MEET OUR STAFF
The successes of A2D Project are driven by the creativity, commitment, and hard work of people who compose our team. Through the leadership of our Board of Trustees, dedication of our management team, and diligence of our project staff, our organization has been able to deliver results that matter to the lives of those whom we partner with. We invite you to learn more about the people behind A2D Project.
Bruce N. Ragas is the Regional Director of the Commission on Population, Regional Population Office 7, an attached agency of the Department of Health. He is a lawyer by profession and prior his government service, he has been into private practice of law and was engaged with various non-government organizations that worked on the development issues such as human rights, environment, gender and development, reproductive health and sexual rights. Such involvement has exposed him to the intricate works of advocacy, networking and research. Aside from earning his degrees of Bachelor of Arts Major in Anthropology from the University of San Carlos and Bachelor of Laws from the University of San Jose Recoletos, Cebu City, he had been a recipient also of a Ford Foundation scholarship on the Program for Development Managers at the Asian Institute of Management, Makati City, Philippines, and Hewlett Packard Foundation scholarship on the fellowship course on International Family Planning Leadership Program at the Public Health Institute through the International Health Program, Sta. Cruz, California, in collaboration with School of Public Health, Berkeley, California and Center for Reproductive Health Research and Policy, University of California, San Francisco, California, USA.
Alfredo A. Arquillano, Jr. served as Municipal Mayor of San Francisco, Cebu province, the Philippines for three terms. Under his leadership, a “Purok” community empowerment program was developed to boost the resilience of families living below the poverty line. In the Purok “Capital Build Up” program, communities actively participate in developing local solutions for disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. The system has won the municipal government several national and local awards, including the UN Sasakawa Award for Disaster Risk Reduction in 2011.
Patrick John Y. Lim, Ph.D. is a Professor of Chemistry at the Department of Chemistry, University of San Carlos (USC), Cebu City. He completed his bachelor’s degree at USC and earned his doctorate on synthetic inorganic and organometallics chemistry at the University of Melbourne, Australia in 2000. After returning to the Philippines, he has served as Chair of the Department of Chemistry at USC from 2004 to 2011 and as a member of the Commission on Higher Education Technical Committee for Chemistry from 2007 to 2009.
He became involved in chemical safety and security through collaborations with experts from Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico, culminating with his appointment to a U.S. National Academies Committee on Promoting Safe and Secure Chemical Management in Developing Countries from 2009 to 2010. His engagement in chemical safety and security included travels to Pakistan, Yemen, Thailand, and Switzerland, the last one for the IUPAC Workshop 2012 on Impacts of Scientific Development on the Chemical Weapons Convention. Currently, he serves as Editor of The Philippine Scientist, a journal published by USC Press and listed in the Zoological Record and BIOSIS Previews.
Maria Cecilia C. Gastardo-Conaco is currently Professor of Psychology at the University of the Philippines Department of Psychology in Diliman, Quezon City. She obtained her Ph.D. in (social) Psychology at the University of California, Santa Barbara under a Fulbright-Hayes fellowship. A Rockefeller grant supported her additional training for the certificate in political psychology from the Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. In 1991, she was awarded as one of the nation’s Outstanding Young Scientists by the National Academy of Science and Technology of the Philippines.
Her research experience is broad and she has published on a variety of topics, including women’s health and sexuality, adolescent reproductive health, social identity and participation in social movements, cognitions of human rights, the psychology of poverty, cross-cultural relations, and indigenous psychology. She has done consultancy work for government and various non-governmental organizations, doing evaluation research and social impact assessments. She is also frequently invited as a resource person for research training workshops.
She currently holds the University of the Philippines Centennial Professorial Chair in Psychology for work on social psychological concepts in Filipino indigenous psychology.
