by Ferry Bayu | May 22, 2024 | Business
Education across the world has been democratized exponentially over the years. With the dawn of the Information Age and Artificial Intelligence (AI), it’s not hard to see why. Students now have access to millions of YouTube videos, short courses, and other tools that were otherwise inaccessible without the internet.
Yet another challenge presents itself with such democratization. Given the influx of information online partnered with course curriculums offered in universities, students face bombardment and the inability to filter out all this information into relevant knowledge that leads to measurable skills and competencies applicable to real-world jobs and workplaces.
Not only that. Students, with their diverse learning styles, interests, and career aspirations, need help finding a learning program or platform that is hyper-personalized to address their educational needs.
“In the era of digital transformation and the Fourth Industrial Revolution, workplaces are searching for agile, entrepreneurial professionals who can quickly adapt and pivot in a very competitive and dynamic economy,” says Mapúa University President Dr. Dodjie Maestrecampo. “To meet that demand, we had to move beyond traditional learning methods and adopt new approaches that will better prepare students for these volatile work environments.”
Flexible and inclusive learning
Apart from diverse learning styles and educational goals, students in the Philippines also need help with higher education. A universal story for many is their lack of financial means, geographical challenges, and limited access to technology that pushes them to stop pursuing their college education.
This is the prime inspiration for creating Mapúa X.
An innovative online learning marketplace, Mapúa X is rooted in a vision to expand access to quality education and meet the evolving needs of learners in the modern world. This initiative also reflects a broader trend in higher education many universities are responding to.
“The education system must prioritize flexibility, inclusivity, and alignment with various industry demands,” Maestrecampo explains. ‘Our goal is not only to provide learners from diverse backgrounds with access to education but also to ensure their success by acquiring competencies and skills that are highly sought after in the global job market. To accomplish this, we require a platform that enables learning beyond the constraints of traditional campus-based programs.”
Just like streaming movies
Imagine a video streaming platform, but instead of movies, you’re immersing yourself in interactive courses, programs, microcredentials, and training.
Mapúa X, described as a catalog or streaming platform for education, brings a fresh and innovative approach to learning, mirroring the ease of access and variety we’ve come to expect from streaming services.
From technology and engineering to business and creative arts, the platform offers a diverse selection of educational content. This includes interactive and multimedia-rich courses with video lectures, interactive simulations, and real-time feedback, which all make the learning process more engaging and effective than traditional text-based content.
Building such a platform involves Mapúa University’s partnership with Anthology, an education technology company with a suite of solutions for higher education institutions. Anthology provides a comprehensive ecosystem of tech solutions designed to enhance learning experiences, streamline administrative processes, and ensure educational content is engaging and effective, like Mapúa X.
“Through Anthology’s LMS, we’re able to make Mapúa X user-friendly while delivering high-quality educational content,” Samuel Tang, Anthology’s Country Manager for the Philippines, says. “Students can now easily navigate their courses, access resources, submit assignments, and talk to their professors throughout their individualized learning journeys.”
For the love of learning
From traditional students to lifelong learners, Mapúa X is created not just to serve as a digital commonplace within the campus but to be every student’s go-to streaming platform for learning beyond university.
“Our collaboration with Anthology allows us to use a training and development manager (TDM) approach built within a robust LMS platform,” Maestrecampo explains. “This means Mapúa X will enable you to continue your education, professional development, and community enrichment without enrolling on campus. You can self-enroll in courses, earn credentials, and access all your previous, present, and future courses from anywhere at any time.”
by Penny Angeles-Tan | May 20, 2024 | Entertainment
BingoPlus, the comprehensive entertainment platform in the country and provider of your favorite online tongits, bingo, and perya games, extended a warm welcome to the diverse and stunning Miss Universe Philippines 2024 (MUPH) queens on Monday, May 13.
As the lead presenter for this year, BingoPlus welcomed MUPH candidates to visit its locations in Bonifacio Global City and Quezon City. This visit was part of the brand’s efforts to create an enjoyable MUPH experience for everyone.
The candidates began with a courtesy call with DigiPlus President Andy Tsui and AB Leisure Exponent Inc. President Raphael Jasper Vicencio. They then toured the DigiPlus offices and had the opportunity to meet and interact with its employees, who warmly welcomed them with smiles and flowers.
Joining the visit were the country’s top social media influencers, such as DJ Jaiho, “Poca”, Christy “Ms. Deliciousness” Tabayag, Super Sereyna Queen Francine Gracia, “Queen Dura”, Prince Adrian Dagdag, and more. The influencers had the opportunity to engage and interact with the Miss Universe Philippines (MUPH) candidates, collaborating on various content creations. Additionally, the queens visited the BingoPlus Studio located in Quezon City, where they participated in a live-streaming event.
