To the university leadership, faculty, parents, families, friends, and most especially, to the graduates.

For generations, rivers have fed families, supplied farms, supported local fisheries, and served as lifelines for communities. Yet many of the country's freshwater ecosystems continue to face pressure from human activities such as mining, agriculture, urban development, and changes in land use.

Delivered during Pasidungog 2026: A Tribute to the Graduands with Latin Honors on July 21, 2026 at the VSU Gymnatorium 

Photos courtesy of Dr. Bethlehem Ponce

The Visayas State University Department of Philosophy and Social Sciences (VSU DPSS) extension project, Saving Minamanwa: An Initiative to Preserve Minamanwa and the Mamanwa Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Practices, officially turned over the Saving Minamanwa mini-workbook to the Mamanwa community and the Department of Education (DepEd) Division of Southern Leyte last July 20, 2026 at the DepEd Division Office, Mantahan, Maasin City, Southern Leyte. 

For Jomari Z. Tubigan, the sea has always been more than just a backdrop to his childhood.

Engr. John Christan L. Gaviola, Director of the Visayas State University Regional Climate Change Research and Development Center (VSU RCCRDC) and a faculty member of the Department of Civil Engineering, recently returned from a Specialization Certificate in the Assessment and Management of Geological and Climate-related Risk, a postgraduate specialization program offered by the University of Geneva in Switzerland that ran from April 27 to July 17, 2026.

Good afternoon, Class of 2026.