Community Innovations Studies Center (CISC)
Community Innovations Studies Center (CISC)

The Community Innovations Studies Center (CISC) is one of the transdisciplinary research and extension unit of CPAf. The center focuses on integrative community development studies, agrarian studies, and rural advisory services. As a process, community development involves developing and enhancing people’s ability to act collectively. As an outcome, it entails taking collective action and the result of that action is for the improvement of the community’s physical, environmental, cultural, social, political, and economic dimensions.

The CISC aims to:

The CISC has three main thrusts:

  1. Community Education.  As a research focus, community education encompasses social development work that encourages lifelong learning with individuals and groups in their communities.
  1. Communities in Transition.  A major focus of this program is to generate an understanding of the development pathways communities in transition take. Communities in Transition (CiT) can be described as communities undergoing changes in attributes from being predominantly rural to acquiring urban features. These communities are characterized by a mix of urban and rural land uses and economic activities, heterogenous and rapidly changing socio-economic groups, whose livelihoods often draw from the natural resource-based activities and urban employment opportunities.
  1. Community-Based Strategies for Sustainable Development.  Sustainable development is that maintains or enhances economic opportunity and community well-being while protecting and restoring the natural environment upon which people and economies depend. Sustainable development meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. With the desire to attain sustainable development, several community-based strategies have been developed. This program will analyze the present initiatives by the communities and other supporting institutions and develop through action research, community-based strategies for sustainable development.

Faculty and REPS

ARCENAS, AGUSTIN L.

Associate Professor 6 and Director

TEMP PROFILE PIC

ANASTACIO, NICO JAYSON C.

University Researcher III

TAN, MARIA FRANCESCA O.

University Researcher III

MANEJA, MA. CHARINA P.

University Researcher II

UMALI, MENA E.

University Researcher II

BRAGAIS, ROXANNE B.

University Researcher I

ALVAREZ, JOANNE V.

University Research Associate II

ALVAREZ, MARIA CRISTINA A.

University Research Associate II

COSEP, JOHNNELDA P.

University Research Associate II

RAÑESES, FLORITA P.

University Research Associate II

RODRIGUEZ, DAVID JOHN F.

University Research Associate II

AGUILA, LEA DR.

University Research Associate II

Lavarnez PD

LAVARNEZ, PRINCESS DIANE M.

University Research Associate I

Administrative Support

CAMARA, MARY ANN S.

Administrative Assistant II

MEDINA, MARK RYAN D.

Administrative Assistant II

DIONCO, JAY D.

Administrative Aide III

COMMUNITY INNOVATIONS STUDIES CENTER

COLLEGE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS AND DEVELOPMENT
University of the Philippines Los Baños
College, Los Baños, Laguna 4031 Philippines