Mr. Aloysius Ma. L, Canete is currently the Executive Director of the A2D Project. He has a Masters degree in Health Social Science from De La Salle University under the Ford Foundation scholarship and BA and MA degrees in Anthropology at the University of San Carlos. In 2003, he received a Fulbright scholarship to pursue doctoral studies in Social Anthropology at Arizona State University (ASU) in the United States. In the U.S., Mr. Canete was an adjunct lecturer in the Program for Southeast Asian Studies at ASU. Before working at A2D Project, he was associate professor of Anthropology at the University of San Carlos for more than 10 years and was hired by the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. as consultant and senior program officer for research and knowledge management in the Eduardo Aboitiz Development Studies Center in Cebu City. At present, he is also a Board member of the Partnership of Philippine Support Service Agencies Inc. (PHILSSA).
Kaira Zoe K. Alburo is an Assistant Professor of Development Studies at the University of the Philippines and former Executive Director and Founder of A2D Project. Under the Huygens Scholarship Program administered by NUFFIC, she acquired her Masters Degree in Development Studies with Merit at the Institute of Social Studies in The Hague, The Netherlands with a specialization in Women, Gender and Development, minor in Conflict Studies. In 2012, she received a grant from the International Association for the Study of Sexuality, Culture, and Society (IASSCS) for her research titled “After the Storm: Promoting Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in Disaster Risk Reduction and Management in the Philippines” under the Emerging Scholars International Research Fellowship Program. Her research experience and interests include Gender and Development, Intimate Partner Violence in Metro Cebu, Sexuality and Reproductive Health, Conflict and Human Rights.
Ms. Katherine N. Velmonte is the Administrative Manager and Projects Coordinator of A2D Project. As Administrative Manager, she is the oversees the support operations of the organization by supervising staff and planning, organizing and implementing administrative system. As Projects Coordinator, she provides support to project teams and works closely with project staff in implementing projects and ensuring activities are carried out and deliverables are submitted according to schedule.
Other than these, Ms. Velmonte also served as Research Assistant to various studies and initiatives conducted by A2D Project. She has provided research assistance on the following studies 1) Fate and Transport of Mercury to Inayawan Landfill, Cebu City, Philippines in 2013, 2) Child Protect: A Rapid Assessment of Child Abuse Situation in Eight Barangays in Metro Cebu, 3) Enabling Low Carbon City Development through the Effective MRV Approach in the Asia: A Case Study of Cebu City, 4) Examining Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program in Villaba, Leyte and 5) Documentation of Typhoon Haiyan Response’s Transition to Development and Its Impact on Children.
Ms. Velmonte has also received different trainings on disaster response, humanitarian charter and minimum standards in humanitarian response and complaints response mechanism, among others.
Ms. Velmonte is a graduate of University of the Philippines – Cebu with a degree on Bachelor of Arts in Political Science.
Ms. Djanil B. Barrera holds a degree on Bachelor of Science and Commerce major in Business Administration from University of San Jose Recoletos.
Ms. Barrera joined A2D Project in 2014 as Office Assistant. At present, she is holding the position Administrative Assistant. As administrative Assistant, she provides support to the Administrative Manager and Finance Officer in carrying our administrative and financial management activities.
Ms. Rhodora Felizarta joined A2D Project in 2015 with more than 20 years of financial and accounting management experience in both corporate and non-government organizations. As Finance Officer, she is responsible for the overall financial management of the organization. Moreover, she is responsible for ensuring financial monitoring and the strict implementation of the organization’s finance and accounting policies.
Before joining A2D Project, Ms. Felizarta was the Finance Officer of Cebu Satellite Office of Helpage International/ Coalition of Services of the Elderly, Apostleship of the Sea – Cebu and Cebu Court Appointed Special Advocate/ Guardian Ad Litem Volunteer’s Association. She also worked as Finance Assistant and Events Organizer of the United States Agency for International Development-funded project Management Sciences for Health-LEAD for Health, and Bookkeeper and Accountant of Cebu Newspaper Workers Foundation and Cebu Newspaper Workers Multi-Purpose Cooperative.
Ms. Felizarta holds a degree on Bachelor of Science in Accountancy from St.Theresa’s College.
Mr. Jan Christian Arnaiz is the newest addition to AD Project team. As the Website Manager and IT Consultant, he is the to-go guy for any IT and website concerns. He comes to A2D Project with a strong foundation on information technology and computer engineering.
