Dr Bantayan is Professor 12, a UP Scientist I and a professional forester. He finished B.S. Forestry from the University of the Philippines Los Banos in 1984, Master of Science in Tropical Forestry from Wageningen Research University, The Netherlands in 1990, and Ph.D. in Geomatics Engineering from The University of Melbourne in Australia 1996. He was Director and Park Manager of the Makiling Center for Mountain Ecosystems (2012-2017) that manages the Mt Makiling Forest Reserve which was recognized as an ASEAN Heritage Park during his term as Director. He wrote a seminal book on GIS that is being used as the textbook for GIS in environment, forestry, and natural resources. He’s co-author of the book on Mount Makiling: Science-based management and upland community development in the Philippines: the case of Mount Makiling Forest Reserve. This book was awarded by the National Academy of Science and Technology NAST as the Most Outstanding Science book for 2020. He is currently Vice Chancellor for Research and Extension of UP Los Baños.
