LOS BAÑOS, Laguna — Twenty-six graduate scholars from six Southeast Asian countries have undergone training aimed to bring academic research beyond journal publication and into policy and broader use.
The scholars — from Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Vietnam — participated in the customized training, “Beyond the Journal Article: Scientific Writing for Policy and Wider Scholarly Engagement,” held recently at the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA).
Organized under SEARCA’s Graduate-on-Time (GOT) program in partnership with the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) College of Development Communication (CDC), the course provided practical skills to transform thesis and dissertation research into publication plans, policy briefs, and book chapter proposals.
Dr. Maria Cristeta Cuaresma, senior program head of SEARCA’s Education and Collective Learning Department, said the GOT trainings are designed not only to build individual capacity but also to prepare scholars to contribute to agricultural transformation in their home countries and communities.
“You could be ambassadors of SEARCA working for sustainable agricultural transformation,” Cuaresma said.
The training reframed publication as both an academic requirement and a channel for social change.
Associate Professor Dr. Winifredo Dagli of the UPLB CDC Department of Science Communication said journal articles remain essential, but they are not always the most appropriate format for reaching policymakers, practitioners, communities and the general public.
Participants were trained to align research evidence with specific audiences and objectives.
In policy communication sessions, they practiced defining communication goals, identifying target readers, presenting key messages in plain language, and linking problems to evidence, feasible options and clear recommendations.
Writing sessions focused on narrowing broad research questions, developing focused arguments, constructing claim-evidence-reasoning chains, and revising drafts for logic, clarity and accuracy.
Sessions on books and other publication routes emphasized that converting a dissertation into another format requires reconceptualization rather than mere repackaging. Scholars learned to create a narrative arc, reduce jargon and extensive literature reviews, and ensure each chapter contributes to the overall purpose of the book.
Other sessions guided scholars in choosing the right journals and publishers, identifying and avoiding predatory outlets, handling peer review and rejection, and observing ethical standards in research and publication.
Discussions on artificial intelligence framed AI as a support tool for specific tasks like outlining and editing, while stressing the need to verify results and to properly document and disclose its use when required.
The training wrapped up with the participants outlining recommendations to improve capacity building, foster collaboration and networking, secure financing and incentives, strengthen institutional backing, and ensure research continues after graduate studies.
They also examined how SEARCA, together with their home universities, alumni groups, publishers and other partners, could help maintain momentum in research, writing and publication once their degrees are completed.
SEARCA said the initiative aligns with its 12th Five-Year Development Plan centered on Sustainable Transformation of Agricultural Systems through Innovation in Southeast Asia, or Sustain Southeast Asia, and advances the GOT program’s goal of producing researchers and development leaders who can translate academic evidence into knowledge, policy and practice across the region.