GT-Toyota Center in UP Diliman exists for Asian culture awareness

MANILA, Philippines - “There is a general feeling of amazement and awe whenever people pass by here.”

This is how University of the Philippines (UP) Asian Center dean Dr. Mario Miclat describes the reaction of visitors to the GT-Toyota Asian Cultural Center (GT-TACC) in the university’s campus in Diliman, Quezon City.

Constructed within a one-hectare property at the corner of Magsaysay Avenue and Katipunan Avenue, the GT-TACC has become one of the most striking additions to the UP Diliman campus, both visually and intellectually.

The GT-TACC’s fully operational facilities, the GT-Toyota Hall of Wisdom and the GT-Toyota Asian Center Auditorium, are now becoming busy venues for both local and international meetings, forums, and conferences.

The GT-Toyota Hall of Wisdom showcases a museum on Philippine ethnography pioneered and collected by famed anthropologist F. Landa Jocano. Likewise, on display in its museum halls is the Asian Center’s textile collection of rare Maranao and Tausug costumes, together with the Ifugao ikat and the Japanese kimono. The library, on the other hand, compiles an extensive collection of over 50,000 volumes on Asian studies, which are now utilized by both local and international researchers.

Moreover, the 500-seat GT-Toyota Asian Center Auditorium is fast becoming an in-demand venue for both local and international conferences and other similar events, as the facility is fully-equipped with audio-visual equipment that includes a simultaneous interpretation system for multi-lingual conferencing.

Even Café Via Mare, the newest addition to the GT-TACC’s facilities, has its own draw to UP students and individuals who work and live nearby, providing them with a sophisticated and cozy dining ambiance in this part of the academic community.

While Dr. Miclat feels that the GT-TACC has raised the bar with regard to the quality of the University’s facilities, he is quick to emphasize the synergy between UP and Toyota as a catalyst for social progress through education.

TMP chairman Dr. George S.K. Ty has envisioned the facilities to “showcase the rich heritage of Asia and provide perspective on the global role that it plays in the 21st century.”   In keeping with this vision, the GT-TACC, through the UP Asian Center, has served as a venue for numerous seminars and forums related to Asia’s changing socio-political and economic landscapes, as well as numerous exhibitions and performances by both local and regional talents.

These include the Asian Center’s 2010 lecture series on Globalization and National Identities in West Asia and the launch of the Laguna Lake Development Authority’s ISDA sa LAWA program.

Starting off 2011 is the Jasmine Fragrance, an exhibition on Chinese culture featuring performances from the Fujian National University Art Troupe held in February. This was followed by the international archaeology conference and exhibit on the most recent Paleolithic Era finds from Palawan held in March.

Something to look forward to this year is GT-TACC’s biggest event in June when the Center opens its doors for the much-touted Rizal Sesquicentennial, which will feature talks from both local and foreign scholars on the national hero along with a 150-item exhibit on how Filipino artists have perceived Rizal through the decades.

The partnership between Toyota and the UP-Asian Center does not, however, end with the former’s donation. It is only the beginning of a long-term relationship based on mutual trust, understanding and respect for people.

As the GT-TACC was made possible by a P100-million pledge from Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation (TMP), the biggest single donation received by the University from a private firm for its centennial in 2008, Dr. Miclat emphatically states that, “We have to be responsible to Toyota; we have to be responsible to the donors and the community,” especially in being conscientious with regard to the upkeep of both the grounds and the facilities within.

With the strong commitment of and partnership between Toyota and UP, the GT-Toyota Asian Cultural Center will surely live up to serving its purpose in decades to come.