared Zey. “...it pushed us hard to ask questions like, why do you matter? Why [does] your solution matter to the startup world, as well as to the community?”

Thanks to the training, the team was able to completely recalibrate their messaging, simplify their story, and really strengthen what makes them unique. She added that actually winning the pitch would have been “just the [icing] on top.” For them, the real prize was the incredible clarity, credibility, and validation they gained.

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And it didn't take long for that validation to turn into some amazing opportunities. Because of Ecothon’s fantastic international reach, iBoard Living was selected to join the ASEIC Ecothon Global Alumni Accelerator over in Malaysia. There, they got to sit down for structured one-on-ones with international investors, sparking conversations that have since blossomed into ongoing discussions, document reviews, and global networking.

The momentum kept going back home in the Philippines, too. Their newfound visibility led to an exclusive sit-down with 25 Ventures, a US-based early growth-stage firm focused on PropTech and FinTech. When the investors dug into the unit economics and scalability, they were genuinely impressed by iBoard Living’s standardized 30-day retrofit playbook.

While their fundraising journey is still an unfolding adventure, the team feels their biggest transformation has happened from within. “When we first prepared [our pitch], our assumption was we will be pitching to Philippine investors.,” Verunque explained. By refining everything to speak a truly global language, they can confidently say today that they are globally investor-ready—pitching their venture with much more sharpness and discipline.

But it wasn't just about the capital. Ecothon Philippines warmly opened doors to new suppliers, sustainability grants, and wonderful ecosystem partners. Most importantly, it plugged them into a community that just keeps on giving. "I am selective about accelerators because they eat up time," Zey admits. “But [I've] chosen Ecothon because Brainsparks has been doing it previously. And knowing that Brainsparks... are holding multiple events, it becomes a network effect... [I think] tapping one organization that has multiple initiatives is better than spreading ourselves too thin with multiple organizers, [but] are not connected to one another…”

For any eco-founders out there thinking about taking the leap, Zey has some heartfelt advice: "Ecothon is a space where your ideas are respected and tested… there is a way to challenge you that lifts you up, and there's also a way to challenge you that brings you down. [And] what we have experienced so far is it lifted us up. [They] didn't question us like, are we really doing this right? But instead, how can we do it better?."

For the iBoard Living team, Ecothon Philippines wasn’t just another program to check off the list—it was a genuine turning point. It gave them the clarity to hone their mission, the credibility to step into global rooms, and the confidence to scale their dream with intention.

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