Testimonial of Isaiah S. Cabañero from the ICOMOS Internship Program

My internship at ICOMOS Philippines was a unique one, to say the least. Despite the COVID-19 global health crisis and community quarantine measures in the Philippines, the internship experience at the organization, although entirely conducted remotely and facilitated online, has been very educational and worthwhile. Although I worked remotely, was still able to be exposed to different facets of heritage work and the heritage movement in the Philippines and abroad.

One of the first projects I worked on was the continuation of a study on the Philippine Registry of Cultural Property (PRECUP). Primarily, my task was to interview local government units on how they accomplished their annual listings for this registry. Through this we identified gaps in the processes in which ICOMOS, or the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) itself, could intervene at to help resolve the problem for the better.

Fortunate are those LGUs whose government leaders collaborate with local communities for the appreciation, preservation, and conservation of their local cultural properties and heritage. Others submit the list for compliance, so I think more attention from the NCCA and its allied agencies must be channeled towards these localities for continued education and co-creation of local cultural knowledge of their heritage. They could also benefit from direct assistance in both the technical and logistical aspects of the work.

In one of the webinars that ICOMOS hosted on food security, a farming community that was watching got in touch with me. Today I work hand-in-hand with that farming community. After my internship, I am better equipped to understand the unique local context these communities have lived in, both past and present, and appreciate their continuing traditions and survival of community identity in this rapidly urbanizing world. I am happy to witness their shared appreciation of their local culture and, ultimately, the preservation of this local indigenous Filipino heritage.

For interested students or new graduates who would like to take internship with the organization, please contact info@icomosphilippines.com

Introducing Ruby Descalzo and Gio Abcede, ICOMOS Philippines Intern – August 2020

Through the formation of working groups within ICOMOS Philippines and the formation of communications strategies for the organization, ICOMOS Philippines is happy to share that we will have two new interns working with us for the next three months:

Ruby Descalzo is a recent graduate of the Ateneo de Manila University, with a degree Environmental Science and a minor in Cultural Heritage Studies. She previously served as the President of Baybayin Ateneo, a Filipino cultural student organization. She aspires to pursue studies on ethnoecology and to contribute to the conservation of the Philippines’ biodiversity and traditional ecological knowledge.

Ruby chose to intern for ICOMOS in order to grow as a young professional in the field of cultural heritage. She hopes to use her skills in GIS and statistics for Project Alexandria and under the tutelage of member Claudia Montero, she will help develop the graphic portfolio and database of the organization.


Gio Abcede is a graduating BS Architecture student from De La Salle University, College of Saint Benilde. He has worked with One/Zero Design Co. on the Maestranza Creative Quarters project and collaborated with Digiscript Philippines Inc. with mapping presentations for the Intramuros Cultural Management Plan. He is also a core member and graphic designer for the Heritage Conservation Society.

Gio sought an internship with ICOMOS Philippines to learn how to gather data on heritage structures efficiently and to find solutions geared towards heritage-driven development. He hopes to contribute his current research and thesis focused on the role of typo-morphological analysis and cultural significance assessment in identifying adaptive reuse opportunities in Manila. He will be working closely with the Architecture Committee of ICOMOS Philippines and will be supporting the organization with planned webinars and online courses.

Welcome, Ruby and Gio! We’re very pleased to have your assistance.

Insights on heritage from the ICOMOS Internship Program – Chanelle Custorio

Back in 2018, when the work of studying the existing spreadsheets of the Philippine Registry of Cultural Property (PRECUP) was given to me and my colleague Carissa Veloso, I got quite excited because the task gave us a chance to have a glimpse of the heritage registry encompassing the whole country. It was a challenge to check and assess over 5,000 entries that led me to uncover the gaps and successes across the different regions.

The analysis gave me headaches and long nights of work, but it was worth the effort. The research was essentially a diagnostic report on the registry of cultural properties across the country. I discovered that even though there were a lot of entries, many regions were underrepresented and numerous listings were problematic, such as listings of corporate establishments as cultural property.

Although I am currently more focused on the mainstream architecture practice, the brief exposure from the heritage field helped me to become more conscious in raising awareness about our built, intangible, and natural heritage in both my designs and in dealing with my clients. I am thankful for ICOMOS Philippines for providing me this opportunity.

For interested students or new graduates who would like to take internship with the organization, please contact info@icomosphilippines.com

Introducing Kenneth Tua, ICOMOS Philippines Intern – July 2020

With more activities online and new collaborations between members and external partners are happening, ICOMOS Philippines is happy to share that we will have a new intern working with us for the next three months: Kenneth J. Tua is a registered & licensed architect and a sustainable territorial development consultant. He is currently taking his Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree in DYnamics of Cultural Landscape, heritage, Memory and conflictualities (DYCLAM+) in Europe under the ERASMUS+ Scholarship. Previously, Kenneth worked with HBA and RMDA and at the Office of the President of the Republic of the Philippines – Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission. 

