|
THE reporters from
Philippine Daily Inquirer
and
BusinessWorld
topped the winners in the 2008 Jose G. Burgos Jr. Awards
for Biotech Journalism which awarding ceremonies was
held on Thursday, November 27, at the Institute for
Small-Scale Industries (ISSI) in the University of the
Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City.
Anselmo Roque
of the Philippine Daily Inquirer
bagged the first prize in
the Best
Feature Story category
for his article
"Carabao
may be key to biofuel, says scientist", while
Eric Dorente of
BusinessWorld won the first prize in the
Best News Story
Category for his article "Biotech and GMO use on the
rise in RP."
The
Manila Bulletin,
BusinessMirror
and
The
Philippine Star
won the first, second and third prizes,
respectively, in the institutional category for
supporting the information dissemination of biotech
stories by printing the most number of such stories.
Melody Aguiba of Manila
Bulletin was conferred the
Hall of Fame award
for having won the top prize in the J.Burgos
biotechnology awards in the past three years.
Special citations were given
to Sonny Tababa former Network Administrator of Searca-Biotech
Information Unit, and to Dr. Randy Hautea, Global
Coordinator and SEAsia Center Director of the
International Service for the Acquisition
of Agri-biotech Applications
(ISAAA) for effectively promoting biotechnology in their
respective fields.
The other awardees for the
Best Feature category are: Doreen Yu (Philippine Star),
second place, for her article "Scientist of the Year:
Baldomero M. Olivera discovers poisonous secrets;" and
Emmanuel Libre Osorio (BusinessMirror), third place, for
"The future in a grain: The Rice Profit Protocol prompts
the birth of an innovative school." Two articles of
Tessa Salazar of Philippine Daily Inquirer were
among the finalists. They were "RP seas may hold key to
cancer cure" and "4 MIT students eye 'malunggay' for
fuel."
The other awardees for the
Best News category are: Dennis Estopace (BusinessMirror),
second place, for his story "Pinoy scientists speed up
filing of US patents to secure their sea-snails
studies;" and Jojo de Guzman (Malaya), third
place, for "Rice that can withstand 2-week submergence
developed." The finalists in this category are Conrad
Cariño (Manila Times) for article "Coconut, 'malunggay'
present golden opportunity to farmers;" and Danny Calleja
(BusinessMirror) for his "'Smart' biofuel crops now
being promoted."
The winners in the Best
Feature and Best News categories received cash prizes of
P30,000, P20,000 and P10,000, for the first, second and
third prizes, respectively, and plaques. Winners in the
other categories received plaques.
Keynoting the ceremonies was
foremost Filipino scientist Dr. William Padolina, the
current deputy director general of the
International Rice Research Institute
(IRRI) and former secretary of the
Department of Science and Technology
(DOST).
The annual biotech
journalism award, which started in 2005, was part of the
celebration of the National Biotechnology Week from
November 24
to 29.
This year's board of judges
was composed of experts in biotechnology and
communication, and from the academe. They are Dr.
Patricio Faylon, executive director of the Philippine
Council for Agriculture, Forestry and National Resources
(PCARRD) and the board of judges chairman; Dr. Gaudencio
Petalcorin Jr., national president of Biotechnology
Information and Organization Network (BIONet); Dr.
Saturnina Halos, chairperson of the Department of
Agriculture-Biotechnology Advisory Team; Rolly Estabillo,
vice president for corporate communications of
Philippine Airlines;
and Angelo Palmones, president of
Philippine Science Journalists
Association of the Philippines
Inc.(PSciJourn).
The 2008 Jose G. Burgos Jr. Awards for
Biotech Journalism was organized by the Biotech Media
and
Advocacy Resource Center
(BMARC), a consortium that promotes the government's
biotech program. BMARC is composed of the Department of
Agriculture-Biotech Program Office, Philippine Council
for Agriculture, Forestry and
Natural Resources
and Development (PCARRD-DOST), Southeast Asian Regional
Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (Searca),
Biotech Coalition of the Philippines (BCP), and the
J.Burgos Media Services Inc. |
