SEARCA in the News

The International School for Sustainable Tourism (ISST), the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB), and the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), forged an agreement to collaborate in the International Ecotourism Travel Mart (IETM), the first-ever green travel mart and selling fair in the world organised by the Asian Ecotourism Network (AEN). The biggest ecotourism-focused fair is set to be held on March 29 to April 2, 2023 in Cavite, Philippines. This celebration of green technology and sustainable practices in the tourism industry signifies an opportunity towards a better normal and a more resilient community… Read more

The Philippines is one of the most biologically diverse countries in the world. However, it has also been identified as one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots due to biodiversity loss. Aggravating the challenges posed on the country’s biological ecosystem are population growth, rapid urbanization, global warming and the global pandemic caused by Covid-19.   Biodiversity experts believe that maintaining a healthy ecology or strong biodiversity, is essential to human survival. Eventually, they believe it will lead to the path of sustainable growth and development   Ecosystem services Ecosystem services are the direct and indirect benefits humans obtain from nature, Executive Director Theresa… Read more

Ang ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB), Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), at International School of Sustainable Tourism (ISST) ay lumagda ng Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) para sa pagsasagawa ng International Ecotourism Travel Mart (IETM) 2023. Nangyari ang pirmahan  noong Oktubre 12 sa ACB headquarters. Ayon sa ACB, ang IETM ay ang kauna-unahang green travel mart at selling fair sa buong mundo na inoorganisa ng Asian Ecotourism Network (AEN). Layunin nitong pulungin ang iba’t-ibang mga ahensya at grupo mula sa ibang bansa upang itampok ang kanilang mga produkto at serbisyong ekotorismo, green technology, at… Read more

SCHOLARSHIP aspirants were briefed on Joint Scholarship Programs (JSP) for Academic Year 2023-2024 offered by the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), an inter-government treaty organization hosted by the Philippine government. Through the Education and Collective Learning Department (ECLD), SEARCA which is headquartered on the campus of the University of the Philippines Los Baños, presented an overview of SEARCA's graduate study program and all the joint scholarships currently available for the ongoing call for application. SEARCA director Dr. Glenn Gregorio said the ongoing call for scholarship applications opened on Sept. 1, 2022, and will… Read more

THE Philippine government-hosted Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) gave a briefing on its program on food security in the Philippines and the rest of Southeast Asia during the recent visit of United States Agency for International Development (USAID) officials. SEARCA director Dr. Glenn Gregorio gave a briefing particularly on the center's programs under its 11th Five-Year Plan focused on Accelerating Transformation Through Agricultural Innovation (ATTAIN) to help promote food security in the Philippines and in the Southeast Asian region. USAID officials led by General Development Advisor Dr. Brent Edelman visited SEARCA and they… Read more

Among the greenhouse gases that cause global warming, most reports emphasize more on carbon dioxide. But methane is equally significant. In fact, about 12 percent of global warming is attributed to increases of methane in the atmosphere. “Methane absorbs heat 21 times more than carbon dioxide and it has 9- to 15-year life time in the atmosphere over a 100-year period,” says Dr. Constancio Asis Jr., a recipient of the 2011 Norman E. Borlaug International Agricultural Science and Technology Fellowship Award. Methane gas is created naturally as a waste product of anaerobic bacteria (living with little or no oxygen). These… Read more

Sinimulan ng Los Baños-based Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) at mga organisasyong nakabase sa United Kingdom ang isang proyekto upang gawing accessible ang malinis na enerhiya sa mga malalayo at hindi naseserbisyuhan na mga komunidad sa kanayunan. Ayon kay Dr. Glenn B. Gregorio, Direktor ng SEARCA, ang proyektong “Rice Straw Biogas Hub” ay nabuo sa pakikipagtulungan ng UK-registered startup Straw Innovations (SI) bilang lead proponent, SEARCA, UK SME Koolmill, at UK academic partner na Aston University . Sinabi niya na ang tatlong taong proyektong nabanggit ay pinondohan ng Innovate UK sa ilalim ng… Read more

A PROJECT of the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture will soon provide clean energy in rural areas using rice straw. Dr. Glenn Gregorio, SEARCA director, said the “Rice Straw Biogas Hub” project is a collaboration of UK-registered startup Straw Innovations as lead proponent, SEARCA, the UK SME Koolmill and UK academic partner Aston University. The three-year project is funded by Innovate UK under the auspices of the United Kingdom Research and Innovation organization. “The project will generate biogas as clean energy from waste rice straw and provide an innovative package of technology services for… Read more

The Los Baños-based Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) and United Kingdom-based organizations have started a project to make clean energy accessible to remote and underserved rural communities. According to Dr. Glenn B. Gregorio, SEARCA Director, the “Rice Straw Biogas Hub” project is a collaboration of UK-registered startup Straw Innovations (SI) as lead proponent, SEARCA, the UK SME Koolmill, and UK academic partner Aston University. He said the three-year project is funded by Innovate UK under the auspices of the United Kingdom Research and Innovation organization. “The project will generate biogas as clean energy… Read more

A Philippine government-hosted intergovernmental treaty organization in collaboration with a United Kingdom-based research organization has embarked on a project to make clean energy accessible to remote and underserved rural communities. Dr. Glenn Gregorio, Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) director, said the project, "Rice Straw Biogas Hub," is a three-year undertaking. Gregorio said the project will generate biogas as clean energy from waste rice straw and provide an innovative package of technology services for rice farmers. The project which is funded by Innovate UK under the auspices of the United Kingdom Research and Innovation… Read more