Nation

MaryKay Loss Carlson arrives in Manila to assume her post as United States Ambassador to the Philippines. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO MANILA (July 22)—The United States (US) Embassy is pleased to welcome MaryKay Loss Carlson as the new U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines.  Ambassador Carlson arrived last night in the Philippines, following consultations in Washington, D.C.  “I am thrilled to be in the Philippines and honored to represent the United States in this important relationship.  With the Philippines, our oldest treaty ally in Asia, we have a long history of shared sacrifice and incredibly close people-to-people ties,” Ambassador Carlson said.  “I look forward to working with the new government and our partners to upgrade and modernize our alliance to face new challenges, expand bil...

MANILA (June 30)—House Majority Leader and Leyte 1st district Rep. Martin G. Romualdez on Thursday said President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. “will be a great President.” Romualdez joined the Filipino people in celebrating BBM’s inauguration as the country’s 17th President. “He made history by being the first majority President in modern times. I am sure he has his eyes on other extraordinary feats by having a legacy Filipinos will be proud of for many years and by being a great President,” Romualdez said. "President Marcos will play a pivotal role in uniting the nation which is key to moving the country to greater heights." Romualdez said he wishes President Marcos all the best as he leads a nation facing complex challenges like recovering from the Covid-19 pandemi...

Breakout Room 1 Sub-themes: Youth, Agriculture, Education, Social Impacts, Value Chain, Food, Nutrition, and Food Security. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO Breakout Room 2 Sub-themes: Climate Change, Biodiversity, Ecosystem, Forestry, Rural Community, Renewable Energy (Biogas), and Free Trade. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO BY LEANDER C. DOMINGO LON BAÑOS, Laguna (June 30)—The University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB)-based Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (Searca) said it has 15 grantees of its Seed Fund for Research and Training (SFRT) program. Searca Director Dr. Glenn Gregorio said the SFRT is one of the support programs offered by the center which aims to provide start-up funds to researchers and scientists in the Southeast Asian (SEA) region. H...

EducationUSA Philippines representatives (top left) interact with outbound Filipino students via Zoom. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO BY LEANDER C. DOMINGO MANILA (June 30)—Sixty Filipinos who were accepted to United States (US) universities attended the third virtual pre-departure orientation (PDO) on June 24 to better prepare for their studies through the assistance of EducationUSA (EdUSA) Philippines. EdUSA provides free advising services to prospective international students in more than 170 countries and offers students resources and tools to help navigate the five steps to US study: researching schools, identifying financial aid opportunities, completing applications, obtaining a student visa and preparing for departure. The US Embassy in the Philippines said a real-time survey durin...

Niigata University of Niigata Prefecture, Japan. PHOTO FROM NU WEBSITE BY LEANDER C. DOMINGO IFUGAO (June 30)—A Japan-based university is collaborating with the only higher education institution in the province of Ifugao to promote collaboration in education, research and other related fields starting this year. To do this, the Niigata University (NU) of Niigata Prefecture, Japan has formalized its partnership through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Ifugao State University (IFSU) signed by NU President Dr. Tatsue Ushiki and IFSU President Dr. Eva Marie Codamon-Dugyon in a virtual ceremony on June 21. According to Richard Baliao, IFSU Department of Communication, Public and International Affairs director, the MoU contains the commitment of the two universities to enhan...

MANILA (June 26)—Officials of the country’s 42,046 barangays will undergo capacity-building training under the incoming administration of President-elect Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr., to ensure optimal utilization of the additional funds to be injected by the Mandanas-Garcia ruling. Lawyer Vic Rodriguez, incoming Executive Secretary, pointed out that barangay governance would further improve with the additional funds that the implementation of the ruling would provide. “When I was still a barangay kagawad, seryoso na kami noon, our budget was only four-million…And those were the difficult times that I think now, wala nang problema doon sa mga barangays na nagta-tap ng ilaw sa poste ng mga Meralco dahil hindi mabayaran ang kanilang monthly kuryente,” Rodriguez said. He was ...

MANILA (June 25)—President-elect Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos on Thursday expressed confidence that the country can survive and recover from severe economic devastation caused by the still lingering pandemic, with the help and full support of the people. “Malakas po ang loob ko sa ating kinabukasan, kahit po marami po tayong nakikita na hahadlang sa ninanais nating pagandahin ang Pilipinas. Malakas po ang loob ko na magsabi na meron pa rin tayong maliwanag at magandang kinabukasan at nasasabi ko po yun dahil nasa likod ko ang lahat Pilipino,” Marcos said in his speech during the 10th Cityhood Anniversary of Bacoor. He explained that his optimism stems from the full support he is receiving from majority of Filipinos who voted him overwhelmingly into office. “Nasa likod ko an...

To further enhance students' competencies, the Batac City-based Mariano Marcos State University has tied up with the Northwestern University in Laoag City and the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office in Ilocos Norte province for the Bachelor of Science in Biology internship program from 2022 to 2023. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO BY LEANDER C. DOMINGO ILOCOS NORTE (June 23)—The Mariano Marcos State University (MMSU) in Ilocos Norte has forged an agreement with Laoag City-based Northwestern University (NWU) and the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (PENRO) for the Bachelor of Science in Biology internship program this year. According to Danie Tapaoan Jr., MMSU information officer, the tie with NWU and PENRO to further enhance students' competencies was made po...

Japanese professors Kyoko Watanabe and Koji Ishikawa from Tamagawa University and Chiharu Nakashima from Mie University (seated, extreme left, second from left and third from left, respectively) sign a notice of appointment with Central Luzon State University to teach specialized courses to graduate students for the Academic Year 2022-2023. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO BY LEANDER C. DOMINGO NUEVA ECIJA (June 23)—Three faculty-researchers from Japanese universities have signed a notice of appointment (NoA) with Nueva Ecija-based Central Luzon State University (CLSU) to internationalize academic and research activities. According to CLSU, Dr. Kyoko Watanabe and Dr. Koji Ishikawa from Tamagawa University, and Dr. Chiharu Nakashima from Mie University signed the NoA on June 14 to serve as adjun...