SEARCA News

Three publications showcasing institutional and field experiences in implementing an effective agricultural and rural development model were recently launched by the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA). Dr. Glenn B. Gregorio, SEARCA Director, described the launching of the monograph Championing Inclusive and Sustainable Agricultural and Rural Development in Southeast Asia: SEARCA’s 10th Five Year Plan Plus One in Retrospect as a “celebration of the success and legacy of SEARCA’s 10th five-year plan.” The plan pertains to SEARCA’s blueprint in 2014–2019 anchored on Inclusive and Sustainable Agricultural and Rural Development or ISARD. The retrospective monograph… Read more

Bringing the spirit of fiesta to Filipino homes in the prevailing pandemic, SEARCA featured experts, advocates, and youth partners on food and agriculture at the 2021 Pista ng Pagkain at Kabataang Pinoy or “Pistang PagKaPinoy” on 23 October 2021 via Zoom and Facebook Live.  In relation to the World Food Day celebration, the festival featured lessons, stories, and concepts on food and its intersections with business, nutrition, arts, gender, culture, and tourism. The speakers were Ms. Amy Besa, Owner of NYC-based Purple Yam; Prof. Cristina Sison, Co-Project Leader of UP Rural High School Youth in Agriculture Program; Mr. Raymund Vincent Aaron, Banana… Read more

The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) through its Research and Thought Leadership Department (RTLD) conducted its  second online Training-Workshop on National Roadmap Development  under the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)-funded Project Agricultural Transformation and Market Integration in the ASEAN Region: Responding to Food Security and Inclusiveness Concerns, or ATMI-ASEAN on 3-5 November 2021. This second training-workshop was organized for participants from Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Vietnam as part of the Project's national technical assistance component on roadmapping. The three-day training-workshop was facilitated by Dr. Roehlano Briones, Senior Research Fellow of Philippine Institute for Development Studies… Read more

Conveying together the partners and stakeholders for the collaborative project titled, The Project Development on Coconut Industry Growth Areas in the Province of Quezon, the project team from the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) and the Provincial Government of Quezon (PG Quezon) conducted a planning workshop on 19 October 2021via the Zoom platform. In line with SEARCA’s initiative of scaling up successful agricultural and rural development (ARD) research models to other crops and locations within and outside the country, the planning workshop served as a venue in finalizing the project proposal by validating… Read more

The Department of Agriculture Thailand acting as the Chair of ASEAN Climate Resilience Network (ASEAN-CRN) will host a three-day virtual conference on 16 – 18 November 2021 with title: ASEAN Conference on Policy and Governance for Climate-Smart Land Use. The conference promotes a systemic approach to the connections between climate change and land use. It will shed light on successful approaches and lessons learned in the Southeast Asia region. Its main aim is to increase knowledge about strategies, policies, and governance frameworks for promoting the development, adoption and upscaling of climate-smart land use practices at local, national and regional level in… Read more

The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) will conduct its second online Training-Workshop on National Roadmap Development as part of the national technical assistance component of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)-funded Project Agricultural Transformation and Market Integration in the ASEAN Region: Responding to Food Security and Inclusiveness Concerns (ATMI-ASEAN), on 3-5 November 2021. The three-day training-workshop will be facilitated by Dr. Roehlano M. Briones, Senior Research Fellow of the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) and the Lead Technical Consultant of the national road mapping exercise.The training-workshop will cover an overview of… Read more

SEARCA Headquarters, Los Baños, Philippines – The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) and the International Foundation for Science (IFS) will recognize the efforts of the eight Advanced Grants awardees through a Virtual Awarding Ceremony that will be held on 29 October 2021 via Zoom and live on SEARCA’s Facebook page. The eight awardees were among the twenty-four young researchers from Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam, who participated in the Mentorship Workshop held on 15-21 June 2021 for the IFS-SEARCA Mentorship Program for Advanced Grants. The Awarding Ceremony will be open to the public and will… Read more

SEARCA kicked off its 55th-anniversary celebration on 22 October 2021 through Dish Dialogues: Creating a Sustainable and Healthy Plate via its SOLVE platform. The event also celebrated World Food Day with the theme "Our actions are our future - Better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life." Dr. Maria Cristeta N. Cuaresma, Program Head of the Education and Collective Learning Department (ECLD), opened the discussion on food and making sustainable choices for good health and protecting the environment. She also invited everyone for the next-day event “Pista ng Pagkain at Kabataang Pinoy” or “Pistang PagKaPinoy” which discussed… Read more

Ten video entries from young Southeast Asians took the spotlight as finalists for the 2021 Youth COVIDeo Contest of the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) in a Virtual Awarding Ceremony on 21 October 2021 via Zoom. With the theme, “Youth in Sustainable Food Consumption and Waste Management,” entries from David Agustin (Philippines) and Saw Solomon Morriz (Myanmar) garnered the top prize. Sekolah Indonesia Kota Kinabalu from Malaysia and Benjarat Soowit from Thailand were hailed as 2nd prize and 3rd prize winners, respectively. Patrick Loubert Custodio from the Philippines won the Popularity Award for… Read more

SEARCA kicks off its 55th anniversary celebration this Friday, 22 October 2021 through the conduct of Dish Dialogues: Creating a Sustainable and Healthy Plate at 10:30 AM (GMT +8:00) via its SOLVE platform. The event is also in celebration of the World Food Day with the theme "Our actions are our future- Better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life." SEARCA invited Prof. Dr. Shahrim Karim, Professor of Malaysia Heritage Food and Culture, Department of Food Service Management, Faculty of Food Science and Technology, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) to discuss sustainable and healthy consumption of food. Prof… Read more