He decided to apply as an intern for ICOMOS Philippines during his summer break from his masters degree to be able to incorporate his ongoing studies in Sustainable Heritage Management and Cultural Landscapes at the Philippine setting. Moreover, Kenneth wants to be of great service in creating advocacies in galvanizing solutions for the Philippine cultural heritage.  In collaboration with members of the International Scientific Committee on Cultural Landscapes (ISCCL), Mr. Gabriel Caballero and Dr. Susan Aquino-Ong, Kenneth will be starting a research that will look into how heritage conservation can potentially be integrated to landscape architecture programs in the country.

Welcome, Kenneth! We’re very pleased to have your assistance.

Introducing Isaiah Cabañero, ICOMOS Philippines Intern – May 2020

Even with the Enhanced Community Quarantine, heritage work continues. ICOMOS Philippines is fortunate to have a new intern working with us remotely for the next three months: Isaiah Cabañero is an advocate of community development and believes in the agency of the people to effect change in transforming their lives and society for the better. He majored in Community Development at the University of the Philippines – Diliman, working with communities and volunteer organizations which gained him experience in community organizing and people-centered participatory project development.

Isaiah contacted ICOMOS Philippines regarding an internship because of his interest in cultural heritage conservation which has continued to seep through his work. He believes that “scientific and technological methods in conservation strategies must go hand-in-hand with the economic and socio-cultural knowledge of local communities in order for efforts to be sustainable and become, ultimately, for the people.” He will be continuing the Project Alexandria research which will be done in collaboration with the ICOMOS Philippines Secretariat and Trustee, Kara Garilao. He will also be assisting the organisation with the planned focus group discussions and other communications projects.

Welcome, Isaiah! We’re very pleased to have your assistance.

Internship Experience with ICOMOS Philippines – Carissa Veloso

ICOMOS Philippines is gathering testimonials from researchers, students and graduates of its internship program. The first testimonial comes from Carissa Veloso, who interned with the organization in 2018 and now has become part of ICOMOS Philippines.

In 2018, I completed an internship with my partner Chanelle Custorio at ICOMOS Philippines. While my primary work dealt with research on the PRECUP of the NCCA, I was also able to participate in a couple of other events in partnership with ICOMOS International.

As an intern and in the early stage of my career in heritage, it was exciting to be exposed to these kinds of international events and also be connected to ICOMOS Philippines members who are at the top of their fields in the country.

My mentors for the PRECUP were always approachable and while they provided a lot of guidance, there was a lot of room for me to accomplish my work through my own methods.

It was a full learning experience doing research on something that I felt was meaningful.


Carissa Veloso continues her work in heritage and now serves as the Secretariat of the ICOMOS Philippines. For interested students or new graduates who would like to take internship with the organization, please contact info@icomosphilippines.com

Internship Opportunity for Cultural Heritage Research, in partnership with Fundacion Santiago

Fundacion Santiago and ICOMOS Philippines are looking for 2 research interns to develop first person stories for the Emilio Aguinaldo Shrine.

Interns will receive close mentorship in research and interpretation of historic data by a leading heritage expert as they conduct interviews, consolidate data from varying modes of research, and contextualize these into scenarios typical of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and told in first person by those near and dear to Emilio Aguinaldo.

Qualifications. Creative Writing, Theater, Social Sciences, Education, History, Anthropology, Sociology students; or emerging professionals, and graduates looking to gain experience in Heritage Interpretation, who are conscientious in handling important documents and materials; adept in research; comfortable in reading and communicating in Filipino & English; independent worker and team player.

For those interested, kindly send your cover letter and CV to internship.icomosfs@gmail.com on or before October 5, 2018.

Internship Opportunity for Cultural Heritage Research at ICOMOS Philippines

Calling all university students and recent graduates! ICOMOS Philippines is looking for interns who will be part of our cultural heritage research.

Accepted applicants will research on heritage conservation-related studies, reports and ordinances of NGOs, government agencies, and LGUs. Findings from this body of work will help shape ICOMOS Philippines’ future approaches to protect and conserve our heritage.

Requirements. Currently enrolled students in a university or recent graduates are welcome to apply; with research and writing skills, as well as ability to summarize and synthesize data; independent worker and team player; interest in heritage is a plus.

For those interested, kindly send your cover letter and CV to info@icomosphilippines.com on or before March 3, 2018.