Why We Should Listen to Research
Research is one of the most valuable resources a country can have. Its ability to predict, discover, record, understand, and make sense of things, if leveraged properly, can guarantee sustainable progress and a future worth living.
Despite the promising opportunities it presents, research remains to receive little to no value in the Philippines. Our research and development (R&D) spending is always below the proposed budget (Santiago & Regalado, 2019); our population of researchers is set at only 186 per million inhabitants compared to that of Japan which is at 5,328 per million inhabitants (UNESCO, 2019); and research is openly mocked by our very own leaders (Inquirer.Net, 2019).
In his article for The Manila Times (2018), Dr. William Dar wrote why we should start investing more in R&D. He said that while R&D efforts are being made, it does not result in leveling up of our industries such as agriculture which remains largely un-mechanized, with farmers and fishermen still trapped in grave poverty.
Other countries have already proven the significance of research in catalyzing progress. Countries like Germany and Japan are able to rise to the top and enjoy a staggering worldwide brand image because of how much they value the role of research in decision-making and continuous improvement of their industries. Germany, for instance, ranks 4th best country in the world and is one of the few countries that invest the most in research and development (Federal Ministry of Education and Research, 2019). In fact, (1) it has over 1,000 public and publicly funded institutions for science, research and development; (2) it is dedicated to increasing the research workforce with 686,000 staff in R&D including 420,000 R&D researchers at the moment; (3) it has placed an expenditure on R&D worth 100 billion euros in 2017 alone, thanks to tight partnerships between the government and private sectors.
“Research is one of the most valuable resources a country can have. Its ability to predict, discover, record, understand, and make sense of things, if leveraged properly, can guarantee sustainable progress and a future worth living.”
All key facts aside, here’s what research can offer that might encourage you to listen to it more whenever you would make a stand and take a look towards an issue.
ONE: Research can predict outcomes.
One of the charms of research lies in its ability to produce factual and verified data that can predict outcomes which we can react to. Before the pandemic hit, there was a group of scientists struggling to find funding that could have hastened treatments for the COVID-19. The journal Clinical Microbiology Reviews published a research paper in October 2007 stating that:
“The presence of a large reservoir of SARS-CoV-like viruses in horseshoe bats, together with the culture of eating exotic mammals in southern China, is a time bomb.”
This warning made 13 years ago was followed by more studies that had been building for years, containing evidence of a looming and more deadly coronavirus pandemic (Schmidt, 2020). However, these research studies have been dogged with skepticism and inconsistent funding preventing scientists from developing an antidote earlier to the now-destructive pandemic.
Here’s another example. Ever since the virus has spread out in the Philippines, scientists at the University of the Philippines have been continuously providing the government with recommendations based on projections. The UP OCTA Research Team had initially projected around 60,000 Covid-19 cases by the end of July but later revised their projection to 85,000 due to the disease’s doubling transmission rate. By July 28, the cases had increased to 83,673 (Philippine News Agency, 2020). The same team, backed up by other scientists, has consistently told the government to reexamine and recalibrate its strategies in fighting the pandemic, proposing new strategies such as scaling up of mass testing and health care system capacity (CNN Philippines, 2020), but has seen no proactive and urgent response from the government.
Moreover, there have been alarming inconsistencies in the data our government uses in tracking the spread of the virus (UP COVID-19 Pandemic Response Team, 2020). The Department of Health has recently received numerous backlash by the way they present and gather their data, raising questions towards their integrity, and losing public trust. The UP COVID-19 Pandemic Response Team pointed out some of these data issues: 1) data sharing practices - inconsistent sharing of daily numbers and lack of centralized resource to use as a common reference; 2) data accuracy and integrity - inconsistent formats, errors in and interchanging of information; and 3) transparency and accountability - not sharing enough information preventing effective cross-validation from peers resulting to findings that do not converge.
One of the core purposes of research is to track and identify patterns in different phenomena. In short, research generates knowledge that allows us to have a grasp of what can unfold in the future, and prepare by creating and innovating solutions beforehand.
TWO: Research creates and recommends solutions.
When two decades of mining operations had dried out most part of a 32-hectare dumpsite in Mogpog, Marinduque, a group of researchers headed by Dr. Nelly S. Aggangan, scientist and researcher of National Research Council of the Philippines (NCRP) based at the University of the Philippines Los Banos, paved their way to study its chances to be restored. Using science-based solutions such as bioremediation, the team was able to healthily grow trees such as narra, acacia, and eucalyptus in the nutrient-depleted land. The study’s research findings and recommendations were shared in a policy brief that was adopted by other institutions as part of continuous mine rehabilitation strategies (NCRP-DOST, 2017).
When the super typhoon Yolanda ravaged the central Philippines in 2013, studies about risk and disaster communication pointed out how using the term “tsunami” instead of “storm surge” could have saved more lives (Rappler, 2013). Residents in Leyte and Samar — areas most devastated by the typhoon — have experience with a tsunami but are unfamiliar with the term used to describe what was about to come. The incident has, since then, caused a noticeable change in the way typhoon warnings are communicated and inspired more studies improving strategies on communicating risk and leveraging communication as a means to minimize casualties.
