Pre-registration is now closed.
Walk-in, on-site free registration will take place on April 23 at 7:30 a.m. at the Fr. Michael Richartz Conference Center. This conference is open to the public.
The 10th University Research Conference (URC 2026) will be held on April 23-24, 2026 at the Fr. Michael Richartz Conference Center and other venues in Talamban Campus. This year’s conference will have the theme, “Creativity and knowledge: University as a catalyst of innovation.”
Keynote speakers
Dr. Grace Nono is a public ethnomusicologist and interdisciplinary scholar who writes at the intersections of Philippine religious traditions, music, gender, ecology, and decolonization. She is also a singer of songs that mostly draw from Philippine oral traditions. In addition, Dr. Nono heads the Tao Foundation for Culture and Arts that promotes cultural revitalization and environmental conservation.
Dr. Ambeth Ocampo is no stranger to the URC; he was also the keynote speaker for URC 2017. Dr. Ocampo is the premiere Public Historian of the Philippines. His research covers the Spanish colonial Philippines: its art, culture, and the people who figure in the birth of the nation. He writes, Looking Back, the longest running editorial page column on history for the Philippine Daily Inquirer and has published over 35 books the most recent being: “History in Lockdown” (2024).” Cabinet of Curiosities: History from Philippine Artifacts” (2023) is also available in German and Malay translations.
Ocampo’s abstract is an intriguing read: Fake news is as old a history. Long before deepfakes and algorithmic “hallucinations” were created there was Jose E. Marco. His career spanned half a century and fooled seasoned scholars. Reviled in historiographical literature, Marco’s work deserves a second look as a cautionary tale on: veracity, authority, and academic one-upmanship. Whether manuscript or digital scholars and creatives require the same old skill set: critical thinking, primary source research, and the uncompromising search for and defense of Truth.
We will also be graced by the presence of a delegation from the Hungarian embassy, including the Ambassador to the Philippines H.E. Titanilla Toth, who will accompany Prof. Csaba Gyuricza, who will speak at the conference. Prof. Gyuricza, who will speak about “Knowledge that shapes the future,” is the rector of the Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences (MATE).
Panel discussion
URC 2026 will also feature a roundtable discussion on the current state of the creative industry, tackling issues related to policy, practice, and pedagogy. Confirmed panelists include Butch Carungay (Cebu UNESCO City of Design), Leeroy New (contemporary artist), Abdulmari “Toym” de Leon Imao Jr. (Dean, UP Diliman College of Fine Arts), and Lawrence Panganiban (Cebu Creative Entertainment Council). The panel will be moderated by Hannah Marie Lim-Escaño (HL Designs).
Curated documentary film exhibition
A series of documentary films will also be shown at the SAFAD Theater in the afternoon of April 23. This exhibition, curated among others by organizer Kristoffer Villarino, is dubbed DocYou: Cinema, Science, and Society and features ten films created by amateur filmmakers from the USC Cinema program.
Program
The URC 2026 Program may be viewed or downloaded by following this link. Non-USC participants may need to request permission before viewing the program. An overview of the conference can be found below.
URC 2026 is held in collaboration with the 2026 SAFAD Design Week.
URC 2026 has free registration and is open to the public. Exhibitors will showcase their companies during the conference. Food concessionaires will also be available for refreshments and lunch.
