Silliman Tapped as Youth Bureau for Population Development

 Silliman University is one of only seven organizations, and the only one from the Visayas, designated as a youth information bureau of the Mulat Pinoy-Kabataan News Network (MP-KNN).

Under this program of the MP-KNN, the team from Silliman is tasked to develop and disseminate materials on relevant population-related issues in Dumaguete City and Negros Oriental.

This materialized following the participation of Mass Communication juniors Val Amiel Vestil and Kateleen Marie Ogabang and English and Literature Department Chairperson Prof. Warlito Caturay Jr. in the First National Multimedia Workshop of MP-KNN held last month in Quezon City.

MP-KNN is a project of the Probe Media Foundation, Inc. and the Philippine Center for Population and Development.

The workshop brought in speakers who discussed population development issues and the different mediums and strategies of increasing public awareness about them. During the same workshop, seven bureaus, including Silliman, were also set up, this time already attached to universities and a non-government organization. The other six are: Northwestern University in Laoag City, University of the Philippines Los Baños, Don Bosco Technical College-Mandaluyong High School, University of Mindanao in Davao, Inter-Faith Partnership for the Promotion of Responsible Parenthood in Antipolo, and the Manila bureau which is composed of different schools in the area.

(L-R: Val Amiel Vestil, Prof. Warlito Caturay Jr. and Kateleen Marie Ogabang)

Each bureau is supervised by an adult bureau manager from the same partner organization who will assist the student-reporters in producing stories focusing on population-related issues in their respective communities. The stories may come in the form of articles, photo essays, infographics or videos.

All contributions from the seven bureaus will be merged in one big production that is set to air on the Knowledge Channel by October this year.