SEARCA News

Cognizant of the potential of digital solutions in transforming agri-food systems, the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study (SEARCA) and Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) inked an agreement to develop the ASEAN Guidelines for accelerating the transformation of food and agriculture through digital technologies and innovations.  This collaboration is in line with the implementation of the project’s Component 3 under ERIA’s umbrella project with the ASEAN Secretariat titled “Enhancing Food Supply Chain Resilience and Food Security in ASEAN with Utilization of Digital Technologies”.  The crafting of the regional guidelines will equip the ASEAN member states… Read more

The NTU-SEARCA Joint Scholarship Program for Global Agriculture Technology and Genomic Science (Global ATGS) is now accepting applications for the 2nd round until 5 February 2021 for AY 2021-2022. The Master Program in Global ATGS is a cross-disciplinary program supported by the College of Bioresources and Agriculture and College of Life Science at National Taiwan University in Taipei, Taiwan. The goal of Global ATGS is to train international academic and industrial leaders in advanced agriculture. The main fields of this program are digital agriculture, genomics, and modern breeding science. The joint scholarship program between NTU and SEARCA aims to cultivate… Read more

LOS BAÑOS, LAGUNA, Philippines – An inception meeting among representatives of the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) and the State Universities and Colleges-Association of Colleges of Agriculture in the Philippines (SUC-ACAP) to discuss arrangements and preparatory activities for the “Levelling-Up Philippine Higher Education Institutions in Agriculture, Fisheries, and Natural Resources (LevelUPHEI AFAR)” project was held via Zoom on 3 December 2020. The LevelUPHEI AFAR is a project under the International Continuing Professional Education (ICPE) Program of the Philippine Commission on Higher Education (CHED). SEARCA will implement the project with the 74 members of… Read more

The Kapisanang Kimika ng Pilipinas – Southern Tagalog, Inc. (KKP-ST, Inc.) launched its 49th Annual Convention that revolved around the importance of chemistry in advancing agriculture during the COVID-19 pandemic, which was held online via Zoom on 20-21 November 2020. Prof. Joseph Carmelo K. San Pascual, KKP-ST, Inc. President, gave his welcome remarks and introduced this year’s convention theme “Chemistry in Agriculture Amidst the Pandemic”. Prof. San Pascual further elaborated the conference objectives and its lifelong mission in harmonizing with other disciplines to fight food shortage and food security. He said “This conference aims to situate and establish the relevance… Read more

The Philippine Department of Science and Technology (DOST)-Science Education Institute (DOST-SEI) organized a webinar activity for the agricultural sector for Filipino Patriot scholars held online via Zoom on 23 October 2020. This project concludes the Part II webinar series under the Patriot Project with an overarching theme “Deepening Civic Leadership and Humanitarianism Among Patriot Scholars Through Sectoral Initiatives.” The webinar series include talks from experts in the field of education, health, livelihood, public service, environment, and agriculture. These activities were participated in by Filipino scholars from 16 regions across the archipelago. The sectoral webinar is part of the innovations of… Read more

The International Foundation for Science (IFS) and the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) had a ceremonial signing of its Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) on the Mentorship Program for Advanced Grants and launched the call for research borne of this agreement on 26 November 2020, 1:00 p.m. (GMT +8:00) via the platform Zoom and Facebook. IFS and SEARCA share the objective of building research capacities of early-career scientists, with focus on Southeast Asia in this collaboration. The complex and evolving contexts in the region call for developing researchers and the next generation of young… Read more

Eighty-five (85) faculty members from nine institutions of the Southeast Asian University Consortium for Graduate Education in Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC) participated in the 2nd Faculty Forum with the theme Agriculture and Beyond held on 9-10 November 2020 and hosted by the National Taiwan University (NTU). The UC Faculty Forum is an annual event that aims to provide an opportunity for faculty members from UC members to develop camaraderie, encourage transdisciplinary studies, and promote greater integration of research through strategic partnerships for collaboration. This activity is also a way to further strengthen the relationship between and among the UC… Read more

Encouraging public discussion in order to improve understanding of agricultural biotechnology, SEARCA and various partner agencies held a technical forum titled, “Greener Greens: Environmental Impact of Biotech Crops” on 23 November 2020 via Zoom and Facebook Live. The virtual forum provided a platform where different stakeholders most especially students, teachers, researchers, and farmers can interact with local and international experts in order to have a better understanding of biotechnology and its potential to mitigate pressing environmental issues. More than a thousand participants (684 via Facebook Live and 403 via Zoom) from Asia, Europe, and South America attended the forum. There… Read more

The 55th founding anniversary of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO), of which the Philippines is a chartered member, was jointly commemorated in a virtual event by three SEAMEO centers based in the country together with the Bangkok-based SEAMEO Secretariat (SEAMES) and the Department of Education (DepEd), Philippines. Founded on 30 November 1965, SEAMEO has grown from six founding member countries—the Philippines, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand—to 11 current members, which include the 10 ASEAN members plus Timor-Leste. SEAMEO also has eight associate member countries: Australia, Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Spain, and… Read more

The Southeast Asian University Consortium for Graduate Education in Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC) virtually conducted its 33rd Executive Board Meeting on 24-25 November 2020 hosted by Kasetsart University (KU) of Bangkok, Thailand. The meeting was attended by representatives from its regular members, Institut Pertanian Bogor (IPB), Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM), Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB), and Universitas Brawijaya (UB). Also invited to the board meeting are UC’s associate members, Tokyo University of Agriculture (Tokyo NODAI) and National Taiwan University (NTU), and affiliate member, University of British Columbia (UBC) of Canada. The Southeast Asian… Read more