This event was hosted by the BingoPlus host alongside the special guest host, “Kaladkaren,” and featured a musical performance by Markki Stroem.
BingoPlus is committed to its core mission, which is based on the values of home and community. The brand aims to enhance the leisure and enjoyment of the Filipino people. Its partnership with MUPH provides an opportunity to cater to a broader range of what leisure and enjoyment mean to Filipinos, particularly in relation to the significant role of beauty contests and pageantry in Philippine culture.
This year, BingoPlus is bringing the excitement of MUPH not only to the candidates but also to fans and supporters. BingoPlus is hosting a voting page for fans to vote for their favorite candidate and help them secure a spot in the Top 20. Winners will receive various giveaways such as MUPH VIP tickets, an iPhone 15 Plus, and cash prizes. For more information about the campaign, please visit BingoPlus’ social media pages and website at www.bingoplus.com.
Watch the coronation night live on May 22 at the Mall of Asia Arena.
BingoPlus and ArenaPlus proudly stand as flagship brands under Digiplus Interactive Corp., solidifying its position as a leading gaming and leisure provider in the country with its newest product, GamePlus.
by Ferry Bayu | May 20, 2024 | Business
Kuala Lumpur, 20 May 2024 – VRITIMES, a pioneering media technology startup based in Tokyo, proudly announces a strategic partnership with Global-Daily.com, a leading global news outlet known for its comprehensive coverage of international news and events. This collaboration aims to enhance news distribution and enrich the quality of information available to readers worldwide.
Global-Daily.com has a reputation for delivering in-depth analysis and wide-ranging coverage on global issues, making it a perfect partner for VRITIMES. Together, they plan to leverage VRITIMES’s cutting-edge press release technology and Global-Daily.com’s extensive editorial network to create a more dynamic news delivery platform.
“We are thrilled to partner with Global-Daily.com,” said Ferry, CEO of VRITIMES. “This partnership aligns with our mission to innovate how news is distributed and consumed globally. By combining our technological capabilities with Global-Daily.com’s editorial expertise, we will enhance our ability to deliver engaging and insightful content to our audiences.”
by Ferry Bayu | May 19, 2024 | Business
The Author during his trekking along Mt. Daraitin and Tinipak River in Tanay, Rizal. Kaliwa Dam project is expected to inundate this place once operational.
By: Alec Hope Buenaventura
CLIMATE INJUSTICE – while the effects of climate change are global, the weight of its brunt is not the same for all. It is the least contributors, not the chief instigators, who carry the heavy repercussions. Perhaps, the Philippines has a degree of familiarity with this case. The water supply shortage in Metro Manila is actually brought about by climate change. Because of floods and droughts, Angat dam is expected to fall short of supplying clean water to the nation’s center, creating yet another sustainability problem on top of many other social issues the country is already facing. The proposed solution – the Kaliwa dam. However, have we ever considered the validity of this notorious project?
Recently, information has been brought to light that the Kaliwa Dam project is at 30%, that is according to the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System or MWSS. Though far from complete, its persistence poses a graver threat not only to the environment but also to the society. Intensifying climate injustice, a clear case of the so-called sustainability paradox.
As a concept, sustainability is an intersectional concept that one cannot pursue economic progress while sacrificing the environment, culture, morals, and other social and humanitarian aspects. Therefore, a paradox takes place when a certain policy, claims to be “sustainable”, yet only caters to one aspect of development, then compromising the others.
The Kaliwa dam project, for example, aims to resolve an economic issue. Ironically, it is at the expense of the rights of the Indigenous people or IPs and environmental sustainability.
I once had the opportunity to personally speak with one of the affected Indigenous people groups, the Dumagat Remontados of Mt. Daraitan, Tanay, Rizal. The Dumagats are exceptionally virtuous people, possessing rich community values that people from the city cannot easily understand. For them, nature is integral to life and their land is the source of their identity and culture. Not to mention their overflowing fountain of local wisdom, primarily in nature and farming.
As we talk, the Dumagats revealed that the perpetrators of the Kaliwa dam deliberately toned-down the ill-effects of the project. For one, contrary to the report of MWSS, that there will be only around fifty families affected, more than a thousand Dumagat families will forcibly be displaced from their homes if the dam is constructed. There were also no consultations transpired to which they might have expressed their dissent to this project as opposed to the reports.
Like it is not enough injustice, the dam will also inundate the Tinipak River, the river that gives life, so-sacred to them, a site where most of their religious rites take place.
