MANILA, Philippines – The National Color-Coded Agriculture Guide (NACCAG) Map, which will provide data on soil suitability and climatic conditions to Filipino farmers and fishermen, will be launched on 7 March 2017 at the Malacañan Palace. 

Read more: SEARCA joins launch of national color-coded agriculture map

Thirty-three representatives from 16 partners converged at Kasetsart University (KU) in Bangkok, Thailand on 14 – 16 February 2017 for a workshop to finalize the training tracks, and develop a quality plan for the Master of Science in Food Security and Climate Change (MS FSCC). This project is partially funded by the ERASMUS + Capacity Building in Higher Education program of the European Commission.

Read more: SEARCA, KU, and Partners Finalize New MS Program

The Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCAARRD) has joined the Los Baños Climate Change Council (LBCCC) to support its mission to improve the agriculture, aquatic and natural resources (AANR) sector, particularly in addressing the challenges of climate change.

Read more: PCAARRD joins newly formed Los Baños Climate Change Council

Dr. Gil C. Saguiguit, Jr., SEARCA Director, and Dr. Maria Cristeta N. Cuaresma, Program Head for Graduate Education and Institutional Development, will be joining representatives of other partners in a workshop to develop a Joint Master of Science in Food Security and Climate Change (MS FSCC). The workshop will be hosted by Kasetsart University in Bangkok, Thailand on 14 – 16 February 2017.

Read more: SEARCA set to join MS FSCC workshop in Bangkok

The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) led Training-Workshops on Mainstreaming of the Local Climate Change Action Plan (LCCAP) in the Comprehensive Land Use Plans (CLUPs) and/or Comprehensive Development Plans (CDPs) of the local government units (LGUs) in the Lower Marikina River Basin, province of Camarines Sur, and province of Davao Oriental, Philippines.

Read more: SEARCA, ADB conduct mainstreaming workshops for LGUs for Davao Oriental, Camarines Sur, and Lower...

One of KC3's Climate Change Adaptation partner, ICLEI SEAS, conduct several activities during the last quarter of 2016.

Read more: ICLEI SEAS conduct activities for Climate Change

The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), recently awarded Dr. Majah-Leah V. Ravago a travel grant to present her paper titled, "Risk Management and Coping Strategies: Climate Change and Agriculture in the Philippines," at the 9th Asian Society of Agricultural Economist (ASAE) International Conference in Bangkok, Thailand on 11-13 January 2017. Her paper, co-authored with Dr. James A. Roumasset and Dr. Karl Robert L. Jandoc, is forthcoming as a chapter in a joint publication of the Philippine National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) titled, The Future of Philippine Agriculture: Scenarios, Policies, and Investments under Climate Change, edited by Dr. Mark W. Rosegrant and Dr. Mercedita A. Sombilla.

Read more: SEARCA awards travel grant to UP School of Economics Professor to participate at 9th ASAE...

Local governments have integrated climate change policies in their protected landscape and eco-town projects in disaster-prone areas in Marikina City and Rizal.

In a multisectoral project together with the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), the Upper Marikina River Basin Protected Landscape (UMRBPL) will demonstrate climate change integration in agriculture and natural resources management by the respective local government units (LGUs) to benefit farmers and residents in the towns of Tanay, San Mateo, Rodriguez, Baras, and Antipolo City – all in Rizal province.

Read more: LGUs move to integrate climate policies

LOS BAÑOS, Laguna, Philippines – Lesson plans incorporating environment and related concepts are being finalized under a joint research program by government institutions and a Southeast Asian center.

Read more: Lesson plans to include climate change

The ASRF, under the leadership of the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), gets the support of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) for another three years under the ASEAN-Swiss Partnership on Social Forestry and Climate Change (ASFCC) Phase 3 project. This was affirmed during the Operational Planning Meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on Social Forestry (AWG-SF), formerly the ASEAN Social Forestry Network (ASFN) held in Jimbaran Bay Beach Resort, Bali, Indonesia on 3-4 December 2016, which was concluded with a debriefing at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta on 6 December 2016. The meeting was attended by Dr. Jurgen Blaser and Mr. Sreeram Kootala of SDC, Dr. Doris Capistrano, Senior Advisor of the ASFCC, and representatives of the five implementing partners of the ASFCC, namely, the Center for International Forest Research (CIFOR), World Agroforestry Center (ICRAF), Non-Timber Forest Products-Exchange Program (NTFP-EP), The Center for People and Forests (RECOFTC), and SEARCA.

Read more: SDC supports ASRF for another 3-year cycle in ASFCC Phase 3