...the smart city

Davao gov't, IBM push for 'smart city'

 

Julia Jasmine Madrazo-Sta. Romana

June 29, 2012

GMA News

 

 

“We believe that building a safer city will bring us one step closer to our ultimate goal of becoming a major growth pole in the international market..." - Mayor Sara Duterte, Davao City

 

 

The Davao City government signed an agreement last June 26 with IBM to help scale up the Public Safety and Security Command Center (PSSCC), according to a report on SunStar.com.  By integrating the city public safety operations and adapting key technologies, IBM and the local city government aim to create a “smart city”.
 

The PSSCC hopes to create a single, centralized operations dashboard where multiple city agencies can integrate and process information in real time to improve response efforts to emergencies and disasters. Using IBM’s Intelligent Operations Center (IOC), this centralized platform is expected to standardize, improve, and enhance the management of the four main pillars of public safety: crime prevention and suppression; emergency response; threat prevention and response; and traffic management.

 

In addition to creating a centralized platform and developing a standardized operation procedure for public safety response, the IOC will also be integrating advanced technologies that will improve data acquisition, information processing, and communications between concerned local city agencies.

Geographic Information System (GIS), video feeds and GPS-enabled patrolling vehicles will help improve real time situational awareness for those in the field. Video analytics capabilities in the PSSCC will help enhance law enforcement’s the ability to investigate and track down crime and traffic hotspots. An “early warning system” will also be installed that monitors Key Risk Indicators (KRI), allowing different city agencies to anticipate impending city crises and address them in a collaborative manner.

 

Mayor Inday Sara Duterte said that Davao City is ready and long overdue for this development. “We believe that building a safer city will bring us one step closer to our ultimate goal of becoming a major growth pole in the international market. By integrating information collected from multiple agencies that are dedicated to protecting the welfare of citizens, we are setting the foundation for a more efficient and safer environment that will foster economic growth,” she said.

 

IBM, on the other hand, welcomes the challenge of creating a unique and trailblazing solution to Davao City’s public safety problems.  “IBM supports Davao’s vision to create a smart and safety city by applying advanced technologies to existing infrastructure to improve city management and efficiency. Forward thinking cities like Davao are paving the way for the development of similar smarter cities projects around the globe,” said MarielsAlmedaWinhoffer, president and country general manager, IBM Philippines.

 

“This solution will enable Davao to more effectively address a wide spectrum of public safety and security related incidences pertaining to healthcare, fire outbreaks, accidents, flooding, crime tracking and the security of important locations -- making Davao a model city in terms of livability and safety,” Winhoffer said.

 

PSSCC’s and IOC collaboration on creating these public safety solutions would be unique to Davao City but it’s far from experimental. IBM’s IOC has already collaborated with over 2,000 cities all over the world with these Smarter Cities. The flexibility and scalability of the Smart Cities program has enable IBM to easily integrate its hardware, software, services and research divisions to any city and adapt it to a wide range of existing services like transportation and utilities.  — TJD, GMA News

...the world's best English-teaching schools

3 PH universities among world’s best English-teaching schools

By Tarra Quismundo
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Saturday, June 30th, 2012

 

admu.edu.ph photo

MANILA, Philippines – Three Philippine Universities are among the top 50 universities in the world when it comes to teaching English according to a new survey by the London-based research and ratings firm Quacquarelli Symonds (QS).

In a statement sent to the Philippine Daily Inquirer, QS said the country’s “specialist strength” in the English language was affirmed in results of its latest World University Rankings by Subject, an index that rates universities across 29 disciplines.

Ateneo de Manila University posted the highest rating of all Philippine schools, ranking 24th in English language and literature. University of the Philippines ranked 32 while De La Salle University ranked 44th.

World-renowned universities in the United Kingdom and the United States took the top five spots (in this order): Cambridge, Harvard, Oxford, Yale and University of California Berkeley.

“The specialist strengths of Philippine universities in English language and literature are clearly shown in these rankings. The country should be proud of their achievements,” Ben Sowter, QS research chief, said in the statement sent to the Inquirer.

The Philippines rated in only one other discipline, with UP placing within the 101-150 bracket in Geography.

QS ranked schools on 29 subjects “based on academic reputation, employer reputation, and citations per paper,” QS said.

Amid strong showing in English, Philippine universities have been slipping in world rankings in the past few years.

...the great hope

Spoelstra hopes next NBA star is Filipino

 

By Don Tagala,

ABS-CBN North America Bureau 

06/28/2012

 

 

HOLLYWOOD, Florida -- The opening ceremony of the Pilipino Basketball Association of Southern Florida (PBASF) tournament has never been more meaningful, as it came on the heels of their Miami's and Filipino-American coach Eric Spoelstra's NBA Championship win.
               
