KAWASAKI, Japan – After visiting an Eco-town Center and recycling plant in Kitakyushu, the Philippine delegation explored other eco-town projects located in Kawasaki, Kyoto, and Yokohama on 19-21 May 2015. The Eco-town Visit is an important capacity building component of the project being implemented by SEARCA entitled TA-8493 PHI: Climate Resilience and Green Growth in Critical Watersheds (46441-001), which is spearheaded by the Climate Change Commission (CCC) and funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction (JFPR).

Read more: Philippine delegation visits more eco-towns in Japan, attends IGES forum on CCA initiatives

CLARK, Pampanga, Philippines – Dr. Jose M. Yorobe, Jr. and Ms. Pilipinas M. Luis bagged the best paper award Socio-economics Category at the 23rd Federation of Crop Science Societies of the Philippines (FCSSP) Conference for their paper titled Improving the Agricultural Insurance Program to Enhance Resilience to Climate Change: Evidence from Corn Farmers in the Philippines. The Conference was held on 11-15 May 2015 at the Hotel Stotsenberg. The winning paper presents the results of the SEARCA-funded study “Improving the Corn Insurance Program to Enhance Resilience to Climate Change”, with Dr. Yorobe as the principal researcher.

Read more: SEARCA Study wins Best Paper in 2015 FCSSP Scientific Conference

KITAKYUSHU CITY, Japan – The Eco-town Visit is an important capacity building component of the project being implemented by SEARCA entitled TA-8493 PHI: Climate Resilience and Green Growth in Critical Watersheds (46441-001), which is spearheaded by the Climate Change Commission (CCC) and funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction (JFPR). The Eco-town Visit of the Philippine delegation started at the Kitakyushu Eco-town Center in Japan on 18 May 2015.

Read more: Philippine delegation visits eco-towns in Japan

To ensure food security in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region, ASEAN member-countries should converge their information and communications technology (ICT), according to French Ambassador to the Philippines Gilles Garachon.

Read more: French ambassador urges ICT convergence in ASEAN vs climate-change threat

LOS BAÑOS, Philippines – The two-day conference of the regional ICT-Asia program of France kicked off on 25 May 2015 at the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA). The event is held annually to help enhance the capability of Asian countries in the field of information and communication technology (ICT).

Read more: France’s ICT-Asia 2015 kicks off

HANOI, Vietnam – A Regional Consultation Workshop towards an Umbrella Program on Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation (CChAM) in Southeast Asia (SEA) for an Inclusive and Sustainable Agricultural and Rural Development (ISARD) is taking place at Fortuna Hotel in Hanoi, Vietnam on 12-14 May 2015.

Read more: SEARCA and Partners hold Regional Consultation Workshop on Climate Change

LOS BAÑOS, Philippines – Southeast Asia stands to lose a lot in terms of agricultural production and stability if there is no urgent, sustained action to implement climate change adaptation and mitigation in the region, warns Climate Change Commissioner Naderev Saño during a knowledge event here.

Read more: COMM. SAÑO TELLS SCIENTISTS: ‘Agriculture is part of the solution to climate change’

SEARCA released a new monograph that tackles issues involved in the implementation of weather index-based insurance (WIBI) for agricultural production highlighting experiences from the Philippines. Risks of rainfall deficits in rice production for different planting dates for typical rice varieties grown are estimated in four selected provinces in the Philippines.

Read more: SEARCA publishes monograph on Weather Index-Based Insurance for Agricultural Production

SEARCA has announced the winners of the 2014 photo contest with the theme Climate Change and Agriculture in Southeast Asia: Faces of Vulnerability and Resilience. The contest, which ran from 15 September to 30 November 2014, received 1225 entries submitted by 341 photographers from all 11 countries in Southeast Asia—Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor Leste, and Vietnam. SEARCA Photo Contest 2014 awarded entries that best captured how vulnerable Southeast Asian agricultural communities are to climate change or what these communities are doing to respond to the challenges of climate change.

Read more: Indonesian and Vietnamese photographers win 2014 SEARCA Photo Contest

MAKATI, Philippines – Over 400 participants from 20 countries joined in the Second International Conference on Agricultural and Rural Development (ARD2014) in Southeast Asia held on 12-13 November at the Makati Shangri-La Manila, Philippines.

Read more: SEARCA holds 2nd international conference on ARD