SGRA in English

1. For PPT and Full Paper
1.1. Written in English (non-English words should be translated to English)
1.2. Electronic file must be no more than 1 GB. Our mail inbox at yahoo.com could only take at most about 25 MB, so please use a digital courier for larger files, such as those listed below
https://www.yousendit.com/
http://www.dropsend.com/index.php
1.3. must be related to the seminar theme
1.4. must be generally comprehensible to non-specialists
1.5. file must be readable in Windows OS
1.6. the file will be compiled on an online version of the seminar proceedings (in color) as early as the end of May 2012 (through the SGRA server in Tokyo)--the seminar organizers will be free to re-format the received files based on their constraints
1.7 please include a short profile of the author(s)--be sure to include ways for seminar participants to get in touch with the author(s), e.g., e-mails, FaceBook sites, websites
1.8. deadline for presentation PPT and/or full paper is on April 12, 2012 (final versions for documents to be compiled in the seminar proceedings are due on May 12, 2012)
1.9. please plan for a 20-minute presentation, unless otherwise informed

2. For the presentation PPT, no additional guideline is required other than those mentioned in 1 above

3. For the presentation full paper, some additional guidelines are
3.1. must be in MS Word (editable)
3.2. as much as possible, use MLA or APA formats (please refer to the following links, respectively)
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/

Barangay Integrated Development Action in Kapangan Towards Water, Sanitation and Hygiene(BIDA KA WASH)

BIDA KA WASH is about the ingenuity of the Local Government Unit (LGU) of Kapangan, Barangay Officials, Government line agencies, NGOs, People’s Organizations and the community people working harmoniously towards development and prosperity by empowering the community through improved basic social services in an ecologically balanced environment mainstreaming skills development on low-cost WASH technologies with emphasis on ferro-cement construction technique. This paper is also about the investment sharing scheme among the stakeholders, in order to augment the limited resources of the LGU that made the project possible. The establishment of the basic facilities, such as, spring box, 4 cubic meter capacity water tanks, filters and biogas digesters meant sufficient and safe water supply and improved sanitation to community people. Trained local craftsmen on ferro-cement technology will have the opportunity to earn as builders of WASH facilities in nearby communities.

Seminar 14 Slides
SGRA is a non-profit, non-government organization. We need your help by properly acknowledging any benefit you might have obtained from downloading materials from this website. SGRA E-MAIL

------------------------------
Jane D. Toribio, PhD
Municipal Agrarian Reform Program Officer (MARPO)
+63908-144-8538
[email protected]
[email protected]

Potential of Container Housing in the Philippines

While it is uncertain where the concept of Container Housing originated or who first thought of recycling shipping containers into structural shells of livable units, the fact remains that at present, it is a concept widely canvassed worldwide. Numerous examples may be found of utilizing this material as a stand-alone livable unit or used in combination as a Medium-Rise Building.

Advocates of utilizing this material as building block for construction have enumerated its positive qualities. However, it is important to note that shipping containers, as a livable space, is not a perfect material, particularly with its responsiveness to the hot-humid climate of the Philippines. Still, it is possible that the advantages of utilizing this unit outweigh any disadvantages.

The study investigates whether Container Housing is a feasible solution to the housing needs of the urban poor in the Philippine setting by comparing it with conventional Medium-Rise Housing. Comparison is focused on Engineering Issues, Thermal Comfort, Alteration Issues, and Tentative Construction Cost to be able to provide an overview on the performance of Container Housing when viewed against the conventional Medium-Rise Housing.

Keywords: Medium-Rise Housing, shipping containers, recycling, urban poor housing

Seminar 14 Slides
Seminar 14 Discussion Paper
SGRA is a non-profit, non-government organization. We need your help by properly acknowledging any benefit you might have obtained from downloading materials from this website. SGRA E-MAIL .

Arch. Josefina Santos de Asis finished BS Architecture from the University of the Philippines. Since late 2010, she took up the post of a faculty from the Department of Architecture and Drafting Technology of the Technological Institute of the Philippines. She is currently pursuing her graduate thesis for the Master of Architecture, Major in Housing program of the College of Architecture, University of the Philippines.

Green Challenges in a Brown Philippine Economy

The Philippines, a low GHG emitter, is in the world's short list of the most vulnerable
to climate change risks. However, the country also has a very degraded environment due to poor socio-economic policies and past development failures, which have resulted in chronic and massive poverty, inequality and unemployment/underemployment.

The paper argues that the Philippines has no choice but to go green and greener -- for survival and sustainability as well as job creation and poverty eradication. This means going beyond the program of growing the green sector of renewables, reforestation and rehabilitation. Existing industrial, agricultural and service sectors should go greener. And one must add the habitat nationwide.

