POLYTECHNIC University of the Philippines (PUP) second-year Communication Research student Marko Sarmiento won the first-ever Kabataan Painting contest of the National Research Council of the Philippines (NRCP) in appreciation of the country's rich history, in line with the quincentennial anniversary of the Victory of Mactan.

Themes featured in the competition include Pre-Colonial Cultural Heritage; Circumnavigation and Global Encounter; Identity ・ Consciousness Formation (Nationalism and Nation-building); and Challenges and Resilience.