Dr. Jose Camacho, Jr. (center), UPLB Chancellor; Assoc. Prof. Rolando Bello (leftmost), Vice Chancellor for Administration; Dr. Nathaniel Bantayan (second from left), Vice Chancellor for Research and Extension; For. Roberto Cereno (third from right), Vice Chancellor for Community Affairs; Dr. Fernando Paras, Jr. (second from right), Vice Chancellor for Planning and Development; with the SEARCA Executive Committee led by Dr. Glenn Gregorio (fourth from right), SEARCA Director.
Dr. Jose Camacho, Jr., Chancellor of the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB), visited the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) on 16 January 2023.
Dr. Camacho was joined by Dr. Fernando Paras, Jr., Vice Chancellor for Planning and Development; Dr. Nathaniel Bantayan, Vice Chancellor for Research and Extension; Forester Roberto Cereno, Vice Chancellor for Community Affairs; and Assoc. Prof. Rolando Bello, Vice Chancellor for Administration, and were warmly welcomed by Dr. Glenn Gregorio, SEARCA Director; Assoc. Prof. Ts. Dr. Nur Azura Binti Adam, SEARCA Deputy Director for Programs; Assoc. Prof. Joselito Florendo, SEARCA Deputy Director for Administration; and Ms. Beatrisa Martinez, Executive Coordinator, Office of the Director.
During their visit, Dr. Gregorio introduced Dr. Azura to the UPLB officials. He emphasized that the newly installed Deputy Director for Programs will be instrumental in forging mutual programs and projects between UPLB and SEARCA in agriculture, as well as in the areas of forestry, biotechnology, engineering, entrepreneurship, and natural resource management.
Moreover, Dr. Bantayan introduced the UPLB Accelerating Growth through One Research and Extension in Action (AGORA) agenda to the SEARCA Executive Committee. AGORA is UPLB’s rebranded research and extension (R&E) agenda guided by four focus pillars of food security and sovereignty, one health, resilience and sustainability, and future communities and institutions.
“We are looking to more deliberate, rigorous, and meaningful partnerships with SEARCA,” said Dr. Bantayan.
“SEARCA supports AGORA as a platform for collaboration and a marketplace of ideas, which is very much aligned with how we accelerate transformation through agricultural innovation,” said Dr. Gregorio.
For. Cereno also shared that their office started rolling out e-jeepneys last year in its campaign to exercise green mobility inside the campus. This initiative was lauded by SEARCA in line with its efforts to promote climate-smart practices and solutions.
SEARCA is hosted by the Government of the Philippines on the campus of UPLB in Laguna, Philippines.