SEARCA News

In a ceremony held at the Umali Auditorium of the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) presented one of the hybrids of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis (gumamela) in honor of the Philippine Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones on 16 October 2021. Under the “Women in Public Services Series” of the UPLB Institute of Plant Breeding (IPB) Hibiscus Breeding Program, the Hibiscus rosa-sinensis ‘Leonor Magtolis Briones’ was awarded to Sec. Briones in recognition of her outstanding contributions to the Philippine society by setting professional standards for… Read more

SEARCA’s youth leader along with three other young professionals from Japan, Thailand, and the Philippines tackled youth initiatives for food sustainability in a virtual dialogue organized by the ASEAN Youth Organization – Japan Chapter (AYOJP) on 9 October 2021 via Zoom. Mr. Sonny P. Pasiona, SEARCA’s Senior Communications Associate and Youth Lead, highlighted the role of young people in food systems transformation during the dialogue titled, “Progressing to Food Sustainability amidst and after the Pandemic.” The event was convened by AYOJP as an independent dialogue in the Asia Pacific region in support of the World Food Forum (WFF), a youth-led… Read more

On 23 September 2021, the second of the series of consultation workshops was held virtually to discuss the proposed structure and content of the third volume of the ASEAN Regional Guidelines for Promotion and Adoption of Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA). It highlighted presentations by experts from the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), which co-organized these workshops and led the development of the third volume. Building from the results and outcomes of the first consultation workshop which emphasized the (1) need for CSA practices at systems-level and (2) tangible guidelines for prioritization and implementation of… Read more

Now on its final leg of scoping mission, 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) will conduct a planning workshop on 19 October 2021via the Zoom platform. This  is in line of the ongoing partnership titled, The Project Development on Coconut Industry Growth Areas in the Province of Quezon, and of SEARCA’s initiative of scaling up successful agricultural and rural development (ARD) research models to other crops and locations within and outside the country. Ultimately, this consultative workshop is aimed at finalizing… Read more

Four SEARCA Alumni were recognized by the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) and the UPLB Alumni Association (UPLBAA) during the 103rd Loyalty Day and Alumni Awarding Ceremony held on 10 October 2021 with the theme “Bigkisang UPLB at Alumni para sa Matagumpay na Pagbangon Mula sa Pandemya.” Dr. Weerapon Thongma, President of Maejo University, led the awardees as the recipient of the Presidential Award. Dr. Thongma pursued his PhD in Extension Education with a German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) - SEARCA scholarship. Maejo University also recently became an affiliate member of the Southeast Asian University Consortium for Graduate… Read more

The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), in collaboration with the University of Southern Queensland (USQ) and the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB), conducted a Workshop on Modeling Management of Climatic Stress in Rice-based Cropping Systems: The Application of the AgPractices&Domains Platform on 7-8 October 2021 via SEARCA's Online Learning and Virtual Engagements (SOLVE) Platform. The two-day workshop was attended by 66 targeted and potential end-users of the tool from different Southeast Asian countries. The 66 attendees that have experience in agronomy, agriculture, and modeling systems, are members of the academe, research… Read more

The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) convened the second virtual Governing Board Meeting (GBM) on 4-5 October 2021. SEARCA’s highest decision-making body is the Governing Board (GB). It performs an annual evaluation of the Center's work in the region and conducts an annual assessment of SEARCA's programs on graduate education, training, and research. The GB also examines the Center's financial health and operational performance in FY2020/2021. The GB is composed of representatives from the 11 member countries of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO). The 69th GBM was chaired by Assoc. Prof. Dr… Read more

The Education and Collective Learning Department (ECLD) conducted an orientation for new SEARCA scholars for AY 2021-2022 on 20 September 2021, through the Graduate Scholarship and Institutional Development Unit (GSID). The orientation, hosted by Ms. Paula Grace M. Muyco, Program Specialist at GSID, is a regular event held at every start of the semester to acquaint the incoming scholars about SEARCA and their responsibilities as scholars of the institution. Before the pandemic, it was conducted in the different study posts of SEARCA.  Thirty-two scholars were invited to the orientation where Mr. Joselito G. Florendo, SEARCA Deputy Director for Administration, congratulated… Read more

SEARCA in collaboration with the University of Southern Queensland (USQ) and the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) will be conducting a Workshop on Modeling Management of Climatic Stress in Rice-based Cropping Systems: The Application of the AgPractices&Domains Platform on 7-8 October 2021 via SEARCA’s SOLVE Platform. The two-day workshop aims to serve as a venue for presentation, discussion, and consultation of the AgPractices&Domains tool as well as to train targeted to potential end users of the tool from Southeast Asian (SEA) countries. The AgPractices&Domains tool provides integrated pest and disease management options in rice-based cropping systems. It aims… Read more

The Education and Collective Learning Department (ECLD) conducted a Special Graduate Seminar on 24 September 2021 with Dr. Muhammad Reza Cordova sharing his dissertation on macro and microplastics debris in Indonesian water. The online seminar was conducted under the SEARCA Online Learning and Virtual Engagement (SOLVE) platform. Dr. Cordova is a SEARCA alumnus under the Tokyo NODAI-SEARCA Joint Scholarship. He recently earned his PhD in Aquatic Bioscience at Tokyo University of Agriculture (Tokyo NODAI). Dr. Cordova talked about the inflow of riverine plastic debris and the quantification and identification of microplastics in the marine ecosystem. Based on his study, single-use… Read more