Spoelstra has spent a lot of his time providing basketball clinics for the PBASF. And for many of the organization's young hopefuls, the champion coach serves as their inspiration to someday be part of the NBA. 

 

"I would love to be an NBA player or coach someday," said participant Josh Russ. "He's a great role model."

Spoelstra told Balitang America that he hopes a Filipino would one day shine in the NBA.

"It just takes the right time and the right circumstance. Maybe it'll be a Fil-Am or someone in the Philippines can make it to the NBA. Why not dream about it? Players come from everywhere else," Spoelstra said.

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...the Global Art winner

Two young Pinay students win awards at Global Art Contest

 

June 28, 2012

GMA News

 

 

Two young Filipino students -- Jamille Bianca Aguilar, 16, and Maria Angelica Ramos Tejada, 6 -- won awards at the recent Global Art Contest for children and youth, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said.

In a news release, the DFA said Aguilar won the silver prize in the 16 to 20 years old category, while Tejada received a special mention in the 5 to 10 years old category.

The DFA said the contest was organized by the Secretariat of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants.
 
The exhibit featuring the 34 winning art pieces was launched on June 20 at the United Nations Office in Geneva to coincide with the opening of the Rio + 20 Conference in Brazil.

The Global Art contest received 160 submissions from 18 countries.
 
The exhibit will run until July 11.

Global Art Contest
 
The theme of the recent Global Art Contest was, "Stockholm at 10: Chemical Challenges, Sustainable Solutions" and what it meant to young people around the world.
 
The contest was held as part of the celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Stockholm Convention, a global treaty to protect people and the environment from harmful chemicals.
 
The contest was open to three art media categories: drawing, photography, and short videos.

It had three age categories:

• 5-10 years old;
• 11-15 years old, and
• 16-20 years old.

 
According to the Global Art Contest’s website, three of the Stockholm Convention’s Regional Centers are organizing parallel virtual exhibitions of the winning entries:

• Research Centre for Toxic Compounds in the Environment (RECETOX) in Brno, Czech Republic;
• Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR) in Kuwait City, Kuwait, and
• Stockholm Convention Regional Centre in Dakar, Senegal.

International recognition

Before winning at the Global Art Contest, Aguilar has already won other national and international awards for her works.
 
She won a “Special Prize to International Artist” at 12th International High School Arts Festival in Tokyo, Japan in 2010.
 
She likewise won an award in the National Organization for Women (NOW) Foundation's Love Your Body Campaign in 2008.
 
To see Jamille’s art works online, click here.
 
- with Rouchelle Dinglasan, VVP, GMA News

...the new ant species

40 new ant species found in the Philippines

By Jojo Malig, ABS-CBNnews.com

06/27/2012

One of the new ant species discovered on Mt. Isarog by researchers from Palawan State University and Harvard University. ZooKeys photo

 

Deforestation threatens unique ant species

MANILA, Philippines - Researchers have discovered 40 new ant species in the Philippines.

However, the discovery could be short-lived as deforestation and the destruction of the insect's natural habitat threaten ant species in the Philippines that are found nowhere else in the world, David General and his colleagues at the Palawan State University and Harvard University said in their paper published in ZooKeys science journal.

General told the OurAmazingPlanet website that the 40 new species of ants belong to 11 various genera (plural of genus), bringing the total number of genera to 92, which is twice the number of genera found in biodiversity-rich Madagascar.

One of the new species has a unique mouth and mandibles, which may have evolved for the ants to manipulate their environment, he added.

General and Harvard University's Gary Alpert said in their paper that there are 474 ant species and subspecies known from the Philippines and at least 100 other unidentified species based on museum specimens and recent collections.

"The total size of the ant fauna is no doubt much larger, almost certainly more than 1,000 species are present," they said.

The new ant species were discovered on Mt. Isarog, a dormant volcano in Camarines Sur province.

Guardian blogger GrrlScientist, an evolutionary biologist and ornithologist, told ABS-CBNNews.com on Wednesday about the discovery of the new ant species.

Biodiversity hotspot

In their paper, General and Alpert described the Philippines as a biodiversity hotspot.

"The Philippines is so ecologically diverse that it is very difficult to characterize the country in a single paragraph," they said, citing the different climate and weather systems in the country that change because of the country's varying topography.

"This complex blend of climatic diversity and opportunity for geographic isolation has likely led to high levels of endemism, a phenomenon that deserves much further exploration," they said.

In their paper, the scientists raised the specter of unique animal species being wiped out because of human activities.

