Filipino academics from higher education institutions in the Philippines, Europe, and North America gathered at the Philippine Embassy in Berlin today for an afternoon fellowship hosted by Philippine Ambassador to Germany Theresa Dizon-De Vega.
The event dubbed “Salu-Salo sa Embahada” included a tour of the new chancery and a briefing on the Embassy’s latest initiatives, particularly its partnership with Humboldt University on the promotion of Philippine Studies.
The guests also had the opportunity to exchange views and apprise each other of latest developments in their respective fields over a hearty Filipino lunch.
In her welcome remarks, Ambassador Dizon-De Vega informed the group about the first-ever Philippine Studies Program in a German institution with the launch last July 2019 of the Advancing PH Studies Program at Humboldt University, a 3-year program which aims to promote Philippine studies including the Philippine language in Germany. The program is being managed by Filipino Assistant Professor Rosa Del Castillo of Humboldt University. Ambassador Dizon-De Vega lauded the dynamic and active participation of Philippine Studies academicians across various disciplines at the EUROSEAS Conference in order to engage the international academic world in multi-disciplinary discussions about PH conditions which takes into account the PH perspective of our history and culture.
The academics are in Berlin for the 2019 European Association for Southeast Asian Studies (EUROSEAS) Conference, a gathering of academics and other experts on various fields from different parts of the world. This year’s four-day conference is hosted by Humboldt University.
Twenty-one (21) Filipino delegates were beneficiaries of the travel subsidy provided by the Philippine Government as part of the Embassy-Humboldt University partnership agreement. END