by (contributed news)
TO SHOW its innovative initiatives for the development of communities, the FAB LAB Mindanao of Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology (MSU-IIT) presented its FABship programs at the 3rd College and Universities Public Service Conference (CUPSCon).
The CUPScon, held in the University of Visayas in Iloilo City on October 16-18, is a conference that provides an effective platform for state universities and colleges, higher education institutions, government agencies, and civil society organizations, to present their initiatives and best practices that address the challenges on health, environment, gender, culture, education, and other key issues in the country.
At the conference, participating institutions were given the opportunity to collaborate, learn from each other, and discover possible linkages to further improve or create programs that will be beneficial for the development of each local communities.
Among universities, there was a consensus that research and practice must be integrated for extension programs to be effective, ethical, relevant, and ultimately beneficial. As MSU-IIT has shifted its focus on outreach programs toward research-based extensions, its prototyping facility implemented a series of extension programs.
The FAB LAB Mindanao shared at the 3rd CUPScon its four outstanding FABship programs that involved school youth training, women empowerment, kid’s development, and innovation for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.
Dexter Ken Lopera, Internal Operations Supervisor of FAB LAB Mindanao presented Fabarangay: A Job Enabling Training Program using Digital Fabrication for Out of School Youths of Iligan City and A Product Development Training Program using Digital Fabrication for the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises of Iligan City
Arvin John Lucas, Administrative and External Linkages Supervisor, presented CreatEve: a Product Development Training Program Using Digital Fabrication for the Women Professionals of Iligan City and A Summer Technology Training Program Using Digital Fabrication for the Kids of Iligan City.
According to Lucas, “communities are shaped through relational actions that can be and are influenced in a number of crucial ways by the knowledge created in extension programs.” He said that the 3rd CUPSCon served as an avenue to showcase different tools for understanding and building healthy communities.
“There may come a future where we can reflect all our programs towards the positive experience of living in a developing community,” he added.