The Office of Vice President for Academic Affairs (OVPAA) organized an event held on 7 to 8 April 2022 for the Emerging Interdisciplinary Research Program (EIDR) Cycle 8 Project Leaders to showcase system funded research projects. The two-day virtual symposium was led by Dr. Cynthia Bautista, UP Vice-President for Academic Affairs, and attended by other UP System officials.
Vice President Bautista delivered the opening remarks and Dr. Evelyn Mae Tecson-Mendoza, Professor Emeritus and Chair of EIDR MEC, discussed the symposium overview.
The symposium showcased seven (7) research projects from UP System project leaders, including two from UP Open University. These are , namely, “Digital Development, Printing on Demand and i-Distribution of “SORA” the Graphic Novel of the life of Melchora Aquino: A Perception Study of our Nation’s History, Culture, Struggle for Independence and Identity of Filipino Women in the Open Distance Learning Framework” by Dr. Grace Jaaviier Alfonso, and the project “Blending of Multimedia Approach and Satoyama-Satoumi Principles for Building Climate Smart Communities” led by Dr. Ricardo Bagarinao, Professor and Dean, UPOU Faculty of Education.
Dr. Alfonso, former Chancellor of UPOU, Professor, and Executive Director of UP TV, discussed that the significant role and timeline of Melchora Aquino will be seen in the novel, most especially her participation in the revolution and her survival even at an old age. She also shared that MOOC will be exhibited and will be posted online for people to know that the project is published and ready.
Presentation of projects was concluded by an open forum moderated by Dr. Cleofas Cervancia, Professor Emeritus, and panelists from EIDR Monitoring and Evaluation Committee.
The event gave an opportunity to each project leader to share the challenges they have encountered during the project’s process and their achievements. They also had the chance to meet future collaborators.
The Emerging Interdisciplinary Research Program is implemented by the UP System to generate fundamentally new knowledge contributing to the understanding of natural phenomena, and with beneficial applications. EIDR grants are awarded up to the amount of P2.5M per project, or P10M per program (for 4 projects) per year, for 2 years, renewable for another two years.
Written by Alessa Shainne Hostalero
Edited by Myra C. Almodiel and Anna Cañas-Llamas
With a report from the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs
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