PhilSA official elected as president of Outreach Technical Commission of ISPRS – Manila Bulletin
For the first time, a Filipino has been elected as president of the International Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS) Technical Commission on Education and Outreach through Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) Deputy Director General for Space Science and Technology Dr. Gay Jane P. Perez.
According to PhilSA, the ISPRS is a non-government organization devoted to the development of international cooperation for the advancement of photogrammetry and remote sensing and their applications.
The Philippines has been an active member of the ISPRS through the Philippine Geosciences and Remote Sensing Society (PhilGRSS). In 2015, the country hosted the Asian Conference on Remote Sensing. In response to her nomination to lead TC V, Dr. Perez highlighted that with the creation of PhilSA, the Philippines is “poised to further advance space science and remote sensing through education and outreach.”
The scientific and technical work of the ISPRS is accomplished by five Technical Commissions. ISPRS Commission V, or Technical Commission V (TC V), focuses on education and outreach, and strives to promote capacity-building and know-how and technology transfer across all fields of geoinformatics, which include remote sensing, photogrammetry, and spatial information sciences.
“This is accomplished through the development of cost-effective teaching methods applicable to different levels of learners – students, educators, practitioners – and designed to bridge the gap between rapid advances in science and technology and its practical applications,” PhilSA said.
For this, PhilSA has the Advanced Degrees for Accelerating STRAtegic Space R&D and Applications, or AD Astra Scholarships. Currently underway is the Fulbright Philippines Space Science and Technology Applications Scholarship Program. Aside from offering scholarships, PhilSA is working on integrating space science and technology applications (SSTA) into the basic education curriculum.
The space agency is also partnering with government and private sectors for its nationwide know-how and technology transfer program, under the ISKUELA, or the Inclusive SSTA Knowhow, Utilization, Exchange, and Localization Activities.
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