A Youth, Agriculture and the Environment Session will be held at the 3rd Philippine Environment Summit to be held from February 26 to 28 in Cagayan de Oro City.
The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) will host the session. The summit is co-organized by Green Convergence and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
Under the theme, “Paradigm [re]Shift: Heeding Nature,” the three-day event will present programs and projects that advance the country’s socioeconomic development while protecting the environment.
In the youth session on February 27, SEARCA will feature five young professionals who are leading initiatives to advance sustainable agriculture practices, environmental protection, and the circular economy.
They are Louise Mabulo, founder of The Cacao Project and United Nations Environment Program’s Young Champion of the Earth; Cherrys Abrigo, founder and owner of Sierreza Café; Enzo Pinga, business development and marketing manager of IISLA Ventures; Rein Hillary Carrascal, beauty queen and ambassador of Hapi LIFE Foundation; and Michelle Dagsaan, member of Samdhana Youth Program.
SEARCA Director Dr. Glenn B. Gregorio will give an overview of the session and promote SEARCA’s initiatives in engaging the youth in agricultural and rural development (ARD).
The youth speakers will tackle their best practices, challenges and call to action to synergize, replicate or upscale their projects.
The youth session is the first in an ARD Discussion Series that SEARCA is initiating as an avenue to tackle, solicit ideas, and establish collaboration with stakeholder groups on emerging and on-the-ground challenges for achieving sustainable agriculture, and rural development.
Meanwhile, SEARCA representatives will also present in other sessions of the summit. Dr. Blesilda Calub, project leader, will talk about the gains of SEARCA’s School-Plus-Home Garden Project.
Rosario Bantayan, program specialist for training, will present the highlights of the Workshop on Establishing Climate-Smart Villages in the Asean region co-organized by SEARCA and the International Institute of Rural Reconstruction.
This year’s summit aims to enhance the convergence of various individuals and institutions to tackle issues in and accelerate solutions for sustainable development.
Benefit concert
Meanwhile, a benefit concert, dubbed Coming Home: Lemuel Cuento in Concert, will be held on February 26 at the D.L. Umali Auditorium of the University of the Philippines Los Baños.
The concert, which is supported by SEARCA, is for the benefit of the Youth Program in Agriculture by the UP Rural High School (UPRHS). It aims to encourage Grade 11 students to pursue careers in agriculture, nutrition, and related fields that would help address issues on hunger and food production in the country.
Lemuel Cuento, an alumnus of UPRHS, is a Filipino Tenor currently based in Munich, Germany. He studied at the UP College of Music from 1989 to 1994 and pursued his music education in the following year at Hong Kong Academy of Music.
He also earned an Opera Performance diploma at the Vienna Conservatory in 1996. For over 20 years, Cuento has performed in various recitals and classical operettas in many countries.
Cuento’s two-hour show will be accompanied by Jesper Colleen Mercado on the piano and will feature a special performance from the UPRHS Glee Club.
Moreover, SEARCA will mount an exhibit to showcase the winners of its 2018 Photo Contest featuring youth agripreneurs in Southeast Asia.