Mindanao scientist wins prestigious Green Talents Award from German government – Manila bulletin

Science and the Filipino people

Dr Chosel Lawagon, a Filipino scientist, was among this year’s winners of the prestigious “Green Talents – International Forum for High Potentials in Sustainable Development” organized by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) last week.

Officials from the Philippine Embassy in Berlin attended the virtual award ceremony and were given a private virtual room to interact with Dr Lawagon.

The Green Talents International Forum offers an international competition for outstanding young scientists committed to promoting sustainability in their communities. Dr Lawagon was among 25 applicants selected by a panel of German experts from 467 applicants from 78 countries.

Dr Lawagon is Director of the Center for Green Nanotechnology Innovations for Environmental Solutions at the University of Mindanao (UM). Its objective is the recovery of waste thanks to nanotechnology. One of his research projects, funded by the Philippine Department of Science and Technology, focuses on converting waste into nanoparticles that can be incorporated into smart concrete. This project could help meet the need for more resilient infrastructure in the earthquake-prone city of Mindanao.

His second research project focuses on the integration of nanomaterials from agricultural and plastic waste in a nanogenerator. This has the potential to be a cheaper renewable energy alternative to solar panels.

In collaboration with the College of Engineering and the College of Arts and Sciences at UM, Dr Lawagon is also conducting research on the impact of landfill leachate on rivers near the city of Davao.

As a Green Talent Laureate, Dr Lawagon participated in the Green Talent Virtual Science Forum, which gave her and her fellow award winners an overview of the German sustainability research landscape and opportunity to network with German researchers. She will travel to Germany next year for three months of research at a German partner institution of her choice.

Dr Lawagon returned to the Philippines in 2020 as part of DOST’s Balik science program.

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