AMERICAN RESEARCHERS/MARTIAL ARTISTS VISIT NEGROS By: James U. Sy Jr.

Dr. Ronald A. Harris and his students Christian Weber Adam Seifert and Thomas Demetrice Eatmon Jr. (3rd to 5th from left) with Asst. Ms. Ponteras and Balayan Director Teresita Barcoma (5th and 4th from left) at the University of St. La Salle.

Dr. Ronald A. Harris and his students Christian Weber Adam Seifert and Thomas Demetrice Eatmon Jr. visited the Philippines last May 2006 to conduct research on various matters relating to sustainable development and to forge a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with some domestic universities, colleges, and industrial plants.

Dr. Harris holds a Ph.D. in political economy and has served as chair of the Ph.D. program in Public Policy at the Southern University in the USA since 1996. Seifert and eatmon are doctoral fellows at the same university. Dr. Harris availed of a study grant for the trip. The grant award came from the Mondialogo International Engineering Award and the US National Science Foundation.

The three researchers visited Holcim Cement Plant in Bulacan, Luzon to learn more about cement production; International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in UP los Baños; Boracay for energy management; Engr. Belonio at the central Philippine University in Iloilo City for rice husk/hull; University of the Philippines-Visayas (UP-V) in Miag-ao for coastal zone concerns; Balayan Director Teresita Barcoma and Graduate School Dean Donna Echaus at the University of St. La Salle in Bacolod; Habitat Housing Project in Tangub for low cost housing; Victorias Milling Company (VICMICO) in Victorias for bagas and fuel; Kabankalan for low cost construction materials; and Clodualdo “Budoy” M. Lobrido in Bago City for rice cultivation.

Other subjects they researched include organic agriculture, sustainable agriculture and foresting, environmental concerns, coastal management, volcanic ash, community empowerment, and alternative energy sources.

Dr. Harris, who is certified in several martial arts including Muay Thai, and Seifert, an active regional level MMA fighter, punctuated their visit in the Philippines by conducting the 1st Negros Occidental Mixed Martial Arts Seminar “Cage Fighting Fundamentals” on June 3, 2006 at the Philippine Integrated Martial Arts Academy-Filipino Tang Soo Do Association (PIMAA-FTSDA) Gym, Group K Complex, Brgy. Tangub, Bacolod City.