Assoc. Prof. Beatriz A. Belmonte of the University of Santo Tomas Department of Chemical Engineering received the 2026 Dr. Michel R.I. Purvis Award for Sustainability Research from PHILAAST. Her research focuses on biochar as a carbon dioxide removal tool, including how it affects soil greenhouse gas emissions, crop yields, and supply chains for carbon management. Belmonte's work uses mathematical and system-level models to connect lab-scale biochar findings to decisions about sequestration, agriculture, and climate mitigation. PHILAAST cited her contributions to negative-emissions technologies and her development of a unified decision-support framework. The award has policy relevance beyond campus news. The article ties her research to proposed Philippine emissions trading legislation and the country's Paris Agreement commitments, which makes the work directly useful for carbon market design and national climate policy.