But for all this to happen, one must overhaul the existing development paradigms, which are at the roots of environmental degradation and the persistence of poverty and inequality in the country. Such an overhaul has serious social, political and IR/HRM implications.

Seminar 14 Slides
Seminar 14 Discussion Paper
SGRA is a non-profit, non-government organization. We need your help by properly acknowledging any benefit you might have obtained from downloading materials from this website. SGRA E-MAIL

Dr. Rene E. Ofreneo is Professor XII and Former Dean of the School of Labor and Industrial Relations (SOLAIR), University of the Philippines. Dr. Ofreneo has a Certificate in Development Economics, an MA in Industrial Relations and a PhD in Philippines Studies (Labor and Economy).

He served as an Undersecretary for Labor Relations in the Philippine Department of Labor Employment in 1997-98, at the height of the Asian financial crisis. In this capacity, he handled big labor disputes involving the automotive, electronics, aviation, banking, education and power industries.

He has written extensively on the labor and industrial relations issues in Asia. He sits in the board of several journals dealing with labor and management issues in the Asia-Pacific such as The Journal of Industrial Relations (Sydney) and the Asia-Pacific Review (London). The Bangkok Office of the International Labor Organization (ILO) is publishing his Integrative Report on East Asia: IR Challenges in Globalizing Labour Markets (forthcoming), a survey of changing industrial relations landscape in East Asia, with special focus on “labour flexibility” and labor law reforms. He participated in the ILO’s Fair Globalization project as a consultant for the Manila Dialogue as a participant in the Bangkok Regional Dialogue and as a contributor to the Geneva study group (on inclusion/exclusion). The UNDP and UNCTAD have also engaged his research services. He is three-time recipient of the “International Publication Award” of the University of the Philippines.

His services as IR lecturer or researcher have also been tapped from time to time by the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP), various Philippine government agencies and the ILO Manila, Jakarta and Bangkok offices. He assisted the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs in the organization of the 1st ASEAN Social Forum (November 2008) and in the conduct in Manila of ASEAN consultations with the national ang regional CSOs on the ASEAN Charter (2006-2007).

An active voluntary arbitrator, he has been promoting voluntary modes of dispute settlement as better modes of resolving industrial disputes.

Dr. Ofreneo can be reached at his mobile (+63) 917-835-0682; home (+63) 435-9098; Office (+63) 920-7717; and email: [email protected], [email protected].

Controlling Particulate Matter and Volatile Organic Compounds in Design and Construction

More and more Filipinos are exposed to airborne pollutants from synthetic substances, power equipment, furnishings, and finishes in the built environment.
Particulate Matter has been linked to asthma and decreased lung function, however only particulate matter from the fuel combustion is directly regulated. Volatile organic compounds found in some synthetic materials react with sunlight and atmospheric nitrogen oxide to form ground level ozone that irritates, weakens, and damages the lungs, however Volatile Organic Compounds found in furnishings and finishes are rarely addressed. Air pollution-related illnesses such as acute lower respiratory tract infection, pneumonia, bronchitis, tuberculosis and heart disease are already the primary causes of morbidity and mortality in the country.
Greater attention must be given to pollutant source control in the built environment to avoid poor environmental quality extending over time, as well as the resulting discomfort, health problems, absenteeism, and decrease in productivity. While more specific regulation with appropriate technical requirements and standards is needed, some organizations have already chosen to voluntarily adopt international and more recently established local standards to control air pollution within their project boundaries. There are opportunities in the design and construction of the built environment to control sources of air pollutants.

Keywords: Particulate matter, volatile organic compounds, pollutant source control, indoor air quality, environmental quality, air pollutants, design, construction, built environment

Environment, Aesthetics, and Scale

The fundamental attitude of an architect, and in my opinion as well, is AESTHETIC. However, my use of the term is not limited to the common understanding as related to beauty. The word is originally Greek and means SENSE. That is sense of time and space in the actual scale. Thus it's different if the subject is housing design or a large scale urban environmental planning. I will illustrate these through examples of my own work as building designer and urban environmental planner.

DESIGN
The buildings are small scale and easy to relate to directly. Topography, hydrology, vegetation etc. can be experienced on site spatially as inspiration to the design.
The houses in this show are in a rural setting in Palawan and local materials, skills and habits etc. are the foundations for the development and choice of architecture and technology.

PLANNING
Zamboanga is a coastal town with a hinterland of mountains traditionally covered with virgin forests. However the rainforest is dilapidated and the coastal zone exploited. Mangroves are cut for fuel and vast areas are converted into fishponds. Both areas could, if properly planned and developed contribute to a coherent sustainable space.

