The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) is pushing a broader science agenda that reaches beyond laboratories and into public planning, regional development, cultural preservation, and household nutrition, based on a series of recent initiatives from its attached agencies and regional offices.

Though the projects cover different sectors, they point to a similar direction: building institutional capacity, expanding access outside major urban centers, and using data or technical assessment to guide decisions. That thread appears in DOST’s new artificial intelligence hub, its regional research planning in Mindanao, its heritage conservation work in Bohol, and its latest nutrition survey findings.

Artificial intelligence and access

One of the clearest examples is the launch of the National Artificial Intelligence Center for Research and Innovation, or NAICRI, which DOST described as the country’s central hub for artificial intelligence research and as a vehicle for implementing the National AI Strategy for the Philippines through 2028. According to DOST, more than 80 percent of establishments in the country already have basic digital infrastructure, but only 15 percent have adopted advanced artificial intelligence technologies, with uptake concentrated in urban areas and larger firms.

DOST said the country still faces gaps in advanced computing power, specialized talent, regional adoption, and governance. In response, NAICRI is being positioned around four areas: computing infrastructure, research and talent development, governance and coordination, and regional innovation. The agency said the center is meant to give researchers, government agencies, enterprises, provinces, and micro, small, and medium enterprises access to shared computing resources and training for applications such as forecasting, logistics, health management, and disaster preparedness.

The overlap between artificial intelligence and cultural work was also visible at the launch, where DOST featured Museo, an artificial intelligence-powered heritage digitization initiative that uses 3D reconstruction to create digital twins of artifacts.

Regional research agenda

That push to spread technical capacity outside Metro Manila also surfaced in Mindanao, where Northern Mindanao researchers joined the 2026 Mindanao Cluster Call Conference to align regional research and development priorities with national goals. The discussions focused on health, agriculture, energy, and emerging technologies, while also tackling research and development gaps specific to the island.

During the conference, DOST officials highlighted Northern Mindanao priorities that included industrial development tied to 5G and 6G ecosystems and the metropolitan development of Cagayan de Oro. Researchers from the region also presented proposals and received feedback from DOST experts and sectoral councils, with the conference forming part of a broader series of cluster calls in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

Seen alongside NAICRI, the Mindanao conference suggests DOST is trying to connect national science planning with regional problem-solving, rather than keeping research agenda-setting concentrated at the center.

Science in heritage conservation

In Bohol, DOST’s Forest Products Research and Development Institute (FPRDI) signed a partnership with Bohol Island State University (BISU) for heritage conservation work anchored on the EPOCH research program, or “Enhancing Heritage Preservation: Advancing Evidence-Based Conservation Through Advanced NDT and Alternative, Compatible Materials.” The partnership focuses on using non-destructive testing and compatible conservation materials to assess and preserve historic structures in the province.

The work is aimed at structures that contain aging wooden elements, including floors, retablos, and columns that may already be affected by decay, termite activity, fungal attack, or structural weakening that is not immediately visible. The materials assessment component is especially relevant in older sites such as the 195-year-old Casa Rocha, where repair or replacement decisions can affect both structural safety and historical authenticity.

Before the agreement was formalized, DOST-FPRDI had already trained the BISU EPOCH team in wood identification. The DOST-FPRDI team also conducted site visits to Casa Rocha, Baclayon Church, Santa Monica Church, Loay Church, and Loboc Church. The memorandum of agreement signing took place on 19 February 2026.

Set beside the Museo project shown at the NAICRI launch, the Bohol initiative also shows how heritage work is becoming part of DOST’s wider technology agenda, whether through physical materials testing or digital documentation.

Food access and nutrition

DOST’s Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI), meanwhile, used the 2023 National Nutrition Survey to examine the country’s food environment for the first time, looking not just at what Filipinos eat, but where they get their food and how access shapes those choices. The survey covered natural food sources, traditional food outlets, modern food stores, and other channels such as food aid, institutional food environments, online sellers, pasa-buy services, and vending machines.

Among the survey’s findings, traditional food stores were the most accessible, reaching 99.2 percent of urban households and 98.6 percent of rural households. About 66.9 percent of households regularly bought food from sari-sari stores and other small retailers, while 44.2 percent sourced food from natural environments two to three times a week. About 50.9 percent purchased food from traditional outlets two to three times weekly, while 45.6 percent shopped at modern stores once or twice a month.

The survey also tracked household spending. Many households spent between P100 and P500 when buying from natural sources or traditional outlets, while more than half of households buying from modern stores spent over P1,000. FNRI said the findings can help guide programs aimed at making healthy and affordable food more accessible, especially since most households preferred outlets within a 10-minute distance and said cleanliness, nutrition, and healthiness mattered in food purchasing decisions.

FNRI said the findings could help strengthen local food systems and improve the availability of nutritious options in places households already frequent, giving policymakers and local governments a clearer basis for intervention.

Taken together, the four initiatives suggest DOST is trying to make science function less as a standalone sector and more as a planning tool across public life, from computing and regional innovation to conservation and nutrition. The larger test, however, is whether those efforts can move from pilot projects, conferences, and frameworks into broader implementation that reaches more communities.