MANILA, Philippines — Pilipinas SIFE (Students in Free Enterprise) will hold a Sponsors Networking Cocktail on July 22, with Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Ramon Paje as guest of honor and speaker.

The affair kicks off the Pilipinas SIFE National Finals Competition to be held the next day. The tilt will showcase the students’ best community projects which not only create a positive impact on the country but also help develop socially responsible future business leaders. It will be participated in by 75 students representing 15 colleges and universities in the country. Winner will represent the Philippines in the SIFE World Cup in Malaysia on Oct. 3 to 5.

Secretary Paje will be introduced by Mark Williams, general manager of Sagittarius Mines, Inc. Adrian Ramos, vice president of Atlas Consolidated and Development Corp. will deliver the welcome remarks, while the introduction and acknowledgement of the guests will be made by Jose P. Leviste Jr., Pilipinas SIFE chairman and chairman of OceanaGold (Phils.) Inc.

Bradley D. Norman, senior vice president of OceanaGold (Phils.) Inc. will deliver the closing remarks after the awarding of plaques of appreciation.

TOSP finalists bared

After 228 nominees from all over the country, 32 finalists for the Ten Outstanding Students of the Philippines (TOSP) 2011 Search were chosen in a national screening held at the RFM Corporate Center in Mandaluyong city.

The members of the screening committee, chaired by Metrobank Outstanding Teacher awardee Dr. Manuel B. Dy, are Board of Medicine chair Dr. Miguel Noche, ComElec IT consultant Renato Garcia, DBP vice president Calarito Magsino, TOWNS awardee Jean Enriquez, news anchor and Palanca awardee Twink Macaraig, TOYM nominee Chito Maniago, Board of Accountancy chair Eugene Mateo, and Banaag awardee Vladamir Manuel.

The theme of the TOSP this year revolves around the call for nation-building through heroic citizenship. TOSP, an awards and formation program established in 1961 seeks to find college graduates who have excelled academically, manifested exemplary leadership and dedicated themselves to the service of their communities throughout their college life while upholding strong moral values of integrity, patriotism, and selfless service.

Photography workshops set

The Federation of Philippine Photographers Foundation, Inc. (FPPFI) will hold a basic photography workshop at the Fort Santiago in Intramuros, Manila and at the Asian Institute of Management in Makati.

Weekday classes start on July 25. The five Saturday workshops will begin on Aug. 6 while Sunday workshops start on Aug. 7. The Strobist workshop will be on July 22 and 23. The Wedding photography classes will be from July 18 to 21.

Lecturers for the basic photo workshops are Ador Pamintuan, Prof. Cecilia Angeles, Dennis Araneta, and Prof. Joey Tanedo; and Vic Sison and Rod Banzon for the advanced photograph. For details, call Riza Mae Latoza at 524-7576; Brian Lee at 524-4175; or visit the FPPFI office at Rm. 302-A Femii Bldg., A. Soriano St. Intramuros, Manila.

Mapúa dean’s works gain recognition at international confab

Affirming Mapúa Institute of Technology’s (MIT) claim to excellence, the 9th Eastern Asia Society for Transportation Studies (EASTS) Conference recognized three research papers by MIT’s School of Civil Engineering and Environmental and Sanitary Engineering (CE-EnSE) dean Dr. Francis Aldrine Uy.

EASTS recently invited Dr. Uy to present his papers at its conference in Jeju, Korea. His works include “A Study on Motorcycle Rider Characteristics and Behavior in Metro Manila,” “Characteristics of Road Crashes Involving Motorcycles in Metro Manila and Other Selected Cities in the Philippines,” and “Study on the Vulnerability of Motorcycle Riders to Various Road Environmental Factors.”

Dr. Uy’s achievement could only be considered extraordinary, as he was the only one out of 10 participants from the Philippines this year who was able to present more than one research paper. In the past conferences, EASTS would usually recognize only one research paper by each of its participants.

The invitation for the dean to join the event only strengthens MIT’s claim as one of the most reputable engineering schools in the Philippines.

Dr. Uy shared as well that paper presentations of faculty members in international conferences are a great help for MIT to be recognized as an international embodiment of knowledge.

“We at Mapúa need to be visible in the local and international academic community,” said Dr. Uy.

Dr. Uy has a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering major in Transportation Engineering and is affiliated with a number of organizations of transportation engineers, including the Transportation Science Society of the Philippines under EASTS.
His previous researches on a number of transportation issues include behaviors of public utility vehicle drivers and adequacy of traffic control devices in Metro Manila, evaluation of traffic management strategies in relation to vehicles’ fuel consumption and emission rates, and a concept paper of an intelligent transportation system that could be applied in the country. His expertise has also contributed to the implementation of radio frequency identification (RFID) technology by the Land Transportation Office and to the design development of system used by emission testing centers in the country.

The EASTS is an umbrella organization of transportation science societies in eastern Asia founded in November 1994 with the primary objective of fostering and supporting excellence in transportation research and practice. Its biennial conference, which is participated in by hundreds of transport experts, serves as a global symposium for the exchange of expertise and information on the various issues regarding transportation. The event also aims to promote research activities and cooperation among researchers, engineers, and government officials.