UPLB-INREM and Isabela State University (ISU) partnership to address climate resilience in Region 2, Philippines, has officially commenced!
Day 1, 19 March 2024, started with a joint meeting to refine data-gathering protocols. From 19 to 22 March 2024, the team will undergo focus group discussions (FGDs) with SUC’s RDE offices, Isabela’s municipal and city agriculture offices, as well as farmers and fisherfolks.
The afternoon FGD was participated in by campus directors and RDE heads from six ISU campuses (San Mariano, Echague, Cabagan, San Mateo, Roxas, and Ilagan). These FGDs are being conducted as part of the training needs assessment to assess the requirements of various stakeholders involved in utilizing and providing a Climate Information Service (CIS) within Region 2, focusing on Isabela Province. Outputs from the agriculture and fisheries sector in Region 2 will be used to develop a tailored Community of Practice (CoP) to facilitate enhanced collaboration, knowledge exchange, and capacity building among stakeholders.
These week-long activities are part of the “Modelling CIS Application in the Agriculture and Fisheries Sector Through Tripartite Collaborations (SCU-NGA-LGU) ” project. It is funded by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).
The team is headed by Dr. Juan Pulhin, project leader from INREM, and Dr. Orlando Balderama, vice president for ISU Research and Development, Extension, and Training. One of the project’s main aims is to formalize ISU as a Subnational Competence Center for Agriculture and Fisheries. (Aileen C. Simondac-Peria)