Not all areas in the country, however, get to experience heavy downpours. The Davao and Agusan regions, though they experience rain, have not had immense flooding ever since.

Recently, the combination of the Northeast Monsoon and a Low-Pressure Area (LPA) from January 28 to February 2, 2024, has caused unprecedented flooding, overflow of the Agusan River, and various landslides.

These events have led to the casualties of about 17 people and millions worth of damages to properties and livelihoods. The calamity also did not spare communities and families including SVD Mission areas such as La Paz, Loreto, Binucayan, Sinubong, Sampaguita, Veruela, and Sta. Maria.

As early as January 31, some communities in Loreto, La Paz, and Veruela were already underwater. As in the deluge of old, rice and corn fields that looked like vast oceans. Water levels in some residential areas also reached up to two meters high which caused inundation even of elevated houses.

It is important to note that the livelihood of most people in these areas is either farming or fishing. Most farmers already took out loans for their farms earlier this year. Unfortunately, their farmlands are now flooded due to the heavy rains. 

On the other hand, fisherfolks usually obtain their fish traps and nets through loans. This calamity has worsened the socio-economic circumstances of the families in these communities.

On the morning of February 1, local government units ordered mass evacuations of families, which brought their economic activities to a complete standstill.

The national government already declared Agusan and other affected areas under a state of calamity. Emergency relief operations organized by different government agencies and local government units are underway.

To give focus to our efforts, we appeal to concentrate our interventions on the different SVD Mission areas in seven (7) parishes composed of 8,331 affected families. 

To be responsive to their needs, below is a list of what would be most helpful:

1. All victims need food, toiletries, mats, mosquito nets, blankets, and kitchen utensils.
2. Farmers need seedlings and fertilizers.
3. Fishermen need fish traps, fishing nets, and boats/canoes. 

The devastation of the deluge is overwhelming and our brothers and sisters need help to bounce back. 

We belong to one humanity and we are called to be in solidarity with those in need. Most importantly, we are missionaries and we are led to bear witness to the mission of going “forth from our own comfort zone in order to reach all the ‘peripheries’ in need of the light of the Gospel” (Evangelii Gaudium no. 20) even when we, ourselves, are frail and distracted, poor and battered. 

by Fr. Romeo Cagatin, SVD (SVD PHS JPIC Coordinator), Fr. Jimmy Durado Sales, SVD (Agusan District Superior), Brenette Abrenica (�������� ERIO Director)

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The event was held in partnership with the local government units of Mandaue City and Cebu City and their respective Environment and Natural Resources offices, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environmental Management Bureau Regional Office VII, the Department of Public Works and Highway, the Metropolitan Cebu Water District, Cebu Uniting for Sustainable Water, and the Cebu City Planning Office.

Twelve multinational and multidisciplinary groups consisting of close to 160 �������� and 20 Dutch students from the two universities collaborated to investigate and find innovative, ingenious, and implementable solutions to the current problems that the two cities are experiencing in terms of water supply shortage, water quality issues due to pollution and discharge of untreated effluents, and solid waste mismanagement.

Participating �������� students came from the departments of Architecture, Civil Engineering, and Political Science.  Six groups were sent to study the Butuanon River while six other groups were assigned to Mahiga River.

The River Scan Challenge consisted of a series of lectures from �������� and Dutch professors, various government agencies and NGOs, a two-day fieldwork to the Butuanon and Mahiga rivers, consultations with multinational experts, and presentation of solutions to identified problems.

Each group was assigned to create a short video, poster, and reports explaining how they intend to solve water quality, flooding, and waste management issues. The event culminated in a poster pitch activity on April 27, 2023 at the Michael Richartz Conference Center in Talamban Campus, from which one winner was declared. 

From the culminating activity, the purpose and the aim of the program was explained by the Chair of the Department of Civil Engineering, Engr. Ricardo Fornis. Fr. Aleksander Gaut delivered his “Laudato Si” speech which focused on our role as caretakers of our environment. The ceremony was concluded by �������� Vice President for Academic Affairs Fr. Jesuraj Anthoniappen’s closing remarks. 

