Spread across two plenary session days and an onsite gathering in the various academic units, over 1,500 academic staff from the higher and basic education units engaged with speakers who discoursed on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, Catholic teachings, and the task of integrating these into course plans and outcomes.

In his keynote address, San Carlos Bishop Gerardo Alimane Alminaza, D.D. shared how institutions like UST “play a pivotal role in molding current and future generations in emphasizing sustainability” and how educational institutions may adopt the “Laudato Sí Shools Framework, alongside the inclusion of the rights of nature in the curriculum, as well as further development of the integral ecology framework localized to a particular context.”

Representing the government, Philippine Statistics Authority Chief Statistical Specialist for Poverty and Human Development Bernadette Balamban localized the UN SDGs within the Philippine context, providing an update on how the country is faring vis-à-vis the targets. While progress has been made in SDGs 12 and 14, there is regression in targets under SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-Being), SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure), and SDG 13 (Climate Action). Balamban called for a “deliberate attempt to recalibrate our curriculum, instruction, and assessment methods in order for HEI’s to be of aid in meeting the set national targets.”

Talking about institutional sustainability, Dr. Yew Kee Ho of the City University of Hongkong’s Chow Yi Ching School of Graduate Studies, spoke of the “vital role of research in promoting sustainability aside from incorporating topics in instruction.” Deputy Dean Ho also bared the need to reflect on University and Impact Rankings when it comes to implementing projects and programs related to sustainability, as these external benchmarks can provide input on recalibrating efforts.

Sustainability in coursework

Two experts spoke about integrating sustainability at the classroom level. United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization Regional Office Chief of Education Santosh Khatri spoke of scaffolding in relation to sustainability and integral ecology.

In doing so, Khatri reiterated Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) for 2030, which aims to fully integrate the 17 SDGs into policies, learning environments, capacity building of educators, and empowerment and mobilization of young people. He also emphasized six key concepts of Greening Curriculum, which include climate science, climate justice, post-carbon economies, ecosystems and biodiversity, resilience-building, and sustainable lifestyles.

In another session, Ateneo de Manila University – Lily Gokongwei Ngochua Leadership Academy Executive Director Maria Assunta C. Cuyegkeng, PhD raised awareness on how to make outcomes impactful in light of sustainability and learning experiences. In her session, Cuyegkeng stressed the value of “discernment which begins with reflecting on our experience, which ultimately develops our interiority” to sound off a “call toward adopting a new lifestyle, ecological conversion, and ecological education.” Integrating sustainability, according to Cuyegkeng, requires a “whole-of-university approach when it comes to redesigning our learning experiences.”

Leveraging on sectoral expertise in promoting sustainability

The webinar also included a panel discussion featuring Mr. Benjamin N. Villacorte (Chairman of the Philippine Sustainability Reporting Committee and a Member of the Sustainable Actions for Value-Creation and Enablement (SAVE) Council of SGV & Co.); Prof. Rey Donne S. Papa, PhD (Dean, College of Science); Asst. Prof. Froilan A. Alipao, MCD (Director, Simbahayan Community Development Office); and Prof. Cecilia B. Moran, Dr. rer. nat. (Executive Assistant for Research Operations and Management, Office of the Vice-Rector for Research and Innovation).

The session, moderated by Prof. Patricia M. Empleo (Dean, UST-AMV College of Accountancy) and Inst. Fermin Antonio D.R. Yabut, PhD (College Secretary, UST-AMV College of Accountancy), provided a platform to share bare how the industry, academe, community development, and research and innovation sectors can work together for sustainable development. Tips were shared to further strengthen working in interdisciplinary teams.

Putting ideas into course plans

As a culmination of the training, parallel onsite workshops were held on January 10, 2025 in the different academic units, where each unit’s pedagogical lead and e-Learning specialists facilitated discussions that aimed to identify practical steps to promote sustainability in instruction and office practices per academic unit.

Later in the day, twenty small groups were formed from different academic units and offices with the aim of sharing practices for promoting sustainability in terms of curricular activities, research activities, community engagement activities, and operational processes. The session provided a platform to craft initial plans for interdisciplinary collaboration to promote sustainability.

The program was organized by the Office of the Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs, the Center for Innovative Teaching and Educational Delivery, and the Educational Technology Center, with support from the UST-Alfredo M. Velayo College of Accountancy.

