Angel Alcala | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait,National Academy of Science and Technology | |
| Chairperson of theCommission on Higher Education | |
| In office July 1, 1998 – 1999 | |
| President | Joseph Estrada |
| Succeeded by | Ester Garcia |
| In office July 1, 1995 – June 30, 1998 | |
| President | Fidel V. Ramos |
| Preceded by | Ricardo Gloria |
| 23rdSecretary of Environment and Natural Resources | |
| In office September 8, 1992 – June 30, 1995 | |
| President | Fidel V. Ramos |
| Preceded by | Ricardo Umali (acting) |
| Succeeded by | Victor O. Ramos |
| 9thPresident of Silliman University | |
| In office 1991–1992 | |
| Preceded by | Pedro V. Flores |
| Succeeded by | Mervyn J. Misajon |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1929-03-01)March 1, 1929 |
| Died | February 1, 2023(2023-02-01) (aged 93) Dumaguete,Negros Oriental, Philippines |
| Alma mater |
|
| Profession | Marine biologist |
Angel Chua AlcalaONS (March 1, 1929 – February 1, 2023) was a Filipino biologist who was named aNational Scientist of the Philippines in 2014. Alcala is known for his fieldwork to buildsanctuaries and to promotebiodiversity in theaquatic ecosystems of the Philippines. He was the Chairman of the Board of Advisers at the Angelo King Center for Research and Environmental Management located inSilliman University.[1] Alcala published more than 200 peer-reviewed articles and books and his biological contributions to the environment and ecosystems have made him a renowned figure of natural sciences in the Philippines.[2]
Alcala was born on March 1, 1929, in the municipality ofCauayan, Negros Occidental.[3] He was raised by a moderately low-income family in the small coastal town of Caliling, Philippines. Alcala worked alongside his father who worked as a fisherman at the nearby agricultural fish ponds.[4] Due to his family's financial struggles, they depended on the ocean for its resources either[5] in providing food or items to sell.
In 1951, Angel Alcala earned his bachelor's degree in biology (magna cum laude) fromSilliman University. He then declined acceptance to the University of the Philippines College of Medicine in order to assist his family.[6] During that time, he occasionally assisted in biological fieldwork, for example forSidney Dillon Ripley andDioscoro Rabor in 1953 when they collected the only known (as of 2019) specimen of theNegros fruit dove. Alcala later attendedStanford University to complete his master's degree after 9 years. By 1966, he earned his Ph.D. in the same field and an honor doctorate from both theXavier University and theUniversity of Southeastern Philippines. Alcala later became aprofessor atSilliman University, where he also served as president for two consecutive years. He served as secretary of theDepartment of Environment and Natural Resources from 1992 to 1995 and chairman of theCommission on Higher Education (CHEd) from 1995 to 1999.[7] He also served as consultant on marine and aquatic projects under theUnited Nations Environment Programme,World Bank,Asian Development Bank, World Bank Global Environment Facility, the Pew Fellowship in Marine Conservation, and theUniversity of the PhilippinesMarine Science Institute.
