SEARCA in the News

Grade school and high school student-inventors from Colegio de San Juan de Letran Calamba showcased their agri-inventions at the "Sowing Seeds: Cultivating Youth's Future in Agriculture" session on agri-robotics. The event was organized by the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) through its Partnerships Unit (PU) as part of the Center's recent Young Forces for Agricultural Innovation program. In his opening message, SEARCA Director Glenn Gregorio explained that agriculture is a complex system that includes not only production but also harvesting, postharvest processing, and, ultimately, consumption. Gregorio also underscored the transformative role of innovation… Read more

SEVENTEEN new Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) scholars attended in person and online a hybrid orientation meeting for Academic Year 2024-2025 on Oct. 21, 2024. The new scholars pursuing master's and doctoral degrees were six from the Philippines, six from Indonesia, two from Cambodia, one from Malaysia, one from Myanmar and one from Liberia. The orientation meeting was organized by the SEARCA Center through its Graduate Scholarship and Institutional Development Unit under the Education and Collective Learning Department (ECLD-GSIDU). The orientation featured a briefing on SEARCA and its programs and activities followed by… Read more

OFFICIALS from the Department of Education (DepEd) Los Baños, Laguna Sub-office, and Life Learning Organization of Peace (LLOP) visited the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) for an exploratory meeting regarding community engagement initiatives on Oct. 11. DepEd Los Baños, Laguna Sub-office Public School District Supervisor Soledad Villanueva and LLOP CEO Pilar Habito with Arturo Cariaga discussed school garden and youth entrepreneurship initiatives with SEARCA. Villanueva thanked SEARCA Center for its longstanding partnership with DepEd through the School-plus-Home Gardens Project (S+HGP). "We are excited about expanding the S+HGP and further strengthening DEpEd's Gulayan sa… Read more

THE Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) outlined measures for Southeast Asia's agribusiness future during the second SEAMEO International Conference on Food and Nutrition (ICFN) 2024 in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Oct. 17-18. With the theme "Understanding the Challenges, Gains, and Opportunities in Environmental Nutrition Research, Programs, and Policies in Southeast Asia," ICFN 2024 covered discussions on food systems, indigenous food and nutrition, sustainable diets, environmental food factors, and food security. The conference organized by the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) Regional Centre for Food and Nutrition (RECFON) aimed to "enhance understanding of… Read more

PRACTICES that can advance nature-positive agriculture were championed by the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) during the 8th International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Asia Regional Conservation Forum (RCF) 2024 recently held in Bangkok, Thailand. During the panel on transforming agri-food systems, SEARCA Center Director Glenn Gregorio noted the increasing pressure on natural ecosystems due to agricultural activities and the challenges posed by climate change. He said that the critical balance between agricultural productivity and biodiversity conservation can be achieved through innovations. He proposed solutions which are "essential to a produce-more-with-less framework."… Read more

THE Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) is capacitating public servants of Oriental Mindoro on agribiotechnology. SEARCA Center Director Glenn Gregorio said that through the center's project titled "Pilot Testing of Training Module on Biotechnology for Public Servants," provincial governments are strengthened and their knowledge enhanced to promote the use and acceptance of modern biotechnology more effectively. Gregorio said that the training of public servants in Oriental Mindoro under the project in September and October this year was held in Muntinlupa and was attended by 18 officials and staff of the provincial and municipal… Read more

THE Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) has set October 31, 2024 as the deadline for applications for its Seed Fund for Research and Training (SFRT). SEARCA director Glenn Gregorio, PhD, said the seed fund provides support of up to $15,000 for research and training projects. SFRT is open to Southeast Asian researchers, scientists and academic professionals who have limited funds for their research or training proposals. Gregorio said the applicants' proposed projects should align with SEARCA's strategic goals, reflect regional significance and demonstrate clear benefits to Southeast Asia's agricultural sector. As such, the… Read more

The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) has set October 31, 2024 as the deadline for applications for its Seed Fund for Research and Training (SFRT). The seed fund provides support of up to US$15,000 for research and training projects. SFRT is open to Southeast Asian researchers, scientists, and academic professionals who have limited funds for their research or training proposals. The applicants' proposed projects should align with SEARCA's strategic goals, reflect regional significance, and demonstrate clear benefits to Southeast Asia's agricultural sector. As such, the topic of proposed projects must fall within SEARCA's… Read more

SOME 29 delegates from various Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) universities converged in a workshop to craft guidelines for food security and climate change micro-credentials implementation in Chon Buri Province, Thailand on Oct. 15, 2024. These universities include the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB), Central Luzon State University (CLSU), and Visayas State University (VSU) in the Philippines; Institut Pertanian Bogor (IPB), Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM), and Universitas Brawijaya (UB) in Indonesia; Maejo University (MJU) and Kasetsart University (KU) in Thailand; and Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) and Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS). The workshop "Developing Guidelines for the Monitoring… Read more

THE Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) based in Los Baños provided insights and fostered a healthy discussion on rice policy innovation at a recent International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) training workshop. Addressing critical issues related to food security, food self-sufficiency and the challenges of agricultural pricing policies, the training workshop in September reviewed various policy approaches, assessing their strengths and weaknesses, and examined the role of agriculture in poverty reduction and combating malnutrition. It was participated by 23 researchers and policy influencers from IRRI, Caraga State University, the Department of Agriculture (DA), DA-Philippine… Read more