RAINFOREST REHABILITATION. The project shows a sustainable way of expanding the rainforest and by suitability zoning allows eco tourism and other functions near the sensible forest areas.
This proposal is developed in cooperation with Jocelyn Francisco uap.

COASTAL MANAGEMENT. The proposal shows a rehabilitation and integrated urban environmental development. The setting is in these projects are large in scale. Although the environmental aspects are basically the same, they need a different more abstract methodology related to the larger scale. The presentation will discuss the possibility to maintain a spatial sense even when dealing with large-scale projects.

(In order of submission; as of April 14, 2012)
SEMINAR PROGRAM
VENUE MAP

1. Innovative Rainwater Harvesting System (IRHS) : A Practical Option to Climate Change, Water Crisis and Disaster “Filipino Technology of Converting Rainwater into Clean, Potable, Alkaline Drinking Water” by Dr. Antonio Mateo (National Research Council of the Philippines, National Social Action Council Filipino Inventors)
2. The Migration Link Between Urban and Rural Poor Communities: Looking at Giant Leaps and Small Steps by Dr. Max Maquito (UP SOLAIR, SGRA)
3. Sustainable Agriculture as an E-Cube Approach to Alleviating the Urban and Rural Poverty Problem by Dr. Max Maquito (UP SOLAIR, SGRA)
4. Ethics and Governance Issues in Sustainability in Asia: Literature Review and Research Proposals by Dr. Aliza Racelis (UP College of Business Administration)
5. Mas Matuninong: Naga City-Pamaplona Camarines Sur Shared Urban-Rural Growth by Prof. Cecilia Villanueva (UP School of Urban and Regional Planning)
6. Community-Life School Model for Sustainable Agriculture Based Rural Development by Dr. Jose Medina and Dr. Rowena Dela Torre-Baconguis (UP Los Banos Ugnayan ng Pahinungod and College of Public Affairs)
7. Understanding Water Districts in the Philippines by CPA Columbus Maquito (SGRA) and Dr. Max Maquito (UP SOLAIR, SGRA)
8. Humanizing Socialized Resettlement Housing Programs: A Challenge Towards Sustainability Practices in Urban and Rural Communities by Architect Stephanie Gilles (UP College of Architecture)
9. Towards Sustainable Landscapes, Guidelines for Regulating Aesthetics and Environmental Quality of the Landscapes (Case Study: Lakeshore Town of Tanay, Rizal) by Architect Maria Mynn Alfonso (United Architects of the Philippines)
10.How do we know if it’s time for Plan B? (Determining failure or success of community-based climate change adaptation programs in building disaster resiliency) by Prof. Romeo Santos (UP College of Architecture)
11. Sustainability of the Sardine Fishery in Zamboanga: A Bioeconomic Approach by Prof. Jovi Dacanay (UA&P School of Economics)
12. Design Against the Elements (DATE) by Architects Ma. Esperanza Valencia and Paolo Abelita (United Architects of the Philippines)
13. Sustainable Sites by Ms. Minerva Rosel (United Architects of the Philippines)
14. Urban Renewal Taking Into Consideration Disaster Risk Reduction by Prof. Michael Tomeldan (UP College of Architecture)
15. Improving Water Supply and Sanitation in 29 Agrarian Reform Communities by Dir. Susana Evangelista-Leones and Ma. Soledad Peralta (DAR Bureau of Agrarian Reform Beneficiary Development)
16. Good Dignity Practices for Gross Domestic Product (GDP for GDP) Advocacy Campaign by Dir. Lyn Capistrano (Philippine Center for Water and Sanitation)
17. Poverty, Development, and Regeneration of Community-Based Resources by Prof. Toru Nakanishi (University of Tokyo)
18. The Organic and Natural Food Movement in North America, Asia, the Philippines and Community Participation by Prof. Virginia Teodosio (UP SOLAIR) and Ms. Desiree Segovia (Food Bowl Market Convenor's Group)
19. Barangay Integrated Development Action in Kapangan Towards Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (BIDA KA WASH) by Atty. Roberto Canuto (Mayor of Kapangan, Benguet Province) and Dr. Jane Toribio (Municipal Agrarian Reform)
20. Potential of Container Housing in the Philippines by Architect Josefina De Asis (UP College of Architecture)
21. Green Challenges in a Brown Philippine Economy by Dr. Rene Ofreneo (UP SOLAIR)
22. Controlling Particulate Matter and Volatile Organic Compounds in Design and Construction by Arch. Raymond Andrew Sih (UP College of Architecture)
23. Environment, Aesthetics, and Scale by Prof. Hans Peder Pedersen (Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, Department of Architecture and Urban Planning + Western Mindanao State University)