The University of Santo Tomas Graduate School Center for Conservation of Cultural Property and Environment in the Tropics (USTGS-CCCPET) in collaboration with Local Government of Montalban, Rizal conducted a two-day writeshop on cultural development planning as part of Capacity Building and Formulation of Local Cultural Guidelines for Cultural Community on November 7 & 14, 2022 in Montalban, Rizal. The project was funded by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA).
The writeshop was facilitated by Dr. Eric B. Zerrudo, the USTGS-CCCPET Director and senior faculty member of the UST Graduate Master of Arts in Cultural Heritage Studies program. It was attended by police officers, public school teachers, municipal elected officials from barangay, municipal level, and provincial level, academe, historical society, department and unit heads of the LGU, cultural mappers, tourism sectors and the members of Dumagat Remontado, the indigenous peoples community in Montalban, together with the Indigenous Peoples Mandatory Representatives (IPMR) from province, municipal and barangay level.
The aim of the writeshop was to identify the key challenges, priority areas for activity, and objectives for cultural guidelines and cultural development. It also aimed to formulate strategies to guide future cultural policy and to involve civil society in particular artist, cultural workers and other members of the culture and arts sector in the preparation of these strategies and development plans.
The activity was graced with the presence of Mayor Ronnie S. Evangelista (Ret. Gen.) together with the Councilor Judith G. Cruz, Chairperson for Tourism and Cultural Affairs and Dr. Corazon Lacerna, the Provincial Tourism Officer.
Cultural development planning writeshop is the forward-looking activity that defines culture in a particular context to impact on development and is the latest service offered by USTGS-CCCPET for local government units.