"The Philippines is considered one of the hottest of the biodiversity hotspots because of the severe human pressure on its highly endemic native flora and fauna," they said.

"Time is running out for the the remaining primary forests. Despite decades of regulation and reforestation, forests continue to dwindle," they added.

The paper said all the privately reforested narra trees in their study site in 2003 and 2004 were poached by 2009, "wiping out 27 years of stewardship of the area."

"Even the stumps were removed. Forest destruction seems to go on unabated, exacerbated by new large-scale mining projects that seem to target the mineral resources under primary forests," it added.

Invasive species also threaten native ants, the researchers said.

They added that much is yet to be discovered by scientists undertaking ant research in the Philippines.

"The Philippine ant fauna is very poorly explored and records are few and spotty at best. A researcher can essentially choose a mountain among several hundred mountains, get the necessary permits and be the first one to study the ants on that mountain. However, that mountain may also be very disturbed or degraded, leaving only the tramp species that abound in disturbed habitats," the said.

"In addition to environmental damage, there is also an active communist insurgency and other serious security threats to researchers in the field. Other areas may harbor malaria mosquitoes and other serious health threats. Hence, local collaboration is quite necessary to minimize the risks of field work in the Philippines," they added.

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...the rice terraces status

Philippines rice terraces off endangered list–UN

Agence France-Presse

|Wednesday, June 27th, 2012

 

A farmer (bottom L) plants rice in a paddy field in the scenic Banaue rice terraces in the northern mountainous Ifugao province on April 16, 2008 that provides local rice supplies to villagers. AFP/TAMMY DAVID

The Philippines’ ancient rice terraces, carved into mountains like giant green stairs, have been removed from a UN list of endangered world heritage sites, the UN office in Manila said Wednesday.

The 2,000-year-old living cultural monuments were put on the World Heritage Committee’s danger list in 2000 at the Philippine government’s request to rally local and international aid, and for better management of their preservation.

“Both actions were successfully undertaken, leading to the conservation of the remote high rice fields,” the UN information office said in a statement.

The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) said it had extended $153,200 to aid Philippine efforts to conserve paddies it said were threatened by deforestation, disuse, climate change and earthquakes.

The terraces, located in five towns in the northern Cordilleras, were named as a UNESCO world heritage site in 1995, citing the need to preserve the traditions of terrace-building peoples in Ifugao province.

Jerry Dalipog, mayor of Banaue town, where two of the five terraced fields are located, said UN-assisted conservation efforts should drive tourist traffic to the sites by up to 30 percent.

“Once the tourists are convinced that there are still terraces left to see, more of them will come and visit us,” he told AFP in a telephone interview.

He said Banaue is set to complete by year’s end a four-month project to repair amphitheatre-shaped rice terraces in the village of Batad, one of the most famous sites, that had been disfigured last year by a huge landslide.

The repair works, estimated to cost 50 million pesos ($1.18 million), are being funded by the government and private donors, Dalipog added.

UNESCO describes the terraces as an “expression of sacred traditions and a delicate social balance,” which have helped create “a landscape of great beauty that expresses the harmony between humankind and the environment.”

...the Trump Tower

Trumps eye more projects in PH

by Cathy Rose A. Garcia,

ABS-CBNnews.com

06/26/2012

MANILA, Philippines - The sons of US real estate magnate Donald Trump are looking forward to working with the Antonio family's Century Properties Group Inc. on more projects in the future.

Donald Jr. and Eric Trump arrived in Manila on Tuesday morning to attend the groundbreaking ceremony for the $150-million (P6-billion) Trump Tower Manila in Century City, Makati City.

US real estate magnate Donald Trump with sons Donald Jr. and Eric and daughter Ivanka, and Century Properties managing director Robbie Antonio.

In a press conference at the Manila Peninsula, the Trumps had nothing but praises for the Antonio family.

"We're incredibly excited to bring the brand here. The Philippines, a country that has done so well in recent years, and taking that and the high-end real estate experience to levels that have never been done here...

When it came time to do a project in the (Philippine) market, we partnered with people who can do the best... Based on the conversations with Robbie and chairman Antonio, this will not be our last project in the Philippines. We're really looking forward to rolling out a number of things," said Donald Jr., executive vice-president of developments and acquisitions of the Trump Organization.

Robbie Antonio, Century Properties managing director and Trump Tower Manila project head, echoed Donald Jr.'s statement, saying: "Hopefully we can do some more projects with the Trump family."

Century City Development Corp., a unit of Century Properties, is developing the skyscraper with the brand name and mark under license from the Trump Organization. The Trump Tower Manila is not owned, developed or sold by the Trumps.

