Dayle Tranz R.

Dano MGM Report

BS Mete V

The annual National Mining Geology and Metallurgical Conference was recently held last
March 5-9, 2019 at USEP Obrero, Davao City. The 5-day conference contained seminars,
workshops, and activities that aimed to strengthen the youth in the industry through the
theme:””.
On the first day, we arrived two hours earlier than the scheduled start of program. The
first day of the conference was for sports, literature contests and welcoming activities- aiming to
establish camaraderie among the participants. The second day featured technical seminars: a
program-specific seminar in the morning, and a general symposium in the afternoon. The
metallurgical seminar discussed on the THPAL process, current mineral processing methods in
the Philippines, the MGB programs, and SMEP. To be honest, among the three MGM
conferences, this year’s metallurgical seminar was the most interesting and informative for me.
The afternoon symposium however, failed to capture interest and were simply not as impressive
as last year’s conference. Whether it be due to the choice of speaker’s or the choice of topics,
the general symposium was unfortunately lacking. The socials night was then done later that
night; where the food was great and the last performer was amazing. The third day was meant
for a workshop that started two hours from schedule- simply disappointing. The workshop
started with a lecture that was given by an enthusiastic speaker but just didn’t seem to connect
and presented a very lengthy lecture. The workshop was, in fact, not a workshop; but rather a
feedback gathering. Needless to say, the third day was unnecessary as the afternoon was left to
be a free time period. The fourth day of the conference was spent for the plant tour in which we
went to Steel Asia. And finally, the conference’s saving grace. The tour was very informative,
engaging, and very enthusiastic in welcoming and touring us. Finally, the conference was
concluded by a trip to a nearby island- Samal, where the closing program was held. The resort
was exclusive to the students and was an okay venue. Needless to say, paying 500 pesos for a
dinner-less activity was outrageous. I could not comprehend how the organizers budgeted the
fees and allocate it on hard drinks and liquor rather than on dinner.
I think that the organization should remember to strike a balance between learning and
enjoyment. It is quite funny how they clearly focused on ensuring that the students enjoy and
yet miss out. I recommend that in the future, major time on planning should be done. Also,
transparency should be presents and announcements, especially regarding money, should be
settled weeks before the actual conference. With all that said, not everything was bad. The school
was welcoming, the food was most of the time present, and the efforts were visible. Of course,
no organization is perfect, and events will always have its flaws; but I hope that these mistakes
will not be repeated and that the future of MGM is bright.