Smart Wins Int’l Award for Youth Disaster Preparedness Program

Wazzup Pilipinas!

A program of Smart Communications that mobilizes young Filipinos to advocate a culture of disaster preparedness won at the prestigious Golden World Awards (GWA), which recognizes public relations practices that meet international standards of excellence.

The TNT Tropang Ready (Team Ready) Disaster Preparedness Caravan emerged as winner in the Community Engagement category of the GWA, and will be formally awarded on October 19 in Barcelona, Spain. Established in 1990, the GWA is organized annually by the International Public Relations Association.

The TNT Tropang Ready program involves tours of schools all over the country to empower the youth to become disaster preparedness ambassadors in their own communities. Students are taught what to do before, during, and after disasters like earthquakes, floods, and fire. It targets millennials because their digital savviness makes them the perfect disseminators of preparedness information among family and friends.

Entertainment is injected into the program to keep its young audience attentive and engaged. For example, students are encouraged to express their creativity in the paracord-making segment of the program. Paracords are sturdy rope bracelets they can wear every day, which can be untangled and used during emergencies.

Experts are also present to share survival tips, discuss local hazards, and introduce students to mobile apps and phone features that could help them in the face of disasters.

Partner schools are encouraged to cascade what they have learned to their adopted communities through their extension programs or the National Service Training Program (NSTP).

In less than a year, the TNT Tropang Ready Caravan engaged thousands of students and faculty from universities in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. NSTP students of Batangas State University went on to conduct their own mini-Tropang Ready, which was attended by parents of government scholars in their community. 

The TNT Tropang Ready Caravan is part of Smart’s #SafePH program, which promotes preparedness through mobile solutions and activities that help communities mitigate disaster risks. #SafePH includes on-ground events and solutions such as the Emergency Cell Broadcast System (ECBS), a platform for sending location- and hazard-specific emergency alerts; and the Batingaw emergency app, which can be used to report incidents and features safety tools such as a flashlight, siren, and radio.

For more information about Smart’s corporate social responsibility programs, please visit the Smart Communities page on Facebook.

Hybridization and Genset Optimization to save NAPOCOR up to P2.25 Billion

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Hybridization, in combination with properly maintained generator sets (gensets), will enable the National Power Corporation (NAPOCOR) to save around P2.25 billion annually.

This was one of the major findings of a study conducted by experts of the European Union (EU)-funded - Access to Sustainable Energy Programme (ASEP).

ASEP is a joint undertaking of the European Union and the Philippine Department of Energy (DOE). Through ASEP, the EU has allocated a grant of over PhP 3 billion to assist the Philippine Government in meeting its rural electrification targets through renewable energy (RE) and energy efficiency.

“Our study shows that there will be an estimated P1/kWh cost reduction if NAPOCOR adopts a solar hybridization of its large-scale power plants, which will result in at least P500M savings," said ASEP Strategic Advisor Dr. Christoph Menke as he addressed energy stakeholders in Powertrends 2018.

He added that another study shows that adopting hybridization in NAPOCOR'S mini-grids and ensuring diesel gensets are running at optimal levels will result in a cost reduction of around P4.5/kWh, which is almost P2.25 billion of annual savings.

According to Dr. Menke, the cost reduction will help bring down the electricity bills of consumers.

A hybrid mini-grid combines at least two different kinds of technologies for power generation and distributes the electricity to several consumers through an independent grid. The mini-grid is supplied by a mix of RE sources and a backup genset which is powered by diesel fuel.

In his presentation, Dr. Menke said the study shows that the huge savings will be realized if the RE share in power generation is at least 23% of the energy mix. On top of this, hybridization will result in better reliability and improved service hours of power plants.

“A hybrid mini-grid will increase the resilience and efficiency of our power generation assets, reduce fuel consumptions and dependence on diesel, which in turn reduce emissions that are harmful to the environment," Dr. Menke stressed.

Furthermore, the study also found that the hybridization of the fuel source of power plants would result in the reduction of DOE’s Universal Charge on Missionary Electrification (UCME) subsidies and attract the private sector to invest in hybridized power generation.

The Nationals Prove that ESports Are Still on the Rise in the Philippines

Wazzup Pilipinas!

ESports is on the rise around the world and nowhere is it blasting into the mainstream more than in the Philippines. The global eSports industry was valued as a 493 million dollar market in 2017 and is expected to increase to $1.65 billion by 2020. Not only is this creating a job market for competitive gamers to join pro teams, but it is opening up new avenues for gamers to make a living for themselves live streaming as well as new niche jobs related to more traditional careers. These include eSports journalists, eSports event coordinators, social media, content, eSports experts who cash in by betting on the matches, and marketing jobs related to the eLeagues and the list goes on. This is great news for the youth and young adults not only in the Philippines but all across Asia.
We all have our favorite teams and players so It should be noted that it is important to check on the reputation of online betting sites that offer odds on eSports before jumping in headfirst, like this Youwager Review.


A Growing Culture

Like baseball in the United States and Japan, eSports are becoming a national pastime in Manilla. There have been several huge events held in Manilla over the last couple of years and it doesn’t look like will be slowing down any time soon.

Dota 2 and affordable internet cafes changed it all. The ability to sit down for a couple of hours to play Dota 2 for 20 PHP. Of course, WarCraft 3 and Dota Allstars back in the 2000s led the way in the internet cafes, but it was Dota 2 that caught on like a fever that spread through Manilla.

The simple fact that with DOTA 2, you don’t have to purchase a gaming console or computer and you don’t have to buy a pricey copy of the game itself, but the fact that you can play online day or night in just about any internet cafe for a few cents is what made it so popular. Very little investment, and a whole lot of fun.

Here is a stat that will bring it into perspective for you readers: according to TeamSpy, in 2015 and 2016, Pinoys made up 10% of the entire DOTA 2 server. That means that roughly 8% of the population in Manilla would be logged on at any given time!

The Future of Events

Some of the most historic competitions have been held in the Philippines, and now we have the Nationals, “A franchise driven league for DOTA 2, Mobile Legends, and NBA 2K18.” - DA Geeks

Now the search is on to fill the Nationals roster with top players. ‘The Road to The Nationals’ got underway this August. The events at TNC Morayta, Mineski Portal Cebu, and iPlay CyberSquare in Manilla, Cebu City, and Cagayan de Oro are already completed and have yielded teams to qualify for the inaugural season in 2019.

Teams That Have Already Qualified for DOTA 2

Quid Pro Quo
Sterling Global Dragons
Polar Ace
Davao’s Pride

But there are still three DOTA 2 qualification events left. The tournament at TNC Bacolod on September 22, 2018, a tournament on the 29th of September at the Localhost Cafe in Iloilo City, and in Imus City at the UGZ on October 13, 2018.

NBA2K18 & Mobile Legends

The Mobile Legends qualifiers will be decided by the Mobile Legends Professional League Season 2 Tournament.

The best NBA2K18 teams in the country will qualify through six different tournaments, starting on the 22nd of September 2018 and running through October 14th, 2018 with a final tournament at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay on October 27th and 28th.

This is going to be a huge event next month and fans all across the Philippines are chomping at the bit to see who will come out on top.

24 Teams in all (eight for each title) and millions in pesos for prize money the winning teams and franchise draft opportunities for one of the six Nationals franchise teams … eSports is definitely on the rise in the Philippines.