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The panel imparted on Service-Learning in the context of a Catholic higher education institution in the Philippines as depicted in the studies 1) Service-Learning Linking with Communities for Development: Exploring the Service Learning Praxis Framework of the University of Santo Tomas vis-à-vis Salamanca Process by Asst. Prof. Alipao; 2) Praxis of Salamanca: Process and Politics of the Service-Learning in the University of Santo Tomas Lumad Bakwit School by Mr. Romero; 3) Catholic Social Teachings in Service-Learning: A Multiple-Case Study in a Philippine Catholic Higher Education Institution by Assoc. Prof. Abiog; 4) Service-Learning: The University of Santo Tomas Experience by Assoc. Prof. Turingan; and 5) A Phenomenological Study of Service-Learning Experiences in National Service Training Program of University of Santo Tomas (UST) Selected College Students in the Time COVID-19 Pandemic by Ms. Estrologo. These studies emphasized the vital role of Catholic Higher Education institutions, like UST, in promoting Service-Learning inspired by the Salamanca process tradition, Catholic Social Teachings, and service engagements within and outside the university amidst the challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic.

This year’s PSCJ centered on the theme, The Philippines in the 21st Century Asia: Retrospect and Prospect, underscoring studies on the post-COVID-19 pandemic and other Philippine-oriented studies.

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The said event was also aligned with the second Community Service Day for A.Y. 2021-2022, the bi-annual advocacy event of UST SIMBAHAYAN that promotes the proactive response to the call of Pope Francis’ Laudato Si’.

With the theme Kapaligiran at Halalan, discussions did not only center on the elections, politics, and livelihood, but also on issues related to the environment. Asst. Prof. Froilan A. Alipao, the Director of UST SIMBAHAYAN, delivered the welcome remarks. It was followed by the insightful talk of Mr. Maverick Russel Flores, the Communications Campaigner of Greenpeace Philippines, titled “2022: The Year of Climate Action.”

Flores stressed that the Philippines urgently needs climate justice since our country is continuously battling the climate crisis coupled with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. He also stated that environmental and climate issues are at the bottom of the priorities in the current electoral discourse.
Dr. Froilan C. Calilung from the Political Science Department of the Faculty of Arts and Letters had his presentation on the “Analysis of Environmental Platforms of the 2022 Presidential Candidates.” He shared a concise summary of the six front-running presidentiables’ environmental agenda on the following issues: renewable energy, commitment to the international environmental agreements, creation of a Department of Disaster Resilience, mining, plastic and solid waste management, and the West Philippine Sea.

Mr. Rodne Galiche, the Executive Director of Living Laudato Si’ Philippines, discussed “Laudato Si’ and Ecological Teachings of the Church.” Through the seven Laudato Si’ Goals: 1) Response to the cry of the earth, 2) Response to the cry of the poor, 3) Ecological economics, 4) Adoption of simple lifestyles, 5) Ecological education, 6) Ecological spirituality, and 7) Community engagements, the voters can use these as standards in deciding who amongst the national and local candidates will have the political will to push forward with climate justice.

The program culminated with the closing remarks of Asst. Prof. Evalyn B. Abiog, Ph.D., the Asst. Director of UST SIMBAHAYAN. The event was facilitated by Asst. Prof. Catherine C. Cocabo and Mr. John Christian Valeroso, Ph.D. The webinar can still be viewed via the UST-SIMBAHAYAN Community Development Office Facebook Page.

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According to Alejandria, “the project is designed as a descriptive qualitative study which will primarily employ the anthropological methods of focused ethnography to document and map the socio-cultural contexts of mental health issues among university students. The participants of this study will be identified through the assistance of the research collaborators of participating private and state universities, whose locations are selected based on the cultural representations that could be generated due to a pluralistic demography. Apart from this, these locations have universities with established guidance and counselling programs.”

Furthermore, Alejandria stated that the project’s key assertion is that “efficient mental health intervention can only be drawn from a culturally relevant understanding of the lived experiences of the patients.” The aim of the work is “the development of patient-centered interventions that could have social, economic, and policy impacts.” Among the tools to be used are “interviews, focus group discussions, and other processes available in focused ethnography.” The project will cover Manila, as well as the provinces of Albay, Benguet, Palawan, Rizal, Leyte, and Davao.

Alejandria is the Research Interest Group Lead for Social Health Studies at the . Joining her in the team as co-leads are Simbahayan Community Development Office Director Froilan A. Alipao, MCD, Communications Bureau Assistant Director for Online Philippe Jose S. Hernandez, and Senior High School Humanities and Social Sciences Strand Chair Marie Antonette D. Quan.

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The MoU stipulates the continued support, such as but not limited to materials, financial resources, and expertise, of UST for the projects of the Baseco community, which shall be subjected to regular assessments and evaluation for improvement purposes. Meanwhile, the Samahan commits to actively pursue the agreed-upon community development projects and liaise with UST on a regular basis.

