Alexander Flor
Encyclopedia
Alexander G. Flor is a Filipino
academic known for his transdisciplinary approach to communication and as a pioneer of the Los Baños school of development communication, contributing to the field's understanding and application of ethnovideography
, distance learning, strategic communication
, environmental communication
, the collective mind
, knowledge management
and informatization
. Formerly, Vice Chancellor of the UP Open University, he served two terms as Dean of its Faculty of Information & Communication Studies.
Flor is a member of the New York Academy of Sciences
and the American Association for the Advancement of Science
.
Néstor Vicente Madali González
. His first cousins, Dr. Jose G. Mariano and Dr. NIM Gonzalez serve as President, University of Asia and the Pacific
and Dean, Asian Institute of Journalism Graduate School, respectively. His wife, Dr. Benjamina Gonzalez-Flor is a grandniece to Dr. Bienvenido Gonzalez, the first post-war president of the University of the Philippines
. On both sides of his family, Flor is a third generation Freemason.
of the University of the Philippines Los Baños. In 2002 he was asked to become the Vice Chancellor for Research and Development of the UP Open University, then as founding Dean of the University's Faculty of Information & Communication Studies, arguably the first Asian institution to operationalize the convergence of communication arts and computer science in its curricular offerings.
's convergence model of communication; for being one of the earliest proponents of upstream and downstream DevCom interventions; for co-authoring the Transformational Communication Model (1997) along with Rebecca Smith; and for proposing development communication as a Fifth Theory of the Press (after the Authoritarian, Libertarian, Social Responsibility and Soviet Communist theories proposed by Siebert et al. in 1956).
Among his notable contributions to the field as an author include Broadcast Based Distance Learning Systems (University of the Philippines Press
, 1995) and Introduction to Development Communication, which he co-wrote with Ila Virginia C. Ongkiko - the textbook used for development communication students' introductory courses in the Philippines. A student of Nora Quebral, he began relating development communication to the newly emerging ICTs in the early eighties. Flor differed from his mentor in the sense that he adopted a critical perspective. His dissertation on the Two Faces of the Information Age (1986) was indicative of this. Published early in his career were articles on the Information Wastage Ratio (Scientometrics
,1987) and the Informatization of Agriculture (Asian Journal of Communication, 1994.) This, however, changed drastically while serving as Knowledge Management Program Officer of SEAMEO SEARCA, an intergovernmental organization of the ten Southeast Asian countries which pioneered in the area of agricultural knowledge resources and systems. In 2001, he presented a seminal paper on ICT4D at the Asian Development Forum III in Bangkok. The paper, ICT and Poverty the Indisputable Link, gave five major perspectives on the causes of poverty and how they relate to information and communication. This was followed by an online paper presentation on A Global Knowledge Network(2001) and a paper on Social Capital and the Network Effect(2004) presented in Bali.
Flor has three books published by SEARCA: eDevelopment and Knowledge Management(2001); Ethnovideography(2002); and Digital Tools for Process Documentation(2002) . While at UPOU he wrote Communication (2004) which he started with the declarative statement, “Environmentalism
as we know it today began with environmental communication. The environmental movement was ignited by a spark from a writer’s pen, or more accurately, Rachel Carson
’s typewriter.”
Flor is also credited for coining the term “ethnovideography” in 1992 and its conceptualization as a methodology for studying groups or sub-groups using small format video.” It may be noted that most YouTube
documentaries inadvertently use production technique akin to ethnovideography. Additionally, Flor is recognized within the Philippine KM community as having started the Los Baños school of knowledge management, which he describes in his book Communication Praxis (2007) as “indifferent to corporate values, founded on knowledge science, guided by knowledge economics, and contributory to the Millennium Development Goals
.” However, Flor belongs to the group of KM proponents who strongly disagree with the use of the term "knowledge creation," adopting a Kantian view that knowledge is apriori thus discovered instead of created as discussed in his book eDevelopment and Knowledge Management(2001). ” In 1998, while concurrently serving in SEARCA, he introduced knowledge management into the Bachelor of Science in Development Communication curriculum of the University of the Philippines Los Baños.
under cybernetics
and general systems theory:
Filipino people
The Filipino people or Filipinos are an Austronesian ethnic group native to the islands of the Philippines. There are about 92 million Filipinos in the Philippines, and about 11 million living outside the Philippines ....
academic known for his transdisciplinary approach to communication and as a pioneer of the Los Baños school of development communication, contributing to the field's understanding and application of ethnovideography
Ethnovideography
Ethnovideography is a methodology of using video in the study of peoples, communities, groups or sub-groups. It espouses the use of video to document reality instead of "creating" realities. Hence, ethnovideographic presentations are unscripted. Narrations, background music, sound effects and...