Bruce N. Ragas is the Regional Director of the Commission on Population, Regional Population Office 7, an attached agency of the Department of Health. He is a lawyer by profession and prior his government service, he has been into private practice of law and was engaged with various non-government organizations that worked on the development issues such as human rights, environment, gender and development, reproductive health and sexual rights. Such involvement has exposed him to the intricate works of advocacy, networking and research. Aside from earning his degrees of Bachelor of Arts Major in Anthropology from the University of San Carlos and Bachelor of Laws from the University of San Jose Recoletos, Cebu City, he had been a recipient also of a Ford Foundation scholarship on the Program for Development Managers at the Asian Institute of Management, Makati City, Philippines, and Hewlett Packard Foundation scholarship on the fellowship course on International Family Planning Leadership Program at the Public Health Institute through the International Health Program, Sta. Cruz, California, in collaboration with School of Public Health, Berkeley, California and Center for Reproductive Health Research and Policy, University of California, San Francisco, California, USA.Alfredo A. Arquillano, Jr. served as Municipal Mayor of San Francisco, Cebu province, the Philippines for three terms. Under his leadership, a “Purok” community empowerment program was developed to boost the resilience of families living below the poverty line. In the Purok “Capital Build Up” program, communities actively participate in developing local solutions for disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. The system has won the municipal government several national and local awards, including the UN Sasakawa Award for Disaster Risk Reduction in 2011.
Patrick John Y. Lim, Ph.D. is a Professor of Chemistry at the Department of Chemistry, University of San Carlos (USC), Cebu City. He completed his bachelor’s degree at USC and earned his doctorate on synthetic inorganic and organometallics chemistry at the University of Melbourne, Australia in 2000. After returning to the Philippines, he has served as Chair of the Department of Chemistry at USC from 2004 to 2011 and as a member of the Commission on Higher Education Technical Committee for Chemistry from 2007 to 2009.
He became involved in chemical safety and security through collaborations with experts from Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico, culminating with his appointment to a U.S. National Academies Committee on Promoting Safe and Secure Chemical Management in Developing Countries from 2009 to 2010. His engagement in chemical safety and security included travels to Pakistan, Yemen, Thailand, and Switzerland, the last one for the IUPAC Workshop 2012 on Impacts of Scientific Development on the Chemical Weapons Convention. Currently, he serves as Editor of The Philippine Scientist, a journal published by USC Press and listed in the Zoological Record and BIOSIS Previews.
Maria Cecilia C. Gastardo-Conaco is currently Professor of Psychology at the University of the Philippines Department of Psychology in Diliman, Quezon City. She obtained her Ph.D. in (social) Psychology at the University of California, Santa Barbara under a Fulbright-Hayes fellowship. A Rockefeller grant supported her additional training for the certificate in political psychology from the Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. In 1991, she was awarded as one of the nation’s Outstanding Young Scientists by the National Academy of Science and Technology of the Philippines.
Her research experience is broad and she has published on a variety of topics, including women’s health and sexuality, adolescent reproductive health, social identity and participation in social movements, cognitions of human rights, the psychology of poverty, cross-cultural relations, and indigenous psychology. She has done consultancy work for government and various non-governmental organizations, doing evaluation research and social impact assessments. She is also frequently invited as a resource person for research training workshops.
She currently holds the University of the Philippines Centennial Professorial Chair in Psychology for work on social psychological concepts in Filipino indigenous psychology.
Mr. Aloysius Ma. L, Canete is currently the Executive Director of the A2D Project. He has a Masters degree in Health Social Science from De La Salle University under the Ford Foundation scholarship and BA and MA degrees in Anthropology at the University of San Carlos. In 2003, he received a Fulbright scholarship to pursue doctoral studies in Social Anthropology at Arizona State University (ASU) in the United States. In the U.S., Mr. Canete was an adjunct lecturer in the Program for Southeast Asian Studies at ASU. Before working at A2D Project, he was associate professor of Anthropology at the University of San Carlos for more than 10 years and was hired by the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. as consultant and senior program officer for research and knowledge management in the Eduardo Aboitiz Development Studies Center in Cebu City. At present, he is also a Board member of the Partnership of Philippine Support Service Agencies Inc. (PHILSSA).
