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From 13 September to 8 October 2010, IBM volunteers Martin Cardoso (IBM-Argentina), Wim Feyants (IBM-Belgium), and Nancy Xiao (IBM-Canada) worked with ESSC staff and provided training on database development and management to develop the Institute's capacity in this field. As Martin Cardoso said, "it is better to teach someone how to fish, not to provide the fish itself - in the form of a database."

The training, which was simplified for the benefit of staff-trainees from ESSC and the Manila Observatory (where ESSC shares the same office location), and the inputs on the planned centralized database, were valuable starting points to develop the staff-trainees skill on database design and development.

Based on the preliminary exercises and research on an open-source software (MySQL), ESSC's GIS staff gained initial knowledge for evaluating what software to use with GIS data, whether MySQL or PostgreSQL.

The staff-trainees learned about basic concepts on database construction and management and an orientation and some exercises on an open-source software (MySQL) recommended for ESSC's use. The volunteers donated a book on the software for the staff-trainees to self-study, as there is a whole lot more to learn.

There is also a need to strategize how to establish support groups (including the three IBM volunteers, Manila Observatory staff, and possibly IBM-Philippines) to sustain the learning effort. Institutionally, ESSC needs to plan more thoroughly about the database, and also the software to use.

Overall, the engagement, although brief, was an educational experience.