, distance learning, strategic communication
Strategic Communication
Strategic Communication can mean either communicating a concept, a process, or data that satisfies a long term strategic goal of an organization by allowing facilitation of advanced planning, or communicating over long distances usually using international telecommunications or dedicated global...
, environmental communication
Environmental communication
Environmental communication refers to the study and practice of how individuals, institutions, societies, and cultures craft, distribute, receive, understand, and use messages about the environment and human interactions with the environment...
, the collective mind
Collective wisdom
Collective wisdom, also called group wisdom and co-intelligence is shared knowledge arrived at by individuals and groups.Collective intelligence, which is sometimes used synonymously with collective wisdom, is more of a shared decision process than collective wisdom...
, knowledge management
Knowledge management
Knowledge management comprises a range of strategies and practices used in an organization to identify, create, represent, distribute, and enable adoption of insights and experiences...
and informatization
Informatization
Informatization or informatisation refers to the extent by which a geographical area, an economy or a society is becoming information-based, i.e., increase in size of its information labor force. Usage of the term was inspired by Marc Porat’s categories of ages of human civilization: the...
. Formerly, Vice Chancellor of the UP Open University, he served two terms as Dean of its Faculty of Information & Communication Studies.
Flor is a member of the New York Academy of Sciences
New York Academy of Sciences
The New York Academy of Sciences is the third oldest scientific society in the United States. An independent, non-profit organization with more than members in 140 countries, the Academy’s mission is to advance understanding of science and technology...
and the American Association for the Advancement of Science
American Association for the Advancement of Science
The American Association for the Advancement of Science is an international non-profit organization with the stated goals of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific responsibility, and supporting scientific education and science outreach for the...
.
Family
Flor comes from a family of academics. He is a nephew to writer and National ArtistNational Artist of the Philippines
A National Artist of the Philippines is a title given to a Filipino who has been given the highest recognition for having made significant contributions to the development of Philippine arts...
Néstor Vicente Madali González
N. V. M. González
Néstor Vicente Madali González was a Filipino writer.-Biography:He was born on 8 September 1915 in Romblon, Philippines. González, however, was raised in Mansalay, a southern town of the Philippine province of Oriental Mindoro. González was a son of a school supervisor and a teacher...
. His first cousins, Dr. Jose G. Mariano and Dr. NIM Gonzalez serve as President, University of Asia and the Pacific
University of Asia and the Pacific
The University of Asia and the Pacific is a private research university in the Philippines. It traces its beginnings to the Center for Research and Communication , which was established in 1967 as a private think-tank that conducted economic and social research and offered graduate courses in...
and Dean, Asian Institute of Journalism Graduate School, respectively. His wife, Dr. Benjamina Gonzalez-Flor is a grandniece to Dr. Bienvenido Gonzalez, the first post-war president of the University of the Philippines
University of the Philippines
The ' is the national university of the Philippines. Founded in 1908 through Act No...
. On both sides of his family, Flor is a third generation Freemason.
Academic career
From 1976 to 2000, Flor served in the faculty of the College of Development CommunicationUPLB College of Development Communication
The College of Development Communication is the ninth college established under the University of the Philippines Los Baños . It is recognized worldwide as a pioneer of Development Communication as an academic field. It offered the Philippines' first communication course in 1960, as a major...
of the University of the Philippines Los Baños. In 2002 he was asked to become the Vice Chancellor for Research and Development of the UP Open University, then as founding Dean of the University's Faculty of Information & Communication Studies, arguably the first Asian institution to operationalize the convergence of communication arts and computer science in its curricular offerings.
Contributions to Development Communication theory
As a theorist, he is credited with the cybernetic definition of development communication rooted in D. Lawrence KincaidD. Lawrence Kincaid
D. Lawrence Kincaid is best known among communication theorists as the proponent of the convergence model of communication, a nonlinear model of communication wherein two communicators strive to reach "mutual understanding." In recent years this model has been particularly popular among proponents...
's convergence model of communication; for being one of the earliest proponents of upstream and downstream DevCom interventions; for co-authoring the Transformational Communication Model (1997) along with Rebecca Smith; and for proposing development communication as a Fifth Theory of the Press (after the Authoritarian, Libertarian, Social Responsibility and Soviet Communist theories proposed by Siebert et al. in 1956).
Among his notable contributions to the field as an author include Broadcast Based Distance Learning Systems (University of the Philippines Press
University of the Philippines Press
The University of the Philippines Press is the official publishing house for all constituent units of the U.P. system, and is the first university press in the country...
