Dr. Eriberta Nepomuceno Navera
Dr. Eriberta Nepomuceno Navera is a native of As, Albay. At an early age, the girl who loved collecting butterflies, concocting solutions and putting all sorts of things together was already determined to become a scientist and inventor. Dr. Navera took up Biochemistry at the Univeristy of Sto. Tomas. Then, in 1987, she was accepted as a Monbusho scholar at the University of Tokyo Research Center of Advanced Science and Technology. She was the first Filipino and the first non-Japanese ever to be accepted in the said university. Dr. Navera graduated with a Doctoral Degree in Engineering, specializing in biosensors and bioelectronics.
One of Dr. Navera’s most popular contributions to science was her invention and development of the Hydro Early Warning Device, which won the 1993 National Science Award. Her pioneering work on the Acetyl Choline Sensor was likewise lauded worldwide.
Dr. Navera was not only confined inside the laboratory. After her studies abroad, she went back to her hometown and taught Biochemistry at the Bicol University. Later on, she was appointed as Assistant Director of the University’s Research Center and Director of the Institute for Peace and Security Studies.
In 1999, she was appointed as the Regional Director of the Department of Science and Technology Regional Office No. V (DOST V). As Regional Director, Dr. Navera’s thrust was the use of science and technology to improve the region’s living conditions. She worked to strengthen the region’s exportable resources and products according to global standards, through the use of science and technology. – Allen A. Liberato
