Former UPOU Chancellor and UPLB Professor Felix Librero has been appointed member of the UP Board of Regents, the highest policy making body in the University. His appointment is effective from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2008.

Regent Librero aims to formulate proposals to the BOR based on a synthesis of information reported by the past faculty regents. He is certain that the fundamental concerns of the faculty members, as reported by his predecessors, have not changed much in the last few years.

The avocado (Persea americana Miller) is one of the promising fruit-bearing trees in the country. However, the avocado industry is hobbled by problems concerning Phytophthora root rot disease.

Phytophthora is a fungus that causes rapid decay of roots and trunk, eventually leading to the death of the infected avocado tree. Presently, there is no known avocado variety in the Philippines that is resistant to this fungus.

Do we respond to climate change through mitigation or adaptation?

“Ideally we should do both, but under heavy resource constraints, we must prioritize adaptation.” This is according to Dr. Rex Victor Cruz, head of the CFNR Environmental Forestry Program and a coordinating lead author of the fourth assessment report of the United Nations Environmental Programme-World Meteorological Organization Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which was recently awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, along with former US Vice President Al Gore. Other coordinating lead authors from the CFNR were Dr. Rodel Lasco and Dr. Juan Pulhin.

Joining the prestigious circle of professors emeriti are three outstanding UPLB academicians: Dr. Teresita Rosario, Dr. Ernesto J. Del Rosario and Dr. Ma. Cristina D. Padolina.

Dr. Teresita Rosario is an expert plant breeder from the Crop Science Cluster who has served the University for 33 years. She taught seven different courses in Horticulture, and five undergraduate and graduate courses in Genetics for the Institute of Biological Science, where she served as affiliate professor.

It is said that you reap what you sow. But it seems not to be so with our rice and corn farmers. They invest in inputs and are soon left with an empty bag after battling gargantuan obstacles such as erratic weather, unhealthy soil conditions, pestilence, and cheaper imports. Moreover, they also have to fight for their share of government incentives; and as stakeholders for their participation in policy formulation.