SEARCA News

The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) and the Philippine-based Synergy Group Operations, Inc. (SGOI) formally signed a Letter of Agreement (LOA) on 1 July 2022 at SEARCA Headquarters. Under the LOA, SEARCA and Synergy committed to develop the capacity of teachers and local government officers by conducting a training on School Edible Landscaping for Entrepreneurship (SEL4E) project and provide information, skills, and understanding for properly disseminating the SEL4E concepts and values to students and communities in Rizal, Philippines. The project has two components, namely, the Trainers’ Training for School-plus Home Gardens Program (S+HGP) and… Read more

"Given the aggravating nature of climate change impacts, rice farming will increasingly rely on improved resilience to climate variability and extremes"—such is the premise of researchers from various international organizations on most of the papers headlining the June 2022 issue of the Asian Journal of Agriculture and Development (AJAD). In the paper tackling rice-based landscapes, "climate smart agriculture" was introduced in "climate smart villages" in several Southeast Asian countries, including the Philippines. These villages initially focused on improving rice seed systems and found out that a community-based seed system could strengthen their resiliency to climate change impacts. For stronger efficacy… Read more

Los Banos, Philippines – Fifteen grantees of the Seed Fund for Research and Training (SFRT) Program gathered virtually via Zoom platform on 7 June 2022 for a year-end review.  The SFRT is one of the support programs offered by SEARCA which aims to provide start-up funds to researchers and scientists in the Southeast Asian (SEA) region who want to make significant contributions in research, development, and knowledge dissemination but are hindered by lack of funds. It also seeks to expand SEARCA’s reach in the areas of research, capacity building, and knowledge contribution on Inclusive and Sustainable Agricultural and Rural Development… Read more

Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines – Under the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture’s (SEARCA) commitment to help boost the competitiveness of Philippine higher education institutions (HEIs) in agriculture, fisheries, and natural resources, five online short-term training programs were successfully implemented and completed between October 2021 to May 2022. These training programs comprise the first half of the Short-term Training Programs component of the Leveling-Up Philippine Higher Education Institutions in Agriculture, Fisheries, and Natural Resources (LevelUPHEI AFAR) project that is funded by the Philippine Commission on Higher Education (CHED) for members of the State Universities and… Read more

CAMARINES SUR, Philippines – A delegation from the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) conducted a strategizing partnership workshop with the Pilipinas Shell Foundation Inc., (PSFI) and visited project sites of PSFI local partners on 25-27 May 2022. The activity aimed to pave the way to structure the partnership roadmap between PSFI and SEARCA in the next three years wherein SEARCA officers and staff conceptualized and planned proposed collaborations between the two organizations. The sessions comprised revisiting the status of partnerships, identifying common interest, long-term strategies and interventions leading to shared goals in the… Read more

Young farmers, researchers, and development practitioners involved in research, teaching, and extension projects in agriculture have convened in the SEARCA Training on Digital Storytelling for Young Agrinnovators on 21-22 April and 4 May 2022 via Zoom. As part of SEARCA’s Young Forces for Agricultural Innovation (#Y4AGRI) initiative, the training aimed to equip the youth participants in digital storytelling as an approach for agricultural extension and marketing. There were 28 youth stakeholders trained to produce online stories and multimedia content that promote agriculture-related technologies, research, or advocacy in digital platforms. “In this training, we challenged our youth participants to infuse creativity… Read more

SEARCA further facilitates capacity building activities and international linkages for Philippine higher education institutions through the Leveling Up Philippine Higher Education Institutions in Agriculture, Fisheries, and Natural Resources (LevelUPHEI AFAR) project funded by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED). Three faculty members are ongoing with their mobility programs in partner universities from the Southeast Asian University Consortium for Graduate Education in Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC). The LevelUPHEI AFAR project aims to upgrade the institutional capacities of the State Universities and Colleges – Association of Colleges of Agriculture in the Philippines, Inc. (SUC-ACAP, Inc.) and its 75 members. Faculty and… Read more

Dr. R. K. Singh, Program Leader and Principal Scientist (Plant Breeding), Crop Diversification and Genetics, International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), visited the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) on 2 June 2022. He was received by Assoc. Prof. Joselito G. Florendo, SEARCA Deputy Director for Administration; Dr. Romeo V. Labios, Operations Consultant, Partnerships Unit (PU); Asst. Prof. Glenn N. Baticados, Program Head, Emerging Innovation for Growth Department (EIGD); Ms. Beatrisa L. Martinez, Executive Coordinator, Office of the Director; and PU and EIGD staff. On 2-7 June 2022, SEARCA will assist Dr. Singh in conducting… Read more

The German UNESCO Commission awarded Mr. Amar Maruf from Indonesia with the Magda Staudinger Prize Award for his scientific achievement in the field of Biodiversity and Climate Change. Amar is a SEARCA Full PhD scholar studying Community Development at Universiti Putra Malaysia. The Magda Staudinger Prize Award recognized his early-career research activities presented during the Research and Science in, for, and with UNESCO Biosphere Reserves Conference from 16-20 May 2022 in the Schorfheide-Chorin Biosphere Reserve, Germany. One hundred twenty (120) early-career scientists and research managers attended the conference from the World Network of Biosphere Reserves. It aimed to discuss research… Read more

The Education and Collective Learning Department (ECLD) of SEARCA organized the 3rd GSID Conversations on 27 May 2022 (Friday), 10:00 AM (GMT +8:00) to specifically tackle how scholars can navigate their postgraduate studies. The webinar is part of the scholarship package provided by the Center which includes academic and extracurricular learning events that serve as tools for the scholars to complete their academic requirements and support their social well-being. Dr. Ng Siew Imm, Associate Professor at the School of Business and Economics and Associate Editor of the International Journal of Economics and Management, Universiti Putra Malaysia, served as guest speaker… Read more