Eight Filipino scientists cited in ‘Top 100 Asian Scientists’
Asian Scientist, a science and technology magazine published in Singapore, recognized eight Filipino scientists in its top 100 scientists, citing that the Philippines is beefing up its research and development in different sectors.
In its Asian Scientist Top 100 list, it said that four out of seven environmental scientists of the Asian Scientist 100 are Filipino, noting that the country wants to expand its horizons which the scientists traditionally focused on environmental sciences.
“These eight individuals from various fields and industries are working towards solving real-life problems that many Filipinos face,” Asian Scientists said in its report ‘ 8 Scientists From The Philippines To Watch’.
The eight Filipino scientists include:
- Angel C. Alcala
- Ramon Cabanos
- Tetchi Cruz-Capellan
- Edgardo D. Gomez
- Alfredo Mahar Lagmay
- Aisa Mijeno
- Reina Reyes
- Gavino Cajulao Trono Jr
- Angel C. Alcala - He was named National Scientist of the Philippines in 2014 for his research into Philippine amphibians and reptiles, as well as the conservation of marine-protected areas. (Photo: Siliman University)
- Barba was named a National Scientist of the Philippines in 2014 for inventing a way to induce flowering in mango trees regardless of season, boosting the local mango industry. (Photo: World Intellectual Property Office/Flickr/CC)
- Cruz-Capellan, the CEO of Philippine renewable energy provider SunAsia Energy Inc. and founder of the Philippi Solar Power Alliance, hopes to grow the solar power industry in the Philippines. She first became acquainted with solar power as the country director of a rural electrification project funded by the USAID.
- Gomez led the world's first national-scale assessment of damage to coral reefs, work which led to him being conferred the title of National Scientist of the Philippines in 2014. (Photo: Gil Jacinto/University of the Philippines, Marine Science Institute)
- Lagmay, a professor at the National Institute of Geological Sciences, University of the Philippines Diliman, received the 2015 Plinius Medal from the European Geosciences Union for his research into natural hazards and disasters in the Philippines, in particular volcanic hazards, earthquakes, typhoons, landslides and floods. He is also executive director of the Department of Science and Technology Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards (NOAH), a flagship program for disaster risk reduction and management in the Philippines. (Photo: University of Philippines Diliman)
- Mijeno is a professor of engineering at De La Salle University-Lipa in the Philippines. Together with her brother Ralph, she co-founded Sustainable Alternative Lighting (SALt), a social enterprise that is developing an LED lamp that runs on just table salt and water. (Photo: Aisa Mijeno)
- Reyes has been called "The Filipina who proved Einstein Right" after her work confirming Albert Einstein's Theory of Relativity on a cosmic scale in 2010 during her ph.D. studies in the United States. Reyes currently works as an independent data scientist consulting for private companies.
- Trono was conferred the honor of National Scientist of the Philippines in 2014 for his research into tropical marine phycology with a focus on seaweed biodiversity. (Photo: Presidential Communications Operations Office, the Philippines)
In 2015, US Agency for International Development (USAID spearheaded a P1.3 billion program, which called Science, Technology, Research and Innovation for Development, or STRIDE, that seeks to strengthen applied research activity in Philippine universities and industry.
The five-year program aims to create a network of researchers in universities and private companies to drive innovation, and work closely with the government on initiatives to support endeavors in this area.
