SU launches public lectures on relevant social issues

Dr. Vicente B. Jurlano, OIC director of the University of the Philippines (UP) Population Institute and 2020 Outstanding Sillimanian Awardee

Silliman University (SU), through its Office of Community Engagement and Service-Learning (OCESL), launched the Public Lecture Series, which are free lectures that are open to the public with the aim to share research-based knowledge and open conversations that are relevant to the public’s everyday lives.

The OCESL Public Lecture Series kicked off with an inaugural lecture on “Deconstructing the Population Issue” by Dr. Vicente B. Jurlano, OIC director of the University of the Philippines (UP) Population Institute and 2020 Outstanding Sillimanian Awardee, last August 18, 2023 at the Audio Visual Theater 1 of SU.

In his lecture, Jurlano discussed dramatic changes in population growth and dynamics in the world and the Philippines, drawing upon different population and demographic empirical studies he led and published during his stint at the United Nations Population Fund and the UP Population Institute.

He also shared graduate study opportunities for master’s programs in population studies and demography at the UP Population Institute. 

Representatives from Negros Oriental State University, Dumaguete City Social Welfare and Development Office, Dumaguete City Population Commission, and SU students from the departments of Social Work, Psychology, Political Science, Sociology, and Foreign Affairs participated in the inaugural lecture.

The Social Work Department under the SU College of Arts and Sciences co-presented the lecture.

The OCESL Public Lecture Series will harness the expertise of SU faculty members as resource speakers, as well as other experts from other institutions and organizations to lead discussions on topics including development, population, environment, education, governance, entrepreneurship, and health.