Pinoy Scientists in the Philippines

Dr. Erwin Don Racasa is a licensed chemist, environmental scientist, and Associate Professor at the School of Environmental Science and Management of the UPLB. He studied ground water from coastal fen peatlands.

With a story that will be music to your ears, this week we have Benedic “Ben” Justine Velasco, an Audio Conservation Laboratory Assistant for the University of the Philippines (UP) Center for Ethnomusicology and Master’s student in Archives and Records Management. Ben started out his journey in 2011 at the UP Diliman College of Music. […]

Dr. Michelle Marie Villamayor is an Associate Professor and College Research Coordinator at the Central Mindanao University Department of Physics. She founded a plasma physics laboratory at Central Mindanao University and has remained there until now.

Zoren Mabunga, PhD is an electronics engineer and Assistant Professor at the Southern Luzon State University. His research interests span artificial intelligence, Internet of Things and wireless sensor networks.

Patrick De Vera is an Assistant Professor at the Manila Central University, College of Medical Technology. He is currently involved in research projects profiling antimicrobial resistance in hospital wastewater in Caloocan City, as well as a pilot study broadly investigating hospital wastewater-based epidemiology.

Dr Daryl Joe Santos is an Assistant Professorial Lecturer at De La Salle University and Assistant Professor II at Rizal Technological University. Daryl’s research interests span the physics of active galactic nuclei and studying them through various techniques, including interferometry, spectroscopy, and photometry.

Catherine “Cath” Mandigma, RND is a board-certified nutritionist-dietitian specialising in astronaut nutrition and commercial spaceflight. Cath works to advance the intersection of nutrition and space science.

Julius Lustro is an Associate Professor at the Department of Mechanical Engineering at UP Diliman. Julius now teaches fluids and thermal engineering courses and has led further projects on turbulence and indoor air quality.

Dr Natasha Benitez is the Chief of Health Informatics at the San Carlos City Health Office. To address the rising HIV cases among youth and other vulnerable populations, she now leads an initiative that aims to expand outreach, strengthen community education, and make testing more accessible and youth-friendly.

Dr. Angel Bautista VII is the current Supervising Science Research Specialist and Section Head of the Nuclear Materials Research Section of the DOST-PNRI. His work focuses on analytical and isotope techniques for fields such as nuclear cycle research, geochronology, and environmental radioactivity, among others.

Jose Alfonso Ignacio “Oey” Mirabueno is a project coordinator for the Bachelor of Music Curriculum Review of the University of the Philippines (UP) College of Music. His work revolved around decolonizing heritage curation through improving accessibility, transferring agency, and diversifying the dialogue around sound recordings made by colonial powers and heritage curation.

Denise Alcantara Garcia is a freelance writer and editor, and Academic Service Faculty at the Br. Alfred Shields FSC Ocean Research Center at De La Salle University.

Phoebe Nicole Perez, Ph.D is an affiliate researcher and project leader at the Department of Science and Technology – Industrial Technology Development Institute (DOST – ITDI). She leads their “Characterization of vector-borne viruses using Raman spectroscopy for the Virology and Vaccine Institute of the Philippines” project.

Dr. Izrael Zenar Bautista is a licensed Electronics Engineer and a Chief Science Research specialist at the Philippine Space Agency’s Space Mission and Control Operation Division. He specializes in satellite engineering and operations.

Dr. James Cesar “Jace” Refran is the Supervising Science Research Specialist at the Earth Sciences Space Mission Studies Division of PhilSA. He is currently studying the utilization of space technologies for hazard preparedness in the country.

Dr. Ernest Macalalad of the Philippine Space Agency is a Chief Science Research Specialist at the agency’s Interdisciplinary Space Missions Development Division and a professor at the Mapúa University Department of Physics.

Paige Magtaan is a public school science teacher at Kapt. Jose Cardones Integrated School. She is a school science coordinator and a Journalism Trainer, with a focus on science news.

The D&C Research Group is an interdisciplinary hub committed to advancing data-driven astrophysics, computational physics, and data science for social good. Their research includes observational to gravitational wave astronomy, physics-informed machine learning methods, and data science for social good.

Ara Joy Pacoma is a Science and Technology (S&T) Fellow at the Department of Science and Technology and a soon-to-be PhD graduate from Chulalongkorn University, Thailand for Environment, Development, and Sustainability. She is currently working on the Community Empowerment Thru Science & Technology Program and the Smart and Sustainable Communities Program.

Rebecca “Becca” Georgia Yu is a graphic designer and science communicator who specializes in marine science. She is a freelance designer and a Research Associate at the Marine Science Institute (MSI), University of the Philippines.