During the last day of the event, the organizers and representatives of the Dutch consortium visited Gilutongan Island to observe the sustainable green engineering projects such as the use of rainwater harvesting systems installed at the Gilutongan Integrated School and the three-storey green building powered by solar energy. These initiatives were sponsored or funded by the Cebu Mactan Shangri La Resort in partnership with Vivant Foundation.

The rainwater harvesting systems were designed by civil engineering alumni while the solar-powered three-storey green building was designed by the researchers of the �������� Center for Research in Energy Systems and Technologies. These projects could become a model for other provinces in the Philippines and could help communities become more resilient to climate change.

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Assistant Chair Engr. started the program with her opening remarks. Two invited speakers presented during the said event. Engr. Bernard Pulido, GIS Head, City Planning and Development Office, Mandaue City, shared how GIS has helped in mapping out various natural resources, structures, building footprints, people, and vulnerabilities of certain areas to natural calamities. This plays a crucial role in the decision-making procedures by the LGUs.

Meanwhile, Engr. Wilson S. Ramos, Local Officer 3, Cebu Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office, talked about the possibility of incorporating GIS applications for mapping out the vulnerability of cities or municipalities to different disasters. He shared that in the early ’90’s, they manually plotted maps during disaster risk reduction planning. Today, maps can be stored digitally, analyzed, and printed through a wide variety of GIS software.

An undergraduate research group presented their partially finished thesis results on “GIS Based Landslide Susceptibility Mapping using 9 Intrinsic and Extrinsic Causative Factors for Barangay Agsungot and Barangay Guba in Cebu City.” These barangays have no to little know-how on the usage of GIS, thus landslide susceptibility maps are not available. Several cases of land movement can be seen in these barangays such as landslides and creep. This is evidenced through incident reports filed at their respective barangay halls. This information was used in locating areas that might be susceptible to movement of the soil or rocks through the use of Logistic Regression Model (LRM) and comparing it with the Weights of Evidence Method (WEM). Results revealed the areas that are susceptible to the occurrence of a landslide which are verified by the incident reports. The said models were able to identify these hotspots with 70 to 90% accuracy.

The remainder of the day was spent listening to the final GIS project presentations of students from the various GIS classes. The presenter on “Mapping Out Hospitals in Siquijor” won as the best presenter among the nine groups while the poster “Developing a GIS Model for Predicting Flood Risk in Mambaling, Cebu City” bagged the best poster award. The said activity concluded with Department of Civil Engineering Chair Engr. ’s closing remarks.

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This event was just in time for the World Water Day celebration. The activity was participated by the students and professors from Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences and ��������, the Water Resources Cebu Foundation Inc. (WRCFI), the Cebu City LGU, and the Mandaue City LGU.

Students from Rotterdam University in the Netherlands presented different thesis studies related to the civil engineering profession.

Engr. Nenita Jumao-as, WRCFI director, also presented the state of Cebu’s water resources. According to her, Cebu has sufficient water resources. Solutions such as the building of water impounding structures were already suggested and proposed in the past decade. Due to differences in political affinity and lack of political will to push for the implementation of these projects, however, this has resulted in the inadequacy of potable water supply for consumers. She encouraged the new generation of professionals to learn from the mistakes of the past to avoid experiencing a water crisis today.

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The webinar was attended by first- and second year SoEn students taking up Bachelor of Science in Business Administration majors in Human Resources and Marketing, B.S. Entrepreneurship, B.S. in Accountancy, as well as students from the School of Healthcare Professions.

The program was arranged by Vicente S. Maravilla, Jr., MBA, the Program Manager of CSE for Research and Academics, to highlight the triple bottomline – people, planet, profit – with clear results and impacts as part of the advocacy of the �������� Center for Social Entrepreneurship.

The webinar is part of the curriculum build up for SoEn 1 and SoEn 2 going in to the Concept Plan of the students who will do a video presentation of their ideation process on how to solve environmental pollution especially plastics. The focus on plastics is aligned with efforts that has started in �������� to properly manage waste inside the university campus. Future CSE webinars will tackle other relevant and contemporary social issues affecting our communities.