The agreement will last until 2022. The MoU formalizes what has for years been sustained engagement between Alejandria and fellow Thomasians with the Baseco community, where community development projects such as education campaigns on tuberculosis, provision of clean water, and the maintenance of a community pharmacy, known as Klinika Tomas, have been sustained.

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The webinar featured two speakers who spoke at length about the Martial Law experience and what the current generation must learn about the events of that period in Philippine history. Reactions from the youth were also shared during the said webinar.

Opposing narratives, debunking claims
Throwing the question “Bakit hanggang ngayon hati tayo sa pag-unawa sa panahon ni Marcos?”, Bantayog ng Mga Bayani foundation, Inc. Executive Director Ma. Cristina “Mae” V. Rodriguez acknowledged opposing narratives: “May mga grupo na ipinaglalaban ang administrasyong Marcos ay naging mabuti, ang bayan ay gumanda, ang lipunan ay tumino, at ang gobyerno ay luminis,” Rodriguez acknowledged. “Sa kabilang banda naman, may mga grupong nakikipagtunggali sa ganyang ideya. Gusto nilang ipaglaban ang administrasyong Marcos ay naging masama, ang bayan ay naghikahos, ang lipunan ay nasira, ang gobyerno ay naging corrupt at humirap ang ating buhay,” she said.

Rodriguez also acknowledged conflicting narratives on the person of the late dictator, as seen in biographical content that portray him positively and negatively. Prior to his presidency, Marcos was embroiled in quite a few controversies, including the killing of a political opponent and the issue on wartime honors that Marcos allegedly received.

Rodriguez debunked Marcos’ claims of leading armed groups against Japanese forces, receiving highest honors from USA, and being the Philippine’s most decorated war hero. According to Rodriguez, Marcos’ role in 1942 was of a non-combatant soldier, contrary to his claim. Citing data from renowned World War II historian Ricardo Jose, Rodriguez disclosed that “walang nangyaring laban sa mga araw na sinabi ni Marcos at ang pwersa niya ay pang-intelligence at hindi infantry. Ang claim niya, bumuo siya ng pwersang panlaban na tinawag niyang Maharlika at kung saansaan sia nakipaglaban. Depende sa kwento nia, may 300 siyang pwersa, minsan may roon siyang 8300,” Rodriguez said.

“Ang sabi ng US Army, ‘Absurd, distorted, exaggerated, and contradictory’ ang kwentong iyan,” she added. However, these alleged wartime laurels fed the “war hero narrative that Marcos used to further his political aspirations, which culminated in his obtaining the presidential seat in 1965.

The first to bust his narrative was Marcos’ then-press secretary Primitivo Mijares, who authored the most notable book that spoke the horrors of Marcos’ era: The Conjugal Dictatorship. “Sinabi doon ni Mijares na ginawa niyang negosyo ang pagkuha ng affidavit of claims sa mga kapwa nia sundalo at mga beterano.” As history will later on show, Mijares eventually disappeared, while his son was killed.

Rodriguez also cited the work of Bonifacio Gillego, who published articles on Marcos’ fake medals were published in WE Forum, whose publisher and editor was Jose Burgos. 15 staff members, including Burgos, were charged with subversion and rebellion.

According to Rodriguez, these exposés eventually had a domino effect. Various declassified military record appeared, and this enabled historians such as Alfred McCoy to collate the records and write about articles for the New York Times.
Regaining our footing after the regime
Rodriguez narrated how the Martial Law period and the remainder of the Marcos presidency were fraught with human rights abuses, with statistics counting at least 3,200 deaths, 30,000 tortures, 1,600 disappearances, and billions in dollars worth of ill-gotten wealth.

After Marcos’s 20-year rule and restoration of democracy, measures that aimed to protect human rights against abuses were taken. “Nagkaroon tayo ng matibay na Bill of Rights, tinanggal ang re-election ng pangulo dahil sa experience ni Marcos noong 1969, ang kanyang pangalawang pagka-pangulo, ginamit niya yoon para pagtibayin ang pagupo sa poder,” she said. Rodriguez also noted measures such as prohibition of private armies, publication of statements of assets, liabilities, and net worth among government officials, and tightening controls on the declaration of martial rule. Modern-day laws protecting human rights and giving reparation to those who were subjected to human rights violations were also cited. Rodriguez disclosed that at least 11,000 claimants have been granted reparations from violations experienced during the Marcos regime.

