Indie-Siyensya to Honor Winning Science Films on Nov. 28

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The Department of Science and Technology-Science Education Institute will award the winners of the third Indie-Siyensya science filmmaking competition on November 28, Wednesday, at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City.

The winners were chosen by Indie-Siyensya's distinguished board of judges from the final entries submitted in the Youth and Open categories, with the themes "What My Community Needs Now" and "What My Country Needs Now," respectively.

Three films from each category will receive trophies and cash prizes: 100,000 pesos for the Best Film, 50,000 pesos for the second prize and 25,000 pesos for the third prize. The competition's main organizer will also give a special Viewer’s Choice Award, with a cash prize of 10,000 pesos, to the film with the most number of votes from the Indie-Siyensya audience.

Judging this year's Indie-Siyensya are advocacy filmmaker and educator Seymour Sanchez from the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde Digital Filmmaking program and Far Eastern University Department of Communication; Prof. Patrick Campos, director of the University of the Philippines Film Institute; Prof. Garry Jay Montemayor, chair of the Department of Science Communication, College of Development Communication, UP Los Baños; Dr. Mudjekeewis "Mudjie" Santos, father and founder of the Genetic Fingerprinting Laboratory under the Department of Agriculture-National Fisheries Research and Development Institute; and astrophysicist and data scientist Dr. Reinabelle "Reina" Reyes, who became known as "the Filipina who proved Einstein right" with her work on his Theory of Relativity.

The judges screened more than 300 film concept proposals for short documentaries that capture science as it works to answer the needs of communities and the country. The criteria for judging are Scientific Content and Adherence to the Theme (50% for the Youth category and 40% for the Open category), Execution of Idea (30% for both categories), and Film Techniques (20% for Youth and 30% for Open).

“We were surprised by the number of individuals and groups interested in joining this year’s Indie-Siyensya. We’re hopeful that projects like this will encourage more students to choose science courses,” DOST-SEI Director Dr. Josette Biyo shared.

Indie-Siyensya partnered with the Film Development Council of the Philippines to hold a free science communication and film workshop last July 6 at the Cinematheque Centre Manila. The workshop, which aims to help equip participants with the skills needed to create visually appealing and credible science films, was facilitated by Montemayor, 2017 Breakthrough Junior Challenge Challenge winner Hillary Diane Andales and director of photography Joshua Reyles.

Aside from organizing Indie-Siyensya, DOST-SEI primarily spearheads the country’s premier science scholarship programs and conducts teacher training and science promotion programs for the youth.

Planning a Holiday To Philippines? Incorporate a Visit to Calauit Safari Park – A Great Safari Experience

Wazzup Pilipinas!

When the word Safari is mentioned, most people only think of an African Safari adventure mainly due to the African jungle and the abundance of wildlife choice available for sighting in the African bush. However, unknown to many, Philippines is home to Calauit Safari Park that is located in the Calauit Island which is part of the Calamin Islands chain.

If you are planning to have a holiday in Philippines, then you seriously need to consider making a visit to Calauit Safari Park. The park was established in the year 1976 after H.E. President Kenyatta (Then President of the Republic of Kenya) made a request to other countries to help in protecting African wildlife that was threatened by the war and drought.

The Government of Philippines opted for Calauit Island due to the fact that it was ideally located and had vegetation, size, and terrain that was ideal for the wildlife park. The tribes that resided in the island were thus relocated so that they could make way for 8 different species of the African wildlife.

Wildlife to Spot in Calauit Island
By visiting Calauit Island, you will likely spot the following animals:

Reticulated Giraffe – It is also referred to as Somali Giraffe and it originates from the Horn of Africa. Mainly, this species resides in Northern parts of Kenya, Somalia, and Southern part of Ethiopia.  As of the year 2017, it was reported that there were twenty-seven reticulated giraffes in Calauit safari park.

