Short link: https://wp.me/paaccn-LXQ
- EDD K. USMAN | X (Twitter): @edd1819 | Instagram: @bluestar0910 |Facebook: SDN – SciTech & Digital News
LUCCA HOTEL, Legazpi City, Bicol Region (SDN) — Filipinos of various ethnic communities now have a chance to understand better the science behind disasters and, perhaps be more ready, in coping with their impact.
DANAS: Earthquake, Tsunami, and Volcano Disaster Narratives for Experiential Knowledge-based Science Communication” will make communicating science easier, a two-year research study through a P19.87-million funding from the Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development (PCIEERD), the Innovation Council of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST). A Filipino word, Danas means experience.
Through the research project with the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (DOST-PHIVOLCS) as implementing agency, “DANAS aims to capitalize on laypeople’s firsthand knowledge of past crisis scenarios through in-depth interviews conducted in their native tongues.”
DOST Secretary Dr. Renato U. Solidum, Jr. cited the importance of hearing out what happened in past disasters and people cope with them and communicate them in local dialects.
“The DANAS Sourcebooks highlight the importance of community voices in disaster management. This shows how valuable experiences and local narratives are in crafting effective disaster management strategies,” he notes in a statement through PCIEERD reaching SDN – SciTech and Digital News.
He emphasized how the DOST’s commitment in “safeguarding lives and livelihoods by reinforcing wealth protection.”
As is popularly known, the Philippines — through no fault of its own — is notoriously in the path of typhoons that hit more or less 20 times annually. Imagine the tool on life, infrastructure, agriculture, business, not to say to the Filipino psyche — hundreds, even thousands of lives, and billions of pesos being lost on a yearly basis.
Sourcebooks combined disaster survivors’ experiences and scientific data
No wonder the country is hard pressed, apparently, in sustaining its momentum for economic growth and development as disasters are like gauntlets setting back progress — especially in the region’s visited by typhoons — not to say nationwide.
PCIEERD believes that effective science communication can be a tool for better understanding natural disasters as enunciated by PCIEERD Executive Director Dr. Enrico C. Paringit. .
“We believe that effective science communication is key to addressing ongoing challenges and natural disasters. This is why, at DOST-PCIEERD, we will continuously invest in bridging the gap between scientific knowledge and public awareness through science communication,” says Paringit.
DOST’s sourcebooks, which contain real-life experiences of survivors of disasters, were integrated with scientific data to further explain disasters such as volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and tsunamis.
PHIVOLCS, headed by Director Dr. Teresito C. Bacolcol, collaborated with Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University (DMMMSU)-La Union and the University of the Philippines-Visayas (UPV) to realize the goals of the project.
The DOST is harnesses local dialects in coming with the news sourcebooks aimed at intensifying disaster preparedness among communities by translating sourcebooks on earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic events into six Philippine dialects: Tagalog, Hiligaynon, Ilocano, Cebuano, Bicolano, and Kapampangan.
PHIVOLCS Deputy Director and DANAS Project Leader Dr. Ma. Mylene M. Villegas pointed out that the integration of local knowledge into risk communication strategies can help communities better understand and prepare for disasters through familiar and meaningful language.
In 2024, the DANAS Project already bore fruit as the DOST released sourcebooks in Cebuano, Kapampangan, and Tagalog; for 2025, three additional volumes introduced and distributed included Ilocano, Hiligaynon, and Bicolano.
DOST will distribute the DANAS sourcebooks — including the video interviews with the locals — to schools and disaster risk reduction management (DRRM) offices as well as online. (/)