A survivor’s tale
Environmentalist Crisanto Palabay narrated his experience during Martial Law. Barely a month after Martial Law was imposed, he was taken as political prisoner in San Fernando, from where he was later on brought to a facility of the Philippine Constabulary and subjected to torture by electrocution.

Reflecting on his experience and the current situation of the country, Palabay said the education of the events during Martial Law must be strengthened and institutionalized. “Dapat ay ipopularize ito sa lahat,” he said. “Maraming mga guro na hindi nila tinatalakay ang mga issue na ito,” he added.

“Hindi mo mapapatay ang kaisipan lalo na kung tama at nararapat kahit patay na ang mga tao na nagsimula, o yung mga nagpapatuloy na ngayon ay mawawala na,” Palabay said.

From the young
The webinar also featured reactions from the youth, with Nathan Raphael D.L. Agustin of the Faculty of Civil Law sharing his reaction on the ongoing attempts at historical revisionism that try to depict the era as “the best era for Filipinos.” “All this revisionism has built this huge rift in our understanding of what really happened during Martial Law,” Agustin opined. The human rights abuses, the Law student said, ran counter to the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which consider human rights as universal, indivisible, inalienable, and inherent. “Even in Catholic teaching, human rights are part of our dignity. [Sadly,] even with the gifts of freedom and democracy, there was a time in our history when we were plunged into the abyss and tyranny,” Agustin lamented.

Meanwhile, Thomasian alumna Veronica Michelle L. Moreno shared her reflections and stated that the abuses during the Martial Law era are a reminder of the need to empathize with our fellowmen Recalling the Thomasian Graduate Attributes (ThoGAs) and the SEAL of Thomasian Education which calls on Thomasians to be servant leaders. She also called on her fellow alumni to not be fooled easily by the lies spread on social media, which many people are relying on now due to restrictions on movement in light of COVID-19.

Revisit the webinar: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=334911487563116&extid=4EqqNCv8STPnjh2l

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Alipao’s paper focused on “laying down the baseline and evaluation of six selected HEIs in their community engagement with partner communities vis-s-vis development and organizing practice through the framework of Outer and Inner Outcomes (Nexus Community Partners, 2014) and Organizational Development Model (Alipao & UST-SIMBAHAYAN, 2012).” According to Alipao, “Outer Outcomes are tangible, visible, and communities are empowered, as seen in leadership, membership, social programs (health, environment, economy, education) and, social structure. Meanwhile, Inner Outcomes are the principles and processes of doing participatory community engagement like power, identity, relationships and, culture.” The paper made use of the Organizational Development Model, which highlighted the organizational plan, leadership, membership, policies, structures and, strategies (training/education, community organizing, project implementation, resource mobilization, networking, mobilization and finance/fund) of the partner communities/community organizations.

This research project is a component of Commission on Higher Education (CHED)-approved program entitled University of Santo Tomas (UST) – (CCPED) Certificate Course on Community Engagement and Organizing that was conceptualized and implemented by the UST SIMBAHAYAN Community Development Office in collaboration with the UST Center for Continuing Professional Education and Development. The program provided the participants from different Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs) from all over the Philippines key opportunities and gained knowledge, understanding, skills and, values of/for community engagement vis-à-vis development and organizing that they applied in their respective educational institutions’ community extension and development program and partner communities.

The conference was attended by 1,300 participants from all over the world.

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Fr. Deeb was accompanied by the Promoter of the Commission on Justice, Peace, and Care for Creation of the Filipino Dominicans Fr. Victor Calvo, O.P., and Program Coordinator Ms. Laurence Blattmer.

The meeting took place between Fr. Deeb and Fr. Tiong, together with the faculty members from Institute of Religion, SIMBAHAYAN Community Development Office and its Community Development Coordinators from the different Faculties, Colleges, and Institutes, National Service Training Program (CWTS/LTS), , and representatives from Pax Romana. 

Fr. Deeb’s visit to the University centered on promoting the Salamanca Process, a concept initiated at a time when Dominican friars in the likes of Pedro de Cordoba, Antonio de Montesinos, Bartolome de las Casas, and Francisco de Vitoria engaged with the injustices and oppressions experience among the indigenous people in Latin America during the 16th century. This grassroots methodology starts in listening to the stories of the people from the ground and act in response to their issues guided by theological reflection. It is a two-way dialogue with an emphasis on learning from the people and not disparate to see, judge, act process. To wrap up, he opened the venue for collaboration and determined how the Delegation can support programs of the University dealing with human rights.   