Grevy’s Zebra – This is usually the largest zebra species. Even though only fifteen zebras had been brought from in to the park, as of the year 2016, it was reported that there were about 34 Grevy’s zebra in the park. The increased population of the Zebra has been attributed to the absence of natural predators in the park.

Philippine Crocodile – At the moment, there are four Philippines crocodiles residing in the park even though there has been attempts to increasing the crocodile population through breeding with success been experienced as some of the eggs that had been laid by the female crocodile were hatched.

The Palawan Bearded Pig – This is one of the endangered pig species. As a result, the management of the park have dedicated a lot of efforts to ensuring that the pigs are safeguarded.

Mousedeer – It is also referred to as Balabac Chevrotain and in Filipino (Philippines native language), it is referred to as Pilandok. The population of the mousedeer in Calauit safari park is more than twenty-two.

Bearcart – This is usually a viverrid native to South and Southeast Asia. It is quite endangered as 30% of its population is reported to have died in the last 30 years. There are a few bearcats in Calauit safari park.

Therefore, if you hoping to visit Philippines anytime soon, you might consider including a visit to Calauit safari park in your itinerary – you definitely will love the experience.

Written by Ray Kiarie. A senior safari consultant at Safari Fellows. Ray has spent much of his time travelling to various safari destinations in East Africa region. When not designing custom safaris, you are likely to find him on a safari with his camera gear as he is in love with wildlife photography.

Leading Emerging Markets Real Estate Platform Lamudi Receives Investment from Ringier AG and Axel Springer

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Lamudi, one of the leading real estate platforms today, announced that the company has recently welcomed two of the world’s largest media and online classifieds companies, Axel Springer SE and Ringier, as new investors. Both companies will share a seat in the advisory board, which will for now be taken over by Ringier. The funding amount is not made public, but Kian Moini, Co-Founder and CEO of Lamudi, states that “the majority of funding can and will be spent on growth given the company’s comfortable financial situation and a clear path to breakeven.”

Launched in late 2013 with Rocket Internet, Lamudi is a leading global real estate platform focusing exclusively on emerging markets. The fast-growing platform has active property portals available in Asia (Philippines, Indonesia, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka) and Latin America (Mexico, Colombia, Peru). Lamudi counts well-known investors including Asia Pacific Internet Group (APACIG), a joint venture of Rocket Internet and Ooredoo, Holtzbrinck Ventures, and Tengelmann Ventures.

"We have proven to be of high value to consumers and industry players along the search and marketing of real estate. The new funding round will help us accelerate that, as well as significantly expand our efforts to add value along the transaction,” Kian Moini says. “Beyond the capital, we look forward to benefiting from the learnings and knowledge of the marketplaces and transactional property businesses which are part of the portfolios of Axel Springer and Ringier.”

Ringier AG, Switzerland's leading international media enterprise, is a prominent digital marketplaces investor in emerging markets across CEE, Africa, and SEA. Robin Lingg, Head of Marketplaces at Ringier, states “Ringier stands for investing in sustainable value creation. Lamudi very much matches our vision, as well as our interest in localized business models and country footprint. We have been deeply impressed by the company’s operative level of sophistication, its global and local management team’s capabilities, and eagerness to create value. We believe that Kian and his team will drive significant change in the real estate industry in SEA and Mexico.”

Andreas Wiele, President Classifieds Media Axel Springer SE, adds “The team of Lamudi has built, under the leadership of Kian Moini, a fast-growing business in attractive markets. As one of the largest operators in the digital real estate space, we are convinced that we can help to further this development with our know-how and expertise.”

“With this latest round of funding, we're positive that Lamudi, which is already positioned as the number one player in the market, will continue its growth path more aggressively in the Philippines,” says Lamudi Philippines CEO Bhavna Suresh. "It will fast-track our development into the provinces and help bring more industry practitioners online, thus making sure their businesses flourish. We are connectors and we believe that through digital, we bring transparency to the real estate market. This funding is going to help us move the needle much further in this regard."