By: Josh Aseo || Photo by: Kiara Gaut

With the theme “Empowering innovation to forge resilient, sustainable, and human-centered infrastructure for a brighter tomorrow,” the Society for the Advancement of Research in Science (SARS), the official science club of Philippine Science High School – Eastern Visayas Campus (PSHS-EVC), held USWAG, a Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) bootcamp on December 2.

To formally kick off the event, Dr. Rosalinda Paciencia, Division of Student Affairs Chief, gave the opening message which emphasized how scholars should use the experience they gained from this event to propel their passion, in order to advance the pillars of knowledge that shape the world.

“Throughout this journey, we invite you to embrace the spirit of inquiry, unravel the mysteries that beckon, and harness the power of collaboration as you traverse the intricate landscape of Science, Technology, and Mathematics,” she said.

Three guest speakers shared their insights for the entire morning session, namely Engr. Erica Gomez, PSHS-EVC alumnus and topnotcher of the Civil Engineering Licensure Exam 2023,  Dr. Gerry B. de Cadiz, Professor VI of Eastern Visayas State University – Graduate School, and Prof. Julius Ken P. Badeo, environmental planner. 

Engr. Gomez talked about the risks natural disasters may pose to infrastructures and how buildings that adapt and survive against them must be properly made.

“I want you all to think about what makes a structure or rather what makes a person resilient because we people can continue on with our lives after these big hazards, but resilient infrastructure instead adapts to these disasters,” she said as she concluded her discussion.

Dr. de Cadiz graced the students with the experiences he gained as an environmental planner and encouraged them to help their community through using efficient methods in urban agriculture such as aquaponics and vertical gardening. 

“Do you know how many people Jesus fed in the mountain? He fed 5,000 people, and do you know how many people lived in the ancient city of Tenochtitlan? There were over a million people and, do you know how they fed those people? They fed them through agriculture”

To wrap up the morning session Prof. Badeo talked about how urban planning is, such as emphasizing the importance of a good comprehensive land use plan. He also debunked the difference between an environmental scientist and an environmental planner. 

“In the context of environmental planning, once you are in the process of turning the preferred option into reality, we reevaluate to check if we’re doing the right thing, and maybe even ask ourselves if we’re happy. Our generation strives harder than others but while we strive harder, we also forget about the most important thing in our life and that is to be happy,” he said. 

Meanwhile, the afternoon session was composed of a prototype-making contest and two innovation stations. 

The prototype-making contest was attended by three students per section, where they were tasked to figure out a community problem that they could solve using Sustainable Development Goal 9 and Sustainable Development Goal 11. They are given the entire week to create a prototype, as they will be presenting it on the second day of USWAG.

For the remaining students, their task was to complete two innovation stations namely “Zipline Express: Aerial Load Transport” where they had to create a cable cart out of a ⅛ illustration board, cardboard, and straws, and “Up and Above: The Great Paper Rocket Challenge”, where they were tasked to create a paper rocket using two A4 bond papers, rubber bands, and marbles.

At the end of the allocated periods, the cable carts were tested on a wire hanging from the second floor to the quadrangle, which acted as a zipline. The paper rockets were tested in front of the school.