Fr. Deeb was in the Philippines for the Training-Workshop on Human Rights and United Nations Mechanisms which took place at the Holy Rosary Prayer and Reflection Center, Molo, Iloilo, City from August 26 to 30, 2019. Representatives of the University in the training-workshop were: Rev. Fr. Tiong; SIMBAHAYAN Director , SIMBAHAYAN Assistant Director , Samahang Kamanlalakbay President Ms. Merlita de Guzman, and Fellowship for the Care of Creation Association Inc. Executive Director Ms. Mylene Saluta. 

As the representative of the Dominican Order to the United Nations, the office of Fr. Deeb works with the marginalized and oppressed people around the world suffering from human rights violation through their advocacy and training program. They provide workshops to strengthen the capacity of Dominicans and its partner communities/organizations on how to utilize the United Nation mechanism. Also, the delegation’s priorities which are divided into two main approaches are the thematic and country approach. Their thematic approach targets the environmental destruction, climate change, and human rights while their country priorities are Colombia, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ivory Coast, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia-West Papua. 

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The conference was highlighted by the lectures delivered by speakers, namely, Professors Yozo Yokota and Haruko Satoh. Yokota delivered his lecture focused on Education and Displaced People. He is an internationally renowned jurist and teacher in international laws on economics and human rights, a UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Myanmar and a respected advocate of human rights. Satoh delivered a lecture titled ‘Between Aspiration and Reality: Cultural Conflict in a University Classroom.’  He is a Specially Appointed Professor at the Osaka School of International Public Policy (OSIPP) at Osaka University, Japan.     

Alipao, who teaches at the under the , discussed that the role of the faculty members is to respond to the challenge of being agents of social transformation within and outside the university. He said that to be able to respond to this call, faculty members must be committed and equipped with integrated knowledge, skills and values for teaching and learning, research and service with the communities.  

With Alipao’s experience of almost 17 years of serving the University of Santo Tomas through teaching, research and service with the communities, he has proven that these were complex and yet integrative for the full processes of learning and serving. These processes enriched Alipao’s experiences and wisdom for the integrative formation of students in terms of knowledge generation and management and service with the communities.  His paper generally described and reflected the processes and learning gained from the experiences of community integration as integrative method of teaching, research and service for community development with all the stakeholders, which include the author (Alipao) as faculty, researcher and university community development facilitator; the immediate and substantial university departments or offices where the author is directly connected; the students as learners, researchers and servers for community development and empowerment and; the partner communities as substantial stakeholders.

Alipao joined 200 academics and practitioners in representing more than 40 different nations that came together and shared their research studies and practices.

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The opening remarks, delivered by Vice-Rector for Research and Innovation , was followed by the Panel Session 1: Institutionalization of Community Engagement/Service-Learning which was moderated by Assoc. Prof. Marielyn C. Quintana. Research presenters were SIMBAHAYAN Director , SIMBAHAYAN Assistant Director , and – all of whom are part of the UST Community-Engaged Studies Research Interest Group (RIG), together with Asst. Prof. Philip Arnold Tuaño of Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU).

For Panel Session 2: Community Engagement/Service-Learning and Student Formation, the presentors included: Asst. Prof. Leland Joseph dela Cruz from ADMU, Dr. Marian Emae Grace Alvarez from the UST , and Assoc. Prof. Jose Ricarte Origenes from the UST SIMBAHAYAN-National Service Training Program (NSTP).

The moderator for the afternoon session, Dr. Abernir, focused on Community Engagement/Service-Learning Intervention and Impact. Ms. Enha Erika Brondo, ADMU-NSTP Formator and Mr. George Omer Quitoriano, faculty member of ADMU showcased their studies together with Engr. Alexie Ballon from the Institute of Information and Computing Sciences; Mitzico Bibal, graduating student of ; Jelynna Alano, and Jowillyn Capacite, students from . The last session which awakened the interest of students on Community Engagement/Service Learning and Disaster Resilience was facilitated by Asst. Prof. Alipao.

Assoc. Prof. Quintana from , Mr. Adrian Romero of UST NSTP, Ms. Imelda Oponda of Kasiglahan Village, Asst. Prof. Alain Jomari Santos of UST , Marie Jane Turla, and Britany Alaine Lopez from College of Nursing students were the last presenters.

Abenir concluded the conference by not just mentioning the importance of research that is for the people and by the people, but also by emphasizing that the Bartolome de las Casas Research Conference serves as an avenue for the conference participants to listen and understand the research studies and interventions of different colleges guided by the discipline of community development. He also invited everyone to submit their research papers for the upcoming Kamanlalakbay portion of its program, which is a presentation of studies regarding partner communities of the University.

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