Angel Alcala is accredited with many research accomplishments and improvements regardingenvironmental management, marine conservation, and discovery of new species. One of Alcala's works consisted of restoring or preserving areas with predominant wild, large predatory fish populations near a smallmarine sanctuary atApo Island in the Philippines. His goal was to sustain hospitable conditions in this sanctuary throughout the duration of his research.[8] This sanctuary, called the Sumilon Marine Reserve, began as just an uninhabited area under 100 kilometers away from Apo Island.[9] Another research element Alcala incorporated in his study is associating the species’ survival rate of large, predatory fish with available ocean territories around reefs andfisheries. This helped place an effort to set boundaries to distinguish marine sanctuaries and fishing areas. Alcala's conservation efforts accompanied by his research in oceanic and land management helped stabilize retention of once-endangered species in theSumilon Island and Apo Island marine reserves.[10]
His studies correlated the efforts of protective environmental practices with the effects of either continuing or ceasing those regulations. Incidents of fishing are common consequences when ocean space and resources are available and not properly managed. These studies were primarily conducted nearcoral reefs of Sumilon Island located in the central Philippines. Alcala concluded how maximizing conservation and environmental efforts near these coral reefs reduced fishing and stabilized struggling fish species that faced the increased loss of habitat.[11]
Angel Alcala experimented with his teams to conserve coral reefs and other marine resources. In their "no-take" experiment,[12] Alcala's team tested the mobility of fish species when humans were forbidden from fishing in these areas. By doing so, they discovered that thespecies abundance in the area declined while pushing the boundaries of their residence to further reaches. These findings provide evidence that conservation of these fishes and coral reefs not only slows the species' decline in numbers, but also the growth in habitat for all marine life.[13]
Alcala has also worked to protect the lives ofgiant clams in the Philippines. He worked alongside Dr. Edgardo Gomez to assess the organisms' status in 1983. After thorough evaluation ofBolinao waters, they learned that the numbers were insufficient. Gomez and Alcala retrieved young giant clams from theSolomon Islands to breed back in Bolinao. After their work, the giant clam population has increased significantly to ensure that the ecosystem is stable.[14] On October 25, 2014, he visited theSemirara coast where he spoke in favor of saving giant clams.[15]
Along with his many other accomplishments, Angel Alcala's work has led to the discovery of 50 new species of reptiles and amphibians.[16] In other words, more than 10 percent of all reptiles and amphibians in the Philippines are known today because of Alcala's work. This fieldwork began while he was still a student and ultimately built a stronger foundation to jumpstart conservation programs within the Philippines.[17]
In 1959, Angel Alcala earned the Fulbright-Smith Mundt master's fellowship inStanford University's biology department.[18]
In 1963, Alcala was awarded theGuggenheim Fellowship for Natural Sciences in the category for Organismal Biology & Ecology.
In 1992, theRamon Magsaysay Award Foundation awarded Alcala theRamon Magsaysay Award and acknowledged him for pioneering scientific leadership in restoring and conserving the coral reefs of the Philippines.[19]
In 1994, he received theField Museum Founders' Council Award of Merit for his contributions to environmental biology.
In 1999, he was awarded the Pew Fellowship in Marine Conservation for his continued, exceptional work in marine conservation.[20]
In 2014,PresidentBenigno Simeon Aquino III Proclamation No. 782, naming Alcala a National Scientist of the Philippines[21] in recognition of his research on ecology and diversity of Philippine amphibians and reptiles, marine biodiversity, and marine-protected areas.
In 2017, Alcala was named an ASEAN Biodiversity Hero.[16] He was also previously theDepartment of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary in the Philippines.[22]
In 2018, he was named a member of the Fulbright Philippines Hall of Fame.[2]
In November 2018, he was awarded Oceans Legend by PEMSEA during the East Asian Seas (EAS) Congress in Iloilo City.
In 2022, he was added to theAsian Scientist 100 byAsian Scientist.
Two species of Philippine snakes are named in his honor:Lycodon alcalai andOpisthotropis alcalai.[23]
One species of nudibranch is named in his honor:Chromodoris alcalai.[24]
Alcala was married to Naomi and they had 6 children.[25]
Alcala died on February 1, 2023, at the age of 93.[26]
| 1978 |
|
|---|---|
| 1980 |
|
| 1982 |
|
| 1983 |
|
| 1985 |
|
| 1986 |
|
| 1987 |
|
| 1988 |
|
| 1989 |
|
| 1994 |
|
| 1998 |
|
| 1999 |
|
| 2000 |
|
| 2001 |
|
| 2004 |
|
| 2005 |
|
| 2006 |
|
| 2008 |
|
| 2010 |
|
| 2011 |
|
| 2014 |
|
| 2019 |
|
| 2023 |
|
| 2024 |
|
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Academics | |
| Other | |