Donald J. Trump might not have visited Manila, but in a videotaped message, he said the project is "something special."

"I will be there soon. It's a great place. I love the Philippines and I really love what we're doing with Trump Tower Manila. My boys Don Jr. and Eric are there, they are really looking forward to this project, it's something special... Trump Tower Manila will be something very, very special, like nobody's seen before," he said.

New York-style luxury

With the Trump name, the residential building brings to mind luxury and exclusivity. Trump is one of the most high-profile American businessmen, thanks to his real estate business, extravagant lifestyle, the hit reality show "The Apprentice" and an aborted campaign to run for President.

Trump Tower Manila

Century Properties said the building, which will be the tallest in the Philippines, will bring New York-style luxury. Among the amenities are a grand lobby, spa, outdoor pool at the 30th floor, juice bar and concierge service.  It is expected to be delivered by 2016.

Eric Trump, EVP of Development & Acquisitions of the Trump Organization, said the Trump Tower Manila would be like a "paradise" in your own building.

"We wanted to do the best building not only in the Philippines but in Asia and the world... Trump buildings are always known to be the tallest, have the best amenities and this building represents that. It is uncompromised when it comes to amenities... This is something we're proud to have our name on," he said.
Jose E.B. Antonio, chairman and president of Century Properties, said bringing the Trump name to the project is more than just branding.

"The project itself is not just the brand, but behind the brand is the quality. They say quality will always be remembered, long after the price is forgotten. That's what we're trying to do with Trump Tower Manila. It's going to be one of the best developments in the Philippines, and we're assisting in creating Manila as a cosmopolitan center for investments and lifestyle," he said.


So far, the Trump name seems to have worked like magic. Units at the Trump Tower Manila have been selling well since it was announced last September.

"We sold 70% of the project in 8 months, we sold the highest price per square meter the Philippines has ever seen," Robbie Antonio said.

The Antonios and Trumps believe there is a strong market demand for luxury branded residential projects in the country.

"Obviously with growing middle class and increase in demand for the uber luxury space, we strive at Century Properties to constantly feed the demand because there is a significant need for it. It's becoming a necessity, not just a want," Robbie Antonio said.

Eric Trump noted buyers are now becoming increasingly conscious about brands, especially in Asia. "People want luxury and they want to live in the best in the Philippines...It's what we deliver as a company, what Century delivers," he said.

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...the music in Pinoy's life

Pinoy musicians sing their way out of poverty

 

By Cecil Morella

Agence France Presse

06/24/2012

 

 

MANILA, Philippines -- On a mock-up stage in a music studio, single-mom Joanna Talibong is singing for her life.

 

The former church-choir girl is nervous and struggling to stay in key as she battles through more than a dozen takes of the syrupy Olivia Newton-John ballad "Suddenly."

If she and keyboard-playing friend Jason Panggoy can get their video-demo right, they stand a chance of securing a series of gigs in South Korea that would enable them to start a long journey out of crushing poverty.

"I did not finish college, so I don't have many job options... overseas I can earn a lot more," the carpenter's daughter tells AFP during a break from singing at the studio in a rundown quarter of the country's capital.

Roughly nine million Filipinos, or 10% of the population, work overseas because there are so few job opportunities in their largely impoverished homeland.

While many toil as largely anonymous maids, sailors, construction workers and labourers in foreign countries, tens of thousands also stand under spotlights entertaining crowds as singers and musicians.

From high-class hotel bars in the Middle East to Las Vegas casinos, ex-pat pubs in Asia and luxury cruise liners sailing the Caribbean, Filipinos are often found performing near-perfect cover versions of almost any genre.

Artist review

Talibong is desperate to join them, or she will be forced back to a bar in a small northern Philippine city where for the past three months she and Panggoy have played to tobacco traders and travelling salesmen for $3.50 a night.

Adding to her problems is her nine-month-old son, who has a clubbed foot and lives with his grandparents while Talibong pursues her musical career.

Her manager has lined up a six-month booking for Talibong and Panggoy at bars in South Korea that would pay them each $800 a month, and she knows exactly where her first pay cheques would be be spent.

"My priority is an operation for my son's clubbed foot. That's really my goal. That's what's pushing me to work really hard," says Talibong, who is just 21 years old.

But first the duo's demo tape -- which also includes a Taylor Swift and Matchbox 20 numbers -- must pass muster with the artist review board in Seoul, a review process that takes about a month.

Their manager, Wilma Ipil, who has been sending an average of two bands to South Korea every month since 2008, concedes the duo may not get the gig, amid growing competition from other Filipino talents trying to make it overseas.

