Wherever I am, the world comes after me.
It offers me its busyness. It does not believe that I do not want it.
Now I understand 
why the old poets of China went so far
and high 
into the mountains, then crept into the pale mist.
"The Old Poets of China" by Mary Oliver

The UP Asian Center and the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa will be hosting a Book Launch and Author’s Talk on the Two Volumes from The Negros Trilogy by Dr. Aurelio S. Agcaoili on 10 July 2026, 1:30 PM, PHT, at the Japan Hall, UP Asian Center. The event is free and open to the public. Online registration is encouraged due to limited slots. 

      

ABOUT THE LECTURE

The UP Asian Center will host the launch of two books by Dr. Aurelio S. Agcaoili, Chair of the Department of Indo-Pacific Languages and Literatures at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and former faculty member of the University of the Philippines Diliman. The books form part of his Negros Trilogy, a literary and historical body of work that revisits the Negros Massacre and its enduring social, political, and human dimensions. The event aims to provide a venue for scholarly dialogue on literature, history, memory, and human rights through a discussion of Dr. Agcaoili's recent publications. It also highlights the Asian Center's commitment to promoting interdisciplinary conversations on issues affecting the Philippines and the broader Asian region.


ABOUT THE SPEAKER

AURELIO SOLVER AGCAOILI, Ph.D.
Chairperson, Department of Indo-Pacific Languages and Literatures
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa

Aurelio Solver Agcaoili chairs the Department of Indo-Pacific Languages and Literatures at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. A Fulbright Scholar, he writes in three languages across several literary forms. Formerly of UP Diliman and its Center for Creative Writing, he has spent a lifetime at the intersection of language, witness, and the obligations of exile.

 


ABOUT THE REACTORS

LARRY AMBION
Assistant Professor, San Beda College

Larry Ambion is an Assistant Professor at San Beda College. He holds a Doctor of Philosophy degree from Ateneo de Manila University.

 

 


JUNLEY LORENZANA LAZAGA
Department of Language, Literature and the Arts
University of the Philippines Baguio

Junley Lorenzana Lazaga holds the distinction of being the first in the University of the Philippines Baguio to be conferred the title of UP Artist. He currently serves as an associate professor in the Department of Language, Literature, and the Arts, where he has served for over fifteen years in various academic and administrative leadership roles, including directing public affairs during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. He writes in Ilokano, Filipino, and English, and also translates between these languages. He is the recipient of a UP Baguio Golden Jubilee Award (2021), One UP Faculty Grant Award (2016-2018, 2019-2021), and One UP Professorial Chair Award (2022-2024). 


 ABOUT THE ORGANIZERS

This lecture is organized by the UP Asian Center in partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.

For inquiries, please contact us atThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 891-8500 loc. 3586.