, 1995) and Introduction to Development Communication, which he co-wrote with Ila Virginia C. Ongkiko - the textbook used for development communication students' introductory courses in the Philippines. A student of Nora Quebral, he began relating development communication to the newly emerging ICTs in the early eighties. Flor differed from his mentor in the sense that he adopted a critical perspective. His dissertation on the Two Faces of the Information Age (1986) was indicative of this. Published early in his career were articles on the Information Wastage Ratio (Scientometrics
Scientometrics
Scientometrics is the science of measuring and analysing science. In practice, scientometrics is often done using bibliometrics which is a measurement of the impact of publications. Modern scientometrics is mostly based on the work of Derek J. de Solla Price and Eugene Garfield...
,1987) and the Informatization of Agriculture (Asian Journal of Communication, 1994.) This, however, changed drastically while serving as Knowledge Management Program Officer of SEAMEO SEARCA, an intergovernmental organization of the ten Southeast Asian countries which pioneered in the area of agricultural knowledge resources and systems. In 2001, he presented a seminal paper on ICT4D at the Asian Development Forum III in Bangkok. The paper, ICT and Poverty the Indisputable Link, gave five major perspectives on the causes of poverty and how they relate to information and communication. This was followed by an online paper presentation on A Global Knowledge Network(2001) and a paper on Social Capital and the Network Effect(2004) presented in Bali.
Flor has three books published by SEARCA: eDevelopment and Knowledge Management(2001); Ethnovideography(2002); and Digital Tools for Process Documentation(2002) . While at UPOU he wrote Communication (2004) which he started with the declarative statement, “Environmentalism
Environmentalism
Environmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology and social movement regarding concerns for environmental conservation and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seeks to incorporate the concerns of non-human elements...
as we know it today began with environmental communication. The environmental movement was ignited by a spark from a writer’s pen, or more accurately, Rachel Carson
Rachel Carson
Rachel Louise Carson was an American marine biologist and conservationist whose writings are credited with advancing the global environmental movement....
’s typewriter.”
Flor is also credited for coining the term “ethnovideography” in 1992 and its conceptualization as a methodology for studying groups or sub-groups using small format video.” It may be noted that most YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
documentaries inadvertently use production technique akin to ethnovideography. Additionally, Flor is recognized within the Philippine KM community as having started the Los Baños school of knowledge management, which he describes in his book Communication Praxis (2007) as “indifferent to corporate values, founded on knowledge science, guided by knowledge economics, and contributory to the Millennium Development Goals
Millennium Development Goals
The Millennium Development Goals are eight international development goals that all 193 United Nations member states and at least 23 international organizations have agreed to achieve by the year 2015...
.” However, Flor belongs to the group of KM proponents who strongly disagree with the use of the term "knowledge creation," adopting a Kantian view that knowledge is apriori thus discovered instead of created as discussed in his book eDevelopment and Knowledge Management(2001). ” In 1998, while concurrently serving in SEARCA, he introduced knowledge management into the Bachelor of Science in Development Communication curriculum of the University of the Philippines Los Baños.
Development Communication: a cybernetic definition
In 1993, as part of the then Institute of Development Communication's Faculty papers series, Flor wrote a paper on environmental communication that, among other things, proposed a definition of Development Communication expanded from Norbert Weiner's concept of negentropyNegentropy
The negentropy, also negative entropy or syntropy, of a living system is the entropy that it exports to keep its own entropy low; it lies at the intersection of entropy and life...
under cybernetics
Cybernetics
Cybernetics is the interdisciplinary study of the structure of regulatory systems. Cybernetics is closely related to information theory, control theory and systems theory, at least in its first-order form...
and general systems theory:
If information counters entropy and societal breakdown is a type of entropy, then there must be a specific type of information that counters societal entropy. The exchange of such information - be it at the individual, group, or societal level - is called development communication.
External links
- UPOU Faculty Research Papers
- Development Communication Praxis by AG Flor
- Environmental Communication by AG Flor
- Introduction to Development Communication by IVC Ongkiko and AG Flor
- UPOU Page: Downloadable Papers of AG Flor
- eDevelopment and Knowledge Management by AG Flor
- Digital Tools for Process Documentation by AG Flor
- Ethnovideography: Video Based Indigenous Knowledge Systems by AGFlor
- Information Management
- Intersard
- Social Capital and the Network Effect by AG Flor
- ICT and Poverty: the Indisputable link by AG Flor
- KEN Column
- Monitoring and Evaluation of the CyberEd