As expected, the process of drilling and digging to build the dam will engender environmental perils as it destroys the ecological balance of the Sierra Madre. Destructions like these lead to weaker soil integrity which will make the mountain ranges prone to landslides. Sierra Madre also serves as Luzon’s frontier against typhoons entering the country. Thus, if the project continues, the threat of typhoons to hit the Philippines stronger is imminent.
To make matters even worse, this serves as a multiplier to the climate injustice that the Dumagats are already facing. Due to the already existing climate change, the Tinipak River suffers lower water level during dry-season, yet, it rises extremely when hit by a typhoon such as in the case of Bagyong Ulysses in the past year. Scientifically, the higher the heat index during the dry season increases evaporation rates explaining the low water level. On the other hand, during the wet season, this high surface temperature increases the amount of precipitation, increasing the amount of water to rainfall as experienced by the people of Daraitan.
Furthermore, being farmers, the Dumagats are highly-dependent on nature and climatic events. Irregular precipitation patterns and increase in temperature have made weather unpredictable. As a result, since their main commodity, rice, is sensitive to climatic factors, they are forced to replace it with a more resilient crop such as sweet potato.
Due to human activities, their ancestral land suffers further environmental degradation. For instance, tree-logging activities in Mt. Daraitan made the soil quality deteriorate. This resulted in an observable decline in crop yield, from one pail to a hundred sacks back then, to getting only one pail in return today. Biodiversity is also observed to decline as habitat bats and snakes were disturbed due to human mobility. These are all attested by the IPs.
The aforementioned events clearly show the Dumagats are already experiencing climate injustice. Rather than fixing the situation for them, the focus of high politics is in the center. This is the very reason as to why the Indigenous peoples are pushed to the margin of the society. If this continues violation of Indigenous people’s rights and right to a balanced and healthful ecology, rights we the sovereign Filipinos are sworn to protect under Article II of the 1987 Constitution.
To reiterate, sustainability is intersectional. All social and humanitarian aspects should be included in the pursuit of true development. Instead of pushing through with this, the best take is to achieve a compromise that would allow economic stability without endangering the natural environment and the rights of the Indigenous peoples.
Through an emotional message, one of the Dumagat leaders expressed that they are willing to share the waters of their land, as they were the ones blessed. However, the policy-makers need to heed them and consider the alternatives that they are willing to compromise.
Given its political implications, retracting this policy requires a strong political will from the current administration. Nonetheless, it is a must in order to achieve true sustainable development and climate justice.
To end, I urge you to ask again. Should we proceed with the Kaliwa Dam project? If your answer is still yes, then it is fitting to say that the ultimate ramification of climate change is not the extinction of the entire humanity but the sheer dissolution of our humanity.
by Ferry Bayu | May 17, 2024 | Business
Jakarta, May 16, 2024 – PT. Rimba Raya Conservation (Rimba Raya) welcomes the granting of its petition for the suspension of the implementation of the Minister of Environment and Forestry of the Republic of Indonesia Decree No: SK.1028/MENLHK/SETJEN/HPL.1/9/2023 dated September 15, 2023, through the Interim Decision No. 1 of the State Administrative Court (PTUN). This decision was rendered on Thursday, May 16, 2024, after a series of hearings that has considered various evidence and arguments from Rimba Raya.
This suspension decision is a significant and meaningful step for Rimba Raya in its efforts to continue the restoration and conservation functions it has developed and implemented in Seruyan Regency, Central Kalimantan.
“This decision gives us the opportunity to continue our restoration and conservation efforts to maintain the sustainability of the forest and ecosystem in Seruyan, Central Kalimantan,” said Haryo Ajie Dewanto, Technical Director of PT. Rimba Raya Conservation. “We are grateful to all parties who supported us throughout this process. Despite the reduced size of our team, Rimba Raya will strive to optimize its functions and ensure the welfare of the community by involving them in the protection of forest and land areas in Seruyan Regency.”
Rimba Raya has been implementing various programs for the protection of forest and land areas and community empowerment, benefiting the communities around the Seruyan River and the Seruyan forest ecosystem. With this suspension decision, Rimba Raya is committed to optimally strengthen these programs.
The suspension decision provides a positive signal for the spirit of ecosystem restoration and conservation in Indonesia, demonstrating that the commitment to environmental preservation must continue to be fought for. Rimba Raya hopes that the judicial process at PTUN will proceed smoothly until the issuance of a final decision. Rimba Raya looks forward to collaborating again with the government, communities, and other relevant partners to achieve shared goals in maintaining environmental sustainability in Indonesia.
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