Kaira Zoe K. Alburo is an Assistant Professor of Development Studies at the University of the Philippines and former Executive Director and Founder of A2D Project. Under the Huygens Scholarship Program administered by NUFFIC, she acquired her Masters Degree in Development Studies with Merit at the Institute of Social Studies in The Hague, The Netherlands with a specialization in Women, Gender and Development, minor in Conflict Studies. In 2012, she received a grant from the International Association for the Study of Sexuality, Culture, and Society (IASSCS) for her research titled “After the Storm: Promoting Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in Disaster Risk Reduction and Management in the Philippines” under the Emerging Scholars International Research Fellowship Program. Her research experience and interests include Gender and Development, Intimate Partner Violence in Metro Cebu, Sexuality and Reproductive Health, Conflict and Human Rights.Ms. Katherine N. Velmonte is the Administrative Manager and Projects Coordinator of A2D Project. As Administrative Manager, she is the oversees the support operations of the organization by supervising staff and planning, organizing and implementing administrative system. As Projects Coordinator, she provides support to project teams and works closely with project staff in implementing projects and ensuring activities are carried out and deliverables are submitted according to schedule.
Other than these, Ms. Velmonte also served as Research Assistant to various studies and initiatives conducted by A2D Project. She has provided research assistance on the following studies 1) Fate and Transport of Mercury to Inayawan Landfill, Cebu City, Philippines in 2013, 2) Child Protect: A Rapid Assessment of Child Abuse Situation in Eight Barangays in Metro Cebu, 3) Enabling Low Carbon City Development through the Effective MRV Approach in the Asia: A Case Study of Cebu City, 4) Examining Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program in Villaba, Leyte and 5) Documentation of Typhoon Haiyan Response’s Transition to Development and Its Impact on Children.
Ms. Velmonte has also received different trainings on disaster response, humanitarian charter and minimum standards in humanitarian response and complaints response mechanism, among others.
Ms. Velmonte is a graduate of University of the Philippines – Cebu with a degree on Bachelor of Arts in Political Science.
Ms. Nelia Minoza has been with A2D Project since its inception in 2010. After serving as External Auditor for three years, Ms. Minoza was hired as retainer Internal Auditor. At present, she assists the Finance Officer in ensuring that all financial and accounting policies of the organization are implemented and observed by its staff.Ms. Djanil B. Barrera holds a degree on Bachelor of Science and Commerce major in Busines Administration from University of San Jose Recoletos.
Ms. Barrera joined A2D Project in 2014 as Office Assistant. At present, she is holding the position Administrative Assistant. As administrative Assistant, she provides support to the Administrative Manager and Finance Officer in carrying our administrative and financial management activities.
Ms. Rhodora Felizarta joined A2D Project in 2015 with more than 20 years of financial and accounting management experience in both corporate and non-government organizations. As Finance Officer, she is responsible for the overall financial management of the organization. Moreover, she is responsible for ensuring financial monitoring and the strict implementation of the organization’s finance and accounting policies.
Before joining A2D Project, Ms. Felizarta was the Finance Officer of Cebu Satellite Office of Helpage International/ Coalition of Services of the Elderly, Apostleship of the Sea – Cebu and Cebu Court Appointed Special Advocate/ Guardian Ad Litem Volunteer’s Association. She also worked as Finance Assistant and Events Organizer of the United States Agency for International Development-funded project Management Sciences for Health-LEAD for Health, and Bookkeeper and Accountant of Cebu Newspaper Workers Foundation and Cebu Newspaper Workers Multi-Purpose Cooerpative.
Ms. Felizarta holds a degree on Bachelor of Science in Accountancy from St.Theresa’s College.
Mr. Jan Christian Arnaiz is the newest addition to A2D Project team. As the Website Manager and IT Consultant, he is the to-go guy for any IT and website concerns. He comes to A2D Project with a strong foundation on information technology and computer engineering.JOIN OUR TEAM
We’re looking for people who are as passionate and committed as we are to making the world a better place.
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ABOUT A2D Project
A2D Project - Research Group for Alternatives to Development Inc. is a non-stock, non-profit and non-government organization specializing in research and development intervention projects in southern Philippines.