The Ifugao mountain folk and their Unesco World Heritage Site rice terraces

Traditional Bhaluy hut in Batad, in a remote mountain village in the Philippines. — Photos: ANDREAS DROUVE/dpa

For Joy Poligon, life is simple, if harsh. “If I don’t go to our rice field every day, we will have nothing to eat.”

It takes her an hour for a return trip to Batad, traversing rough terrain to reach the village that is inaccessible by road.