Abstract: Space capabilities contribute to national imperatives by supporting the knowledge economy, bolstering national security, and advancing scientific discovery. Technological advances that have afforded increased computational capability, better power management, and miniaturization in consumer electronics and computing devices are now impacting space technology as seen in the rapid growth of so-called small satellites, e.g. nano- and micro-satellites, as platforms for scientific Earth Observation (EO), telecommunications, positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) services, as well as for technology demonstration and experimentation. Images and other data derived from constellations of EO small satellites, in particular, are increasingly being integrated into decision-support systems for enabling more timely and efficient allocation and use of resources and delivery of services.

For the Philippines, an archipelagic country rich in natural resources and also prone to climate change and natural disasters, EO satellites offer breadth and depth of data catering to a myriad of applications that are important for its sustainable development. In this regard, the country looks to small satellite technology as a practical beachhead approach for meeting EO data requirements while at the same time addressing local capacity-building and domestic space industry base development needs in a cost-effective manner. As active user of EO data, the country has taken steps to build endogenous capacity in space science and technology and its applications. Over the past decade, the country has made significant investments in space research and development, cognizant of the capacity of space to inspire generations of Filipino innovators in addressing pressing challenges and in building for the future. The development of small satellites is being pursued to develop upstream space technologies with a view towards forging an industrial base for manufacturing advanced, high reliability systems and their components. These activities help ensure sovereign capabilities that enable the country to generate and access data that is suitable for its needs; create new knowledge that drives the scientific enterprise; boost local knowledge workforce and innovations that can leverage opportunities in the "new space" global economy; and foster international cooperation.

In the Philippines, Republic Act (R.A.) 11363 , "An Act Establishing the Philippine Space Development and Utilization Policy and Creating the Philippine Space Agency, and for other Purposes", also known as the Philippine Space Act of 2019, was signed on August 8, 2019. The Act establishes PhilSA as the central government agency addressing all national issues and activities related to space science and technology applications (SSTA). An attached agency of the Office of the President of the Philippines for purposes of policy and program coordination and to ensure alignment in national policies and priorities, PhilSA is the primary policy, planning, coordinating, implementing, and administrative entity of the government that will plan, develop, and promote the national space program. Prior to the creation of PhilSA, a number of SSTA activities have been pursued in the Philippines as project-based initiatives implemented by the University of the Philippines (UP) and the Advanced Science and Technology Institute (ASTI) of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) in collaboration with Hokkaido University, Tohoku University and Kyushu Institute of Technology in Japan with support from the DOST Grants-in-Aid (GIA). These projects have yielded important capability development milestones in SSTA for the country through the hands-on development, launch and operation of microsatellites (Diwata-1 and Diwata-2) and nanosatellites (Maya-1 to Maya-7), the establishment and operation of associated ground infrastructure, systems and workflows. The outputs of these efforts serve as foundation and provide the momentum for PhilSA as it moves forward to build and strengthen the local space ecosystem. With the youthful agency, the emergent ecosystem is being nurtured into an operational and mature state characterized by localization of vital upstream space technologies through industry-academe-government collaboration in small satellite development and expanded downstream mobilization of satellite data, derived products and services for unlocking socio-economic benefits.

In this lecture, we will provide a view into the progress of SSTA efforts in the Philippines that strengthen the domestic space ecosystem. In particular, we will use the "space value chain" as a framework to strategically link space activities and investments in ecosystem-building to tangible socio-economic benefits ? focusing on domestic capacity building for small satellites for Earth Observation (EO), enhancing local talent and infrastructure for impactful downstream utilization, and creating space-enabled industries for national development and security.

Speaker's Bio: Dr. Marciano served as the Director General (DG) of the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) from January 2020 to June 2025, a position that holds the rank of a Cabinet Secretary and serves as Presidential Adviser on Space Matters. As the founding DG of PhilSA, he led the agency's buildout and mobilization from the ground up, and into a full-fledged organization of over 200 people. Dr. Marciano is also a Full Professor of Electrical and Electronics Engineering at the University of the Philippines (UP) in Diliman where he held the Dado and Maria Banatao Professor Chair in Engineering. In September 2025, he was appointed Vice President for Research and Innovation (VPRI) of the University of the Philippines (UP) System, a new office providing strategic focus and direction on policy formulation, coordination, and assessment of research and creative work, technology transfer, business development, and industry linkages across UP campuses.

Dr. Marciano obtained his BS Electrical Engineering from UPD and his PhD in Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications from the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia. He was the UP-Dado Banatao Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of California Berkeley in 2004 and at the Jacobs School of Engineering in the University of California San Diego (UCSD) in 2005; and was a Visiting Professor at Tallwood Venture Capital in Palo Alto, CA also in 2005. In 2007 and 2009, he was a Visiting Associate Research Scientist at UCSD. Prior to PhilSA, Dr. Marciano was the Director of the Institute for Information Infrastructure Development of the Philippines-California Advanced Research Institutes (PCARI) of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and Acting Director of the Advanced Science and Technology Institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).

From 2014 to 2020, Dr. Marciano led the development of the Philippines' first scientific Earth observation microsatellites, Diwata-1 and Diwata-2, and the Maya nanosatellites, including associated activities in ground station and mission control operations, computational methods and analyses, calibration and ground truthing, data archiving and distribution, and academic program and industry linkage development. He has over 30 years of experience leading and managing R&D and technical operations in the areas of wireless communications, radio frequency spectrum management, rural connectivity, emergency communications, sensor networks, and space technology.

Dr. Marciano is a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), a member of the ASEAN Engineer Registry, and was recently recognized as a Distinguished Honorary Fellow of the ASEAN Federation of Engineering Organizations (AFEO). For his distinguished contributions to advancing education and research through international exchanges, Dr. Marciano was conferred an Honorary Doctorate (honoris causa) by Hokkaido University in January 2023.