In the search for the 2020 Global Foundation Asia Innovation Award, the Encouragement Award was given to Prof. Mary Donnabelle Balela, Ph.D., of the UPD Department of Mining, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, for her research on the “Development of Efficient and Customizable Kapok Fiber Adsorbents for Water Treatment Applications”.
![](https://newalum.up.edu.ph/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/OILD_Congratulatory-Post-JPEG-1024x1024.jpg)
The award program was launched in 2020 to promote science, technology and innovation that contributes to solving social issues and realizing a sustainable society in the ASEAN region. Eighteen (18) universities in the region were invited to submit Research and Development (R&D) results that contribute to the following targets of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):
• Goal 2, “End Hunger”, and
• Goal 3, “Good Health and Well-being”.
According to the Hitachi Global Foundation website, this award recognizes individuals and groups that undeniably served public interests through their outstanding achievements in research and development (R&D) in the fields of science and technology, including their visions of an ideal future society and social implementation plans for R&D as a means of achieving SDGs.
The call for the 2021 Hitachi Global Foundation Asia Innovation Award is ongoing. Please refer to the following link for details: http://bit.ly/Hitachi2021.
Source: https://international.upd.edu.ph/up-dmmme-faculty-receives-award-from-hitachi-global-foundation/