Pinoy scholars from Northeast Asia hold 2nd research symposium

MANILA, Philippines - From disaster response to public-private partnerships (PPP) and healthcare, Filipino student scholars in Northeast Asia trooped to Manila on Tuesday for their annual research conference.

More than 300 participants attended the 2nd Filipino International Researchers, Scholars, Trainees Symposiums held at Far Eastern University in Manila.

The event was organized by the Filipino scholars alliance, called ANIB in Filipino, which is composed of Filipino student organizations from Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.

"The gathering of Filipino scholars abroad to share their knowledge and expertise through research is a testament to how Filipinos give importance to education...," said Mark Ysla, head of FEU department of international studies, in a statement.

Ysla himself was a Filipino scholar when he took his master's degree in international studies at Sogang University in Korea.

The symposium featured different research outputs from former and present Filipino scholars in the three countries.

For instance, Jinky Joy dela Cruz, an urban administration graduate student, presented case studies on how to make PPP successful in the country.

Dela Cruz now works for the PPP Center.

In the natural sciences, Maria Karmella Apaya, doctorate student at Academia Sinica in Taiwan, presented a paper that applies metabolomics in agriculture and health. 

Metabolomics is the study of human metabolism present in the digestion of food or other chemical processes.

Another study by Aimalynne Radores talked about how cluster and coordination approach can help in disaster response. She presented a case study of Typhoon Yolanda, the strongest typhoon to hit the Earth.

Radores is a graduate of Institute of Peace Studies at Kyung Hee University in Korea.

Aside from research, Angel Bautista VII, president of Association of Filipino Students in Japan, said ANIB could serve as networking platform for current and aspiring students abroad.

"ANIB is also working on...a database that aims to be a gathering place for Filipino scholars...as well as bridge for ANIB to various Philippine departments, agencies and companies," Bautista said.

Aside from the Japan group, ANIB also includes the Association of the Filipino Scholars in Taiwan and Pinoy Iskolars sa Korea, Inc.