Renato Umali Solidum Jr. is a Filipino geologist and government official. Solidum has been

Secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a w ...

of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) since August 13, 2022. Before his appointment as Secretary, Solidum served as an Undersecretary for Disaster Risk Reduction-Climate Change Adaptation at DOST and as the Officer-in-Charge of the

Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS, ; tl, Surian ng Pilipinas sa Bulkanolohiya at Sismolohiya) is a Philippine national institution dedicated to provide information on the activities of volcanoes, earthquakes, and ...

(PHIVOLCS).

Early life and education

Solidum is from the town of

Odiongan Odiongan, officially the Municipality of Odiongan ( Asi: ''Banwa it Odiongan'', Filipino: ''Bayan ng Odiongan'', is a 2nd class municipality in the province of Romblon, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 49,284 peo ...

Romblon Romblon ( , ), officially the Province of Romblon, is an archipelagic Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines located in the Mimaropa Regions of the Philippines, region. Its main islands include Tablas Island, Tablas, the large ...

province, where he attended high school. Originally, Solidum wanted to be a civil engineer and took the entrance examination for

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; fil, Pamantasan ng Pilipinas Unibersidad ng Pilipinas) is a state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by Republic Act No. 9500 (UP Charter of 200 ...

, though he passed the exam, he was ineligible to enroll in an engineering course as it only accepted a limited number of students each year. Instead, he enrolled in geology with the intention of later switching to the engineering. However, he decided against this and earned a bachelor's degree in geology. He also studied in the United States at the

University of Illinois Chicago The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is a public research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, adjacent to the Chicago Loop. The second campus established under the University of Illinois sy ...

, where he obtained a master's degree in geological sciences. Then he earned a PhD in earth sciences at the

Scripps Institution of Oceanography The Scripps Institution of Oceanography (sometimes referred to as SIO, Scripps Oceanography, or Scripps) in San Diego, California, US founded in 1903, is one of the oldest and largest centers for oceanography, ocean and Earth science research ...

at the

University of California, San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego or colloquially, UCSD) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in San Diego, California. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Scripps Insti ...

Career

Solidum has been part of the

(PHIVOLCS) since it split off from the

Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration Pagasa may refer to: * ''Pagasa'' (genus), an insect genus in the family Nabidae *PAGASA, an acronym for the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration *"May Pagasa", a pen-name of José Rizal *Pagasa, alternate s ...

(PAGASA) in 1984. He was hired shortly after graduating from the University of the Philippines, with the endorsement of then-director

Raymundo Punongbayan Dr. Raymundo Santiago Punongbayan (13 June 1937 – 28 April 2005) was the former director of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) from 1983 to 2002. Punongbayan became popular after handling two well-known calam ...

. He first received international attention in 1991 when PHIVOLCS director Punongbayan tasked him to work with the

United States Geological Service The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and ...

gathering data at the then restive

Mount Pinatubo Mount Pinatubo is an active stratovolcano in the Zambales Mountains, located on the tripoint boundary of the Philippine provinces of Zambales, Tarlac and Pampanga, all in Central Luzon on the northern island of Luzon. Its eruptive history w ...

. The findings of the team led to Punongbayan to raise an evacuation alert in the area prior to a major volcanic eruption saving thousands of lives in Central Luzon. From 2003 to 2017 he served in PHIVOLCS as its director and then Officer-in-Charge from March 2017. He was also appointed as Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Undersecretary for Disaster Risk Reduction-Climate Change Adaptation (DRR-CCA). In 2019, he became undersecretary for Scientific and Technical Services. Solidum was appointed as ''ad interim'' DOST Secretary by President

Bongbong Marcos Ferdinand "Bongbong" Romualdez Marcos Jr. ( , , ; born September 13, 1957), commonly referred to by the initials PBBM or BBM, is a Filipino politician who is the 17th and current president of the Philippines. He previously served as a senat ...

on July 22, 2022. In recognition of his contributions to disaster risk reduction in the Philippines, Solidum has received numerous awards, including: * Presidential Lingkod Bayan (Civil Servant) Award * Presidential Citation for Public Service * Professional of the Year in the field of Geology by the

Professional Regulation Commission The Professional Regulation Commission, ( fil, Komisyon sa Regulasyon ng mga Propesyon) otherwise known as the PRC, is a three-man commission attached to Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). Its mandate is to regulate and supervise the pr ...

* Excellence Award for Government Service by the Philippine Federation of Professional Associations

Personal life

Solidum is married and has three children.

Notes

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Solidum, Renato Jr. Secretaries of Science and Technology (Philippines) Bongbong Marcos administration cabinet members University of the Philippines alumni Filipino scientists People from Romblon Living people Year of birth missing (living people)