See, this is the hallmark of research — a ripple of problem-solving. Each research affects the other, and the other builds the next. Research studies go under the iterative process of understanding, assessing, and implementing proposed solutions to ensure guaranteed effectiveness and minimize the risk of problems reoccurring. It opens opportunities for adopting solutions deemed effective in one setting to another new setting. To put it simply, research is all about making an improvement. It is about understanding the past and present and using these to design a future that’s better for everyone.
THREE: Research is key to building a critical and educated mass.
The digital era has drastically birthed a surge of information, overwhelming its consumers and making it impossible to distinguish which are credible from not. False news has become rampant; and the data showing that 76 million Filipinos have internet and social media access (Hootsuite, 2019), combined with the country’s being lowest in reading comprehension (Programme for International Student Assessment, 2018), only places, and has already placed, thousands of Filipinos at risk of succumbing to false news and disinformation.
In political conversations, for instance, there “…used to have civilized conversations about disagreements in terms of issues, in terms of values, in terms of ideologies,” (David, 2019) but with the proliferation of misinformation and disinformation headed by professional and paid purveyors, the “significant number of Filipinos [believing in] stories from fake news websites and dubious social media pages” is highly disturbing.
Research plays a role in making a mass of critical media consumers. We can combat misinformation and disinformation through fact-based evidence while generating public awareness of the importance of science and fostering greater trust and understanding around science (Peters, 2018). False news can never thrive and will never stand a chance only if we Filipinos are vigilant towards the information we take in.
“We, as a country, need to double our effort in putting more importance and value to research by believing in its potential to catalyze progress and assist in national and local problem-solving.”
Indeed, research, or any data in general, is the bedrock of a progressive and successful society. Despite this, the Philippines still has a long way to go. It is crucial that we, as a country, multiply our efforts in putting more importance and value to research by believing in its potential to catalyze progress and assist in national and local problem-solving.
However, it appears to be impossible at the moment, so what can you do?
Immerse yourself in research projects; advocate for research- and science-based solutions; and the next time you look at an issue, be informed by reading and weighing existing research observations and facts. Never settle for baseless opinions. This way, you will be able to create informed decisions which you can use to better educate others and eventually, help build a data-driven and critical mass.
References:
CNN Philippines (2020). UP study projects 60,000 COVID-19 cases by end of July. Retrieved from https://www.cnn.ph/news/2020/6/29/UP-coronavirus-projections-end-of-July.html
Dar, D. (2018). Why invest more in R&D. Retrieved from https://www.manilatimes.net/2018/01/26/business/columnists-business/why-invest-more-in-rd-3/376500/
Fresco, M. (2017). NRCP Research to Rehab Mined-out Areas in Marinduque Shows Successful Results. Retrieved from http://www.nrcp.dost.gov.ph/previous-issues/314-nrcp-research-to-rehab-mined-out-areas-in-marinduque-shows-successful-results
Harvard Business School Online (2019). The Advantages of Data-Driven Decision Making. Retrieved from https://online.hbs.edu/blog/post/data-driven-decision-making
Inquirer.Net (2019). Villar hits DA for high budget on corn research: ‘Baliw na baliw kayo sa research’. Retrieved from https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1175450/villar-hits-da-for-high-budget-on-corn-research-baliw-na-baliw-kayo-sa-research#ixzz6XchTulq6
Peters, D. (2018). Fighting Fake News with Research Evidence. Retrieved from https://www.wiley.com/network/societyleaders/research-impact/fighting-fake-news-with-research-evidence
Philippine News Agency (2020). No reason to celebrate, UP’s Covid-19 forecast happened: Palace. Retrieved from https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1110452
Philippine Star. (2019). Philippines lowest in reading comprehension among 79 countries. Retrieved from https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2019/12/03/1974002/philippines-lowest-reading-comprehension-among-79-countries
Quilinguing, K.G. (2019). The problem with fake news: UP experts speak on the impact of disinformation on politics, society and democracy. Retrieved from https://www.up.edu.ph/the-problem-with-fake-news-up-experts-speak-on-the-impact-of-disinformation-on-politics-society-and-democracy/
Rappler (2013).’We should’ve said, expect a tsunami’. Retrieved from https://rappler.com/nation/we-should-have-said-tsunami-haiyan
Research in Germany (2019). Facts and Figures. Retrieved from https://www.research-in-germany.org/en/research-landscape/facts-and-figures.html
Santiago, F., & Regalado, K. (2019). Scrutinizing the lower 2020 budget allocation for DOST. Retrieved from https://thelasallian.com/2019/10/09/scrutinizing-the-lower-2020-budget-allocation-for dost/#:~:text=Last%20September%202%2C%20the%20Department,to%20the%20department%20in%202019.
Schmidt, C. (2020). Coronavirus Researchers Tried to Warn Us. Retrieved from https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/06/scientists-predicted-coronavirus-pandemic/613003/
UNESCO (2020). How much does your country spend in R&D?. Retrieved from http://uis.unesco.org/apps/visualisations/research-and-development-spending/
UP COVID-19 Pandemic Response Team (2020). Prevailing Data Issues in the Time of COVID-19 and the Need for Open Data. Retrieved from https://www.up.edu.ph/prevailing-data-issues-in-the-time-of-covid-19-and-the-need-for-open-data/