The webinar was live streamed in �������� CSE Facebook page and also in SBE’s FB page which has now reached more than 5k viewers.

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While these positions are project-based, the researchers will enjoy DOST rates for the duration of the projects. Interested applicants are encouraged to email Dr. Bacabac.

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Thirteen locally-managed MPAs from all over the Philippines were shortlisted and Sumilon Island Fish Sanctuary is one of the Top 10 Finalists.  

The MSN has been holding the Para el MAR (PEM): MPA Awards and Recognition every two years since 2007 to showcase the country’s best performing MPAs and to provide a venue for Philippine MPA champions to share experiences and learn from each other.  

This year’s PEM is for the Sumilon Island Fish Sanctuary in Oslob, Cebu. The sanctuary is the first MPA in the Philippines established in 1974. The research works conducted by local and international scientists in this area provided data on the benefits of a “no-take” sanctuary and guided the development of subsequent MPAs in the country.

The MPA Support Network was formed in 2005 and is composed of various government agencies, non-government organizations, and academic institutions that work together for the sustainable development of the country’s coastal and marine resources. 

Furthermore, the network also aims to provide support to local MPA initiatives to improve and sustain MPA management in the country. Part of the MSN’s strategy is the adoption of an incentive system to recognize and award exemplary MPA management performance.  

The awarding ceremony will be held virtually on September 10, 2021.

Reported by Annie Diola, M.S., Department of Biology

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Ecoy graduated cum laude in 2014 at the department she is currently serving. She then earned her master’s degree on biomedicinal chemistry at Chulalongkorn University, Thailand (2019) with a 4.0 GPA. More recently, she received her certificate on leadership and management from the University of Washington.

An active researcher, Ecoy has published articles in prominent journals. She is also an appointed member of the �������� Research Ethics Committee (REC) where she was instrumental in drafting the REC Primer, which establishes the policies governing research involving human subjects. 

Aside from her professional experience, Ecoy is a leader who aimed to serve the community. During her college years, she joined the �������� Supreme Student Council as one of its council members. Today, she serves local organizations in Cebu City, and focuses on advocating for women’s rights, youth development, and health. One of her projects revolves around working with industry partners and the alumni network in hosting events in hopes of preparing student pharmacists to adapt and excel in spite of the adversity.

According to the new department chair, choosing battles wisely and learning the power to say ‘no’ provide you with greater strength to impart meanings to what you truly care about. In an interview, she quoted Viktor Frankl’s, “Those who have a ‘why’ to live, can bear with almost any ‘how.’”

Ecoy also believes in growth and imparts a great example for young leaders. “Believe there is always a way to improve: what we may lack in terms of innate talent, we can make up for with a lot of passion and determination.” 

Reported by: Rochyn Marie Oyao

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Associate Professor See is a product of the University of San Carlos where he graduated as class valedictorian and magna cum laude (B.S. Pharmacy, 2011; M.S. Pharmacy, 2014), and earned his doctorate degree from Josai University, Japan (2019). Recently, he received certification as an immunizing pharmacist from the Philippine Pharmacists Association (PPhA).

Dr. See has a wide interest in research as proven by his several published articles and books. Through his work, he bagged the Young Researcher Award from Monash University (Malaysia) this year, and was also recognized by the PPhA as the Outstanding Pharmacist Researcher last August 2020. Currently, he serves as the Division IV Publication Committee Chair of the National Research Council of the Philippines.

A young dean, Dr. See views leadership as a learned skill that drives his goals into reality. To him, preparedness for any role is garnered from learning, and on one’s ability to deliver tasks with passion and integrity.

Ultimately, the new Dean believes in strength amidst adversity. “It is inconceivable for health-care-professionals-producing schools like SHCP to stop doing their role at a time of global health crisis. We shall remember [that] this collective decision of moving forward, in these trying times, was a gallant act, and that serving the people as a healthcare professional is a true act of Christian Witnessing.”  

The newly appointed Carolinian Dean is hopeful to see the School of Healthcare Professions thriving and “nurtured by a faculty who are competent, well-rounded in talents, and values-centered in Catholicity.” 

Reported by: Rochyn Marie Oyao

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