DAVAO CITY—The Department of Science and Technology-Science Education Institute (DOST-SEI) has urged its scholars to serve their communities as a way of giving back to the country.
The agency relayed this message through its webinar on “Leadership and Volunteerism for Community Resilience,” which was attended by more than 300 scholars from four regions in Mindanao.
Dr. Geraldo S. Petilla, chief of the National Research Council of the Philippines’s Finance and Administration Division, presented ways for scholars to contribute to community resilience “by expressing it in their actions, like volunteering in their [areas].”
“You are not just scholars of DOST, [but] of the republic,” Dr. Petilla told the students. “It is your duty to promote and protect the well-being of your fellow Filipinos.”
DOST XI Regional Director Dr. Anthony Sales, represented by Assistant Regional Director Mirasol Domingo, urged them: “With…grand aspirations for yourselves, we share the confidence that you will also carry a burning heart of service to the Filipino people, because that is how we truly make our education worthy.”
Dr. Amaryllis Torres, professor emeritus from University of the Philippines-Diliman’s College of Social Work and Community Development, said scholars may look at the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development for areas of work with the communities.
Dr. Torres said the UN agenda aims “to stimulate actions over areas of critical importance for humanity and the planet, such as eradicating poverty, making fundamental changes in producing and consuming goods and services, [while] fostering intercultural understanding, tolerance, mutual respect and ethics of global citizenship and shared responsibility among others.”
For April Joy Chatto, a Biology student from UP-Mindanao, fellow scholars may immerse themselves in various communal activities to give back to those who believed in them.
Chatto’s coursemate from the University of Southeastern Philippines-Bo. Obrero campus, Margareth Requerme, shared: “Developing community resilience is essential for a sustainable future…collaborating with other stakeholders is crucial in achieving these goals.”
“This webinar reminds us that we are not just scientists for ourselves, but scientists for the greater good,” Requerme shared.
Under the “Return Service Agreement” contract, the DOST-Science and Technology scholarships have a condition for grantees that require them to render service to the country equivalent to the years they benefited from the grants.
Image credits: DOST