To know Rizal, we must first understand the context of his life and heroism. We do that by looking at the developments of the Philippines as Spain’s colony in the nineteenth century, and the conditions that brought about the ideas and experiences of Jose Rizal.

Why legislate a mandatory subject on the life and works of Jose Rizal? To answer this, we look back at the 1950s, when the Rizal Bill was proposed in the Philippine Congress, and the trials it went through before it became a law.

We look back at the second quarter of 2022 in this new Catch Up episode. We talked about the elections, the results, and the troubles of legitimate media organizations, and ruminate about how we could move forward under a new administration. 

We also talked about the series of changes in the lives of the PODKAS team, and the upcoming series, #RizalOnAir. 

Join us 

As we end our fourth season, we tackle in our finale a very important yet contested topic about our society: our democracy. Moving to a new administration, how do we think about the ways to navigate the current landscape of our society to contribute to building our democratic institutions, remain hopeful, and find our voice in strengthening democratic practices? Ultimately, how do we work to be engaged citizens? We talked to Dr. Nicole Curato of the University of Canberra about deliberative democracy in the Philippines. Watch our full interview with Nicole at www.podkas.org.

Our next season is just around the corner! Continue supporting us by visiting our social media platforms or listening to our earlier episodes. 

A condominium obstructing the Rizal Monument's view. An expressway project over the Pasig River threatening to destroy heritage sites. Cultural heritage practices in danger of vanishing. Why is heritage so hard to protect in the country? We talked to Dr. Ivan Henares of the UP Diliman Asian Institute of Tourism to unpack the many heritage issues we face today.

Visit our website www.podkas.org to watch our full interview with Ivan Henares and other stuff on Philippine history, politics, and society.

We have seen the future of our cities, and it is bleak. Urbanization comes with challenges in transport, infrastructure, security, health, and other essential social services. As it is, our cities have creaked and groaned; what more ten or fifty years from now? We talked with Ica Fernandez, a Ph.D. candidate from the University of Cambridge, to unravel the puzzle of urban governance in the Philippines and the critical approaches to ensure the development of sustainable and equitable cities in the country.

Visit our website, www.podkas.org, for our full interview with Ica, and other stuff on Philippine history, politics, and society.

Is foreign debt a bad thing? How has debt impacted Philippine development in the 20th century? We talked with Dr. Leloy Claudio of the University of California, Berkeley, to see the Philippine experience on foreign debt and what it means in the current crisis context. 

This episode was recorded before the results of the 2022 Presidential elections. Visit our website, www.podkas.org to watch our full interview with Leloy.

Ever wondered when we started calling OFWs “Bagong Bayani”? Or how did we ever become one of the biggest diaspora populations in the world? Join us in this episode as we break down the issues and concerns surrounding labor export and OFWs with Dr. Jean Encinas Franco of UP Diliman.

Our full interview with Jean is available as a website exclusive, so visit www.podkas.org.

As we celebrate Labor Day on May 1, we sat down with senatorial candidate and former Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino president, Luke Espiritu, to tackle unemployment, poverty wages, and the Philippine labor situation. What can we do to revitalize the fight for labor rights in the country, and what does it mean to elect labor leaders in public office? Find out in this episode.

For our full interview with Luke, head over to our website, www.podkas.org.