More than 150 participants in the hybrid training and workshop on the Cultural Mapping of Negros Occidental, organized by the University of the Philippines Visayas in Bacolod City and Kabankalan City, acquired vital skills in mapping and assessing the cultural properties with heritage value within their local communities.
The training sessions, facilitated by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and in partnership with the Province of Negros Occidental and DepEd VI, initially conducted on July 6, 2024 via an online video conferencing app, have transitioned to in-person sessions for the second and third weeks.
Participants of this training include local officials, tourism and cultural officers, research assistants assigned to Negros Occidental, and representatives from Negros Occidental Province and the Department of Education Region VI (DepEd VI).
The training consisted of a series of lectures and discussions tackling the fundamentals of cultural mapping, methods of conducting participatory cultural mapping, and the domains of cultural heritage. Participants also gained hands-on mapping experience by participating in site visits, while also attending writing workshops required for filling out mapping forms.
Serving as resource speakers and facilitators for the training were NCCA Commissioner Arvin Manuel Villalon, Mr. John Delan Robillos, Prof. Jose Soliman, Jr., Ms. Divine Arariwan, and NCCA Program Manager Ms. Gladys Mae Argonza, all of whom have backgrounds in local arts and cultural heritage.
Following the four-weekend training fieldwork activities within each LGU in the province will begin with assigned consultants participating in mapping and reviewing the accomplished forms.
A print-ready book for the province and municipalities of Negros Occidental with validated mapped forms on cultural heritage domains, which are natural heritage, tangible immovable heritage, tangible movable heritage, intangible cultural heritage, and significant personalities and cultural institutions will be the final output of this project. Furthermore, a website serving as an online registry of the cultural assets per municipality will be launched.
The Cultural Mapping of Negros Occidental is a priority project of the office of Senator Loren B. Legarda. It fulfills the mandates of the Republic Act No. 11961, also known as the "Cultural Mapping Law,” which is “an act strengthening the conservation and protection of Philippine cultural heritage through cultural mapping and enhanced cultural heritage education program.”
