SLSU-Bontoc Faculty participates to VLIR-UOS International Training Program (ITP) on Co-CiPhil: Co-creating Environmental Citizen Science Capacity in PH
SLSU-Bontoc Faculty and alumna of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), Belgium, Ms Alieza O. Del Socorro attended the Co-CiPhil: Co-creating Environmental Citizen Science Capacity in the Philippines, a VLIR-UOS International Training Program (ITP) Workshop held last November 6 to 17, 2023 at the Chali Beach Resort and Conference Center in Cagayan de Oro City. The two-week workshop, in which 50 scholars from various local and international state universities, local government units, and medical institutions participated, is part of a series of workshops on quantitative and qualitative methodologies in citizen science research.
These workshops are collaboratively organized by Universiteit Hasselt (UHasselt), a Flemish university in Belgium, MSU-Iligan Institute of Technology (MSU-IIT), and the Visayas State University (VSU).
The first part of the workshop, which Prof. Dr. Natalie Beenaerts taught from UHasselt, was focused on environmental monitoring and management with emphasis on the significance of co-creating citizen science or community-based research. At the end of the first week, the participants developed research studies on citizen science that were subsequently presented in a mini-conference held at the MSU-IIT Gymnasium.
Prof. Dr. Thomas Neyens from UHasselt led the discussions on establishing robust study designs, particularly in the context of observational studies and citizen science initiatives, during the second half of the workshop. The curriculum covers the foundational aspects of statistical study design while addressing practical considerations in less-than-ideal settings.
A VLIR-OUS International Course, Program Information Session, was done at the end of the two-week engagement. Ms. Del Socorro and other VLIR-OUS ICP scholars presented their degrees and research studies in Belgium. Through citizen science and approaches, she also gave various SLSU Bontoc RDE initiatives and possible future collaborations with other SUCs, government agencies, and private organizations.
Ms Del Socorro holds a master’s degree in Biology specializing in Human Ecology. She is the current Program Chair of the BS Marine Biology Program at SLSU-Bontoc.