"Previously, even inexperienced musicians got hired," says Ipil, who sang in Hong Kong, Thailand and China herself before going into band management.

"But now, with the wealth of talent available, promoters have become more discriminating."

Nevertheless, the demand for Filipino performers overseas is enormous, according to Jackson Gan, the head of the music studio where Talibong is recording her demo.

"Our only competition is ourselves. The whole world knows that if you have a low budget but need quality, you get Filipino talent," says Gan, who also acts as an agent for other export acts.

Music culture

Gan estimates between 25,000 and 30,000 Filipino musicians and singers play in 3,000 clubs, hotels, cruise ships and restaurants around the world at any one time. The pay generally ranges from $800 to 1,500 a month, according to Gan.

He says even Malaysian, Indonesian, Australian, and Chinese bands tend to recruit Filipina lead singers.
Gan attributes the success of Filipino performers overseas to the deep roles music and dance have in local culture.

Singing contests are often the highlights of village fairs and beauty contests, while song and dance are a staple of the most popular national television game shows.

Karaoke is one of the country's most loved forms of entertainment, with guests at weddings and birthday parties expected to be able to belt out songs behind a microphone to entertain their hosts.

Karaoke is also a mainstay at bars, restaurants and shopping centres.

"Some of my singers were discovered at karaoke joints," says Gan, a 20-year veteran of the business, whose scouting regimen sees him serving as judge at singing contests in remote villages across the country.

Gan says Philippine musicians are also well-known for their warm audience rapport, a reflection of a general easygoing nature for which Filipinos are famous.

"That is a very important part of the music. It's not just plain singing," he says.

However, Gan says most performers have a short shelf-life overseas, particularly the female lead singers who often have to end their foreign sojourns when they have babies or for other family reasons.

And although many can copy perfectly the world's most popular songs, few cover band members will ever get a recording contract.

Inspired by Arnel

But there are some inspirational success stories for those who continue to dream of making it big.

The most famous is Arnel Pineda, who for many years fronted Filipino bands in Manila bars and in Hong Kong.

His big break came in 2007 when members of US rock group Journey were looking for a new lead singer and saw clips of him singing the band's songs on YouTube.

Pineda was hired soon after an audition in the United States, and his first album fronting the band debuted in the top 10 of the American Billboard Charts. Pineda and Journey continue to perform at sold-out concerts around the world.

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...the PH gender equality ranking

PH ranks 6th in WB on gender equality

 

By Ted P. Torres

The Philippine Star

06/24/2012

 

 

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines ranks sixth out of 129 countries in gender equality, a World Bank (WB) study showed.

 

But WB country director Motoo Konishi said there are a lot of challenges remain despite the country’s advancement in gender equality.

“The maternal mortality rate is still very disturbing, cultural differences among the indigenous people still discriminate against women and of course, the prevailing poor economic conditions threatened by increasing natural disasters,” Konishi said at the formal launching last Thursday of the study entitled “Toward Gender Equality in East Asia and the Pacific.”

Konishi added that economic growth would not be sustainable unless the Philippine government puts in place more policies that encourage gender equality.

The WB report said worker productivity in the Philippines and the rest of the East Asia and the Pacific region has the potential of expanding by 18 percent if women are given wider space.

WB lead economist and principal author of the report Andrew Mason said East Asia and the Pacific region is vast and diverse, with large differences in economic and social progress, including toward gender equality.

“In some ways, women in the region are better positioned today than ever before to participate in, contribute to, and benefit from development. But much more needs to be done,” Mason said.

The report noted that Filipino women only get 76 percent of what men earn. Also, women in the Philippines and the rest of the region are more likely to work in small firms, the informal sector and lower-paid sectors.

“Healthier, better educated mothers have healthier, better educated children. So if we can make the right decisions and allocate the right resource now, we are also investing in the next generation of Filipinos,” the report said.

Social Welfare and Development Secretary Corazon Soliman, for her part, said much remains to be done even though the Philippines has achieved much in encouraging gender equality.

“If human beings were discriminated according to gender, then development is incomplete,” Soliman said.

She said of the 7.4 million underemployed in the country, 32.4 percent or 2.4 million are women, while 67.6 percent or 5 million are men.

Soliman also noted that a woman heads one in every five families and has more income compared to a male-headed family.

“In addition, these female heads are more highly educated than the male-led families,” she said.

Soliman said majority of micro-borrowers are women, as they are considered more credit-worthy than their male counterparts.

She said the Philippines is also known globally for having two female heads of state.

“However, men continue to dominate majority of the senior posts in electoral positions where women account for only 23.2 percent,” she said.

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