NAST Environmental Science Award: An invitation to take care of our environment

Dr Maria Obiminda L Cambaliza, chair of the Department of Physics and research scientist at the Manila Observatory, received the 2022 National Academy of Science and Technology Environmental Science Award. She presented the paper entitled Spatiotemporal Assessment of PM2.5 Exposure of a High-risk Occupational Group in a Southeast Asian Megacity in the online paper presentation of the NAST awards. The interdisciplinary study, she emphasized, was accomplished by the collaboration and hard work of an army of researchers from the various departments at the Loyola Schools: Department of Physics, Department of Environmental Science, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, and collaborators from the Manila Observatory, Academia Sinica,Taiwan, and Epimetrics, Inc. It was supported by the International Science Council Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (ISCROAP) and the Coastal Cities at Risk in the Philippines (CCAR-PH) project.

The humble beginnings of this study came when Cambaliza participated in a workshop in Taiwan together with Dr Kendra Gotangco - Gonzales from the Department of Environmental Science and Ms Melliza Cruz, a Senior Research Associate of the Air Quality Dynamic Laboratory in the Manila Observatory. The workshop focused on analyzing and  addressing problems related to disaster risk using systems thinking approach with a special emphasis on air quality, as air pollution is considered as a contributor to slow-onset climate disasters. With the recent talks involving jeepney modernization, they came up with the idea of studying the daily air quality experienced by jeepney drivers around the Katipunan area. Several institutions and some researchers and students gave their time, effort, and expertise to make this project a reality. Cambaliza added that they coordinated with the Office for Social Concern and Involvement to help them reach out to the jeepney drivers.

This recognition, she feels, serves as an invitation and encouragement for everyone about the gravity of taking care of the environment. In addition, it allows young scientists to perceive this field of science as a way of contributing to the betterment and protection of the environment. With this award, Cambaliza hopes to pave more research opportunities to contribute to environmental protection. It also validates the willingness of individuals to help others in need. Cambaliza shared an anecdote in the research:  student researchers who helped gather data raised funds during the height of the pandemic to support the jeepney drivers they interacted with.

"If you're interested in science, go for it; you'll find God in everything, and you'll find God in science, too," she said. However, she added that it is essential to use one's God-given gifts to serve the community.

"Everything is a gift;  everything we have comes from our God who cannot be outdone in generosity, so we'll use that gift for our society."