(First posted on the Choose Philippines website)
Article and photos by Christa I. De La Cruz

From the skies to the seas, from spiritual beliefs to human experiences, the Filipino mind is always in search of mysteries to solve and share.

In the Philippines, research works are often published as a couple of pages in a university publication, limiting both its authorship and readership to the academe.

As a resolution, the National Book Development Board (NBDB) — a government agency mandated to be the lead catalyst for building a culture of reading and authorship as well as an environment for the growth of the book publishing industry towards making it globally competitive — initiated the National Book Development Trust Fund (NBDTF).

The NBDTF was founded in March 2009 by virtue of Republic Act No. 9521. It authorized the creation of One Hundred Fifty Million Pesos (P150,000,000.00) trust fund under the NBDB to support and promote Filipino authorship and to complete local manuscripts or research works for publication, especially in Science and Technology, and in subject areas where locally authored books are either few or non-existent.

For this year, four grant awardees were formally endorsed last March 13 during a lunch buffet at the roof deck of Prestige Tower in Pasig City where the office of NBDB is also located. The diversity in their proposed research topics is evidence of the untapped resources in Philippine studies.

PAG-TUHAN: Tausug Gnosis as a Living Tradition
Mr. Darwin J. Absari

MPA for Teachers: A Fun Activity Guide that Illustrates the Science Behind Marine Protected Areas
Ms. Grace Quiton-Domingo

Come Back to Me: Lives Taken, Shaken, and Changed by the Lack of Reproductive Health Rights
Ms. Rosario I. Tañedo

Mr. Amado C. Bajarias, Jr. with manuscript title “The Birds of Ateneo de Manila University, Miriam College, and UP Diliman” wasn’t able to attend the ceremonies as he is still birdwatching in Malaysia.

They were given the first tranche of their grant and the next tranches will be distributed throughout the completion of their manuscript.

In an effort to promote the development of the local book publishing industry, enhance market growth by championing lifelong learning through reading, and uphold excellence and ethical practices in publishing, NBDB also invites everyone to their upcoming activities:

Booklatan sa Laoag – March 13-14, 2015
Copyright Clinic – March 28, 2015
AK/DA: Araw ng Aklat at Copyright – April 23, 2015
Buwan ng Panitikan – Whole month of April
Little Lit Fest Industry Summit – July 2015
Philippine Literary Festival and Business Industry Summit – September 2015
34th National Book Awards – September 2015