Toyota breaks ground for UP Asian Center facilities

The University of the Philippines (UP) and leading car manufacturer Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. (TMP) kicked-off yesterday the construction of new facilities that shall house the UP Asian Center’s research institute, library, museum, and auditorium.

Funded by a P100 million donation by Toyota, the facilities will be composed of a main building and a 500-seat auditorium for international conferences and other events.  The facilities will be named the GT-Toyota Asian Heritage House and the GT-Toyota Asian Center Auditorium, respectively.

The project was announced by TMP chairman Dr. George S.K. Ty during the company’s twentieth anniversary celebration in August this year with President Arroyo present as guest-of-honor.

UP president Emerlinda Roman and Ty led the morning rites by breaking ground and planting the time capsule at the project site. They were joined by UP Centennial Committee chairman Sen. Edgardo Angara, former Philippine President Fidel Ramos, TMP president Hiroshi Ito, and UP chancellor Dr. Sergio Cao.

“Today, we mark an important milestone,” said Ty during the groundbreaking ceremony. “The facilities that we will build here shall showcase the rich heritage of Asia and provide perspective on the global role that it plays in the 21st century.  These structures will become landmarks in the university, and more importantly, a melting pot of cultures.”

“The GT-Toyota Asian Heritage House shall be a venue for cultural exchange, giving life to new ideas, research and advanced studies, while learning will be further enhanced through international conferences that will be held at the 500-seat GT-Toyota Asian Center Auditorium,” explained Ty.  “I look forward to the greater understanding among people of various nations that these facilities will make possible.”

The proposed facilities will be constructed within a one-hectare property in the university’s campus in Diliman, Quezon City. The lot is beside the Romulo Hall and will be exclusively devoted for the new structures. Noted architect Jose Pedro Recio, lead architect of the firm Rchitects, Inc., has been tapped to design the new building and auditorium.

“The University is now in the process of establishing a research institute for the study of relevant national and regional issues,” said Roman. “Toyota’s donation will help us attain our vision to be a cultural and policy hub of intellectual and cultural exchanges in the Philippines and Asia.”

UP, through the Asian Center, offers a degree program in Asian Studies and Philippines Studies, and engages in research and extension services related to these fields of expertise. It is mandated to develop closer and broader contact with Asian peoples in the field of scholarship and learning, and to train country and area specialists in the Philippines, Japan, China, Korea, Southeast Asia, and other countries and regions of Asia.

The GT-Toyota Asian Heritage House will be the home of the Asia Library and Resource Center and the Asia Museum. It will contain the existing Asia Library collection of the UP Asian center and will consolidate and provide exhibit spaces for the center’s existing collection of Philippine ethnographic materials. The complex will also provide offices and meeting rooms for research, extension, and conference activities.

The project is a significant addition to UP as it remains the country’s premier educational institution and it kicks-off as UP celebrates its centennial this year. The groundbreaking ceremony also coincides with Toyota’s celebration of its twentieth year in the Philippines. In these two decades, the company has established itself not only as a manufacturer of high-quality vehicles, but also as a catalyst of social progress through its various civic projects intended to raise the quality of education, health, and environment in the country.

The donation is the latest major contribution of Toyota in these efforts to help in nation-building and the country’s social development. “We derive our resources from society. So, we should accordingly give back to society,” explained Ty. “As we look forward to further strengthen our partnership with the Philippine government, we will continue to strive to contribute to the country’s development, to the economy as well as to society.”