Philippines Holds #AtomsForPhilippineProgress Exhibit

(Left to right) Dr. Jane Abaya, Director of Technical Cooperation for Asia and the Pacific, Amb. Evangelina Lourdes Bernas, IAEA Deputy Director General Hua Liu, PNRI Director Carlo Arcilla, and National Liaison Officer Elen Conjares during the launching of the Atoms for Philippine Progress Exhibit (photo from Vienna PE)

VIENNA 13 October 2023. The Philippine delegation to the 67th International Atomic Energy Agency General Conference (67th IAEA GC) featured several groundbreaking projects on peaceful uses of nuclear science and technology (NST) in the #AtomsForPhilippineProgress Exhibit at the sidelines of the 67th IAEA GC at the Vienna International Center, Austria. The exhibit included the nuclear research reactor designed and built by Philippine scientists.

Curated by the Department of Science and Technology - Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (DOST-PNRI), the exhibit featured various NST applications supported by the IAEA Technical Cooperation Program such as the Carrageenan Plant Growth Promoter (PGP), a plant-food supplement that increases crop yields; isotope techniques for extending the shelf life of food products; the Philippine Research Reaction-1 Subcritical Assembly for Training, Education and Research (PRR-1 SATER), the Philippines’ first and only nuclear reactor; the NUclear TEChnology for Controlling Plastic Pollution (NUTEC), a regional project utilizing nuclear technology for plastics recycling, wherein the Philippines is one of the pilot countries; and the introduction of nuclear science to universities and secondary schools.

The Exhibit was attended by delegates of the 67th IAEA GC, UN personnel, and various IAEA officials. IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi, Deputy Director General for Technical Cooperation Hua Liu, Director for Technical Cooperation-Asia and the Pacific Dr. Jane Abaya, and Director of the Policy Making Organs Ambassador Maria Cleofe Natividad. During the launching of the Exhibit, Deputy Director General Liu, as guest speaker, commended the promising range of IAEA-backed initiatives of the Philippines that harness the peaceful uses of nuclear energy to support the country’s progress toward its development goals. Director General Grossi underscored the importance of the Philippines’ cooperation with the IAEA and praised, in particular ,the “legendary” status of Philippine mangoes, one of the featured food products whose longevity was improved through the use of nuclear technology. END

During the launching of the Atoms for Philippine Progress Exhibit, IAEA Deputy Director General Hua Liu receives from Ambassador Evangelina Lourdes Bernas and PNRI Director Carlo Arcilla a basket of Philippine products some of which utilized the various applications of nuclear science and technology featured in the exhibit.(photo from Vienna PE)

(Left to right) Dr. Chitho Felciano, and Mr. Ryan Olivares, PNRI Delegates, Ambassador Maria Cleofe Natividad, IAEA Director of Policy Making Organs, Ambassador Evangelina Lourdes Bernas, Dr. Jane Abaya, IAEA Director of Technical Cooperation for Asia and the Pacific, PNRI Director Carlo Arcilla, and Dr. Jordan Madrid during the launching of the Atoms for Philippine Progress Exhibit (photo from Vienna PE)

(Left to right) Alternate Representative Dan Bagaporo, National Liaison Officer Ana Elena Conjares, Ambassador Evangelina Lourdes Bernas, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi, PNRI Director Carlo Arcilla, IAEA Director of Technical Cooperation for Asia and the Pacific, PNRI Director Carlo Arcilla, Ambassador Maria Cleofe Natividad, IAEA Director of Policy Making Organs, and Multilateral Section Assistant Sophia Natividad during the launching of the Atoms for Philippine Progress Exhibit. Director General Grossi was presented with a basket of Philippine products, some of which utilized the various applications of nuclear science and technology featured in the exhibit. (photo from Vienna PE)

For more information, visit https://www.viennape.dfa.gov.ph, https://www.philippine-embassy.at  or https://www.facebook.com/PHinAustria/,  https://www.twitter.com/PHLinAustria  or https://www.instagram.com/phinaustria/