The cream of the crop in the Philippine scientific, creative, and research circles were awarded in the 2019 IP Convergence forum on Friday, in recognition of their use of the intellectual property system in contributing to the sciences and arts.
IPOPHL lauded six individuals and one business in the 2019 IP Convergence Forum, all of which have filed for intellectual property as they’ve made ground-breaking work in their fields.
IPOPHL began its awards and recognition program in the first IP Convergence Forum in 2018, launching three award categories: Gawad Yamang Isip, IP Champions League, and Special Citations.
the Gawad Yamang Isip for Science and Technology (Agham at Teknolohiya) is awarded to famed Filipino woman biochemist Dr. Lourdes Cruz. Dr. Cruz’s isolation and characterisation of a venom called conotoxin (from marine cone snails) was key to improvement of the substance as a biochemical probe for testing brain behavior.
Another great Filipino mind IPOPHL recognized for Agham and Teknolohiya was Dr. Ramon Barba, a world-renowned scientists whose invention of flower induction in mangos and pineapples revolutionised their fruit production. Dr. Barba’s flower induction method made possible the availability of mangoes the whole year-round.
Receiving the Gawad Yamang Isip for Arts and Literature (Sining at Panitikan) is Ramon Magsaysay Awardee, Ligaya Fernando-Amilbangsa. Her promotion of the pangalay dance of the Sulu archipelago, as well as her studies on Muslim culture, keeps alive the indigenous arts of Southern Philippines.
A legend in the Philippine fashion scene, Beatriz “Patis” P. Tesoro was given the Gawad Yamang Isip - Kagamitan at Moda for her long-standing advocacy to elevate local fabrics (particularly the pina cloth) to the global stage and mainstream traditional Filipino garb to contemporary fashion.
National Artist for Literature F. Sionil Jose can add the Gawad Yamang Isip sa Sining at Panitikan to his numerous accolades, given for his five decades of engaging he Filipino consciousness through socially-relevant works of literature.
For being a champion of accessibility of affordable medicine, while deftly using trademark as a strategic business tool, the Generics Pharmacy - the largest network of drugstores in the country - was awarded the Gawad Yamang Isip for Business (Negosyo).
Finally, garnering the coveted Intellectual Property Champions League Award is none other than technology innovator, Silicon Valley engineer - “the Philippines’ Bill Gates”- Diosdado “Dado” Banatao. Mr. Banatao’s invaluable invention of a more efficient way of linking computers by simplifying the design with fewer chips, is a technology found in most computers today.
Twenty-six individuals and institutions were given the IPOPHL Special Citation Awards, given to individuals and institutions across sectors: enforcement agencies , media practitioners, businesses, and universities.
About IPOPHL’s Awards and Recognition Program
Gawad Yamang Isip recognises Filipinos who have shown distinct ingenuity and talent in their specific fields, using the IP system in the process.
Champions League, on the other hand, are given for individual or institutional contributions that have long-term, beneficial effect to the IPR environment and IP system in the Philippines.
IPOPHL Special Citations are given to prolific users of the IP system - ‘record-breakers’ in their IP-related work, such as enforcement agencies who have seized significant amounts of counterfeit goods, media practitioners who have extensively covered IP news, and institutions and individuals who have filed the most number of IP.
