PASAY CITY, Philippines—Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) Center Director Dr. Glenn Gregorio was honored with the 2024 Outstanding Professional of the Year Award in the field of Agriculture by the Philippine Professional Regulation Commission (PRC).
Dr. Gregorio was recognized at the awarding ceremony held on 2 August 2024 at Conrad Manila wherein the PRC hailed 33 recipients in four clusters: engineering; health; business, education and social; and technology. Dr. Gregorio was among the eight awardees in the technology cluster.
Extensive contribution to agricultural innovation, research, and education
Dr. Gregorio is the 11th SEARCA Center Director. He earned his PhD in Genetics with a minor in Statistics, MS in Plant Breeding with a minor in Soil Science, and BS in Agriculture, all from the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB).
He served as a plant breeder for 29 years at the International Rice Research Institute (i.e., IRRI), wherein he developed at least 20 rice varieties, mostly salt-tolerant, benefitting the Philippines, as well as other countries in Asia and Africa. Subsequently, he was the global crop breeding manager for corn at the East-West Seed Company for three years, covering South and Southeast Asia, Latin America, and Sub-Saharan Africa.
Apart from helming SEARCA, Dr. Gregorio is concurrently an adjunct professor at the Institute of Crop Science at UPLB.
Among his other awards are The Outstanding Young Men and the Outstanding Young Scientist awards in 2004 and Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh Medal Award in 2012.
In 2018, he was bestowed the Academician title by the National Academy of Science and Technology of the Philippines.
Celebrating professional excellence
The 2024 Outstanding Professional Awards was organized by PRC and the Foundation of the Outstanding Professionals Inc (FOPI). Anchored on the theme "Bagong Pilipinas: Pagpupugay sa Makabago at Mapanlikhang Propesyonal ng Bayan," it recognized and honored professionals who are hallmarks of integrity, responsibility, competence, excellent service, and valuable and innovative contribution to their professions.
"As agriculturists, we must be ready to commit ourselves to enhancing the agricultural value chain—for our farmers' comfort and our consumers' well-being," Dr. Gregorio remarked.
