OPENING PLENARY Presented by The Filipino Channel

Watch it on Youtube: https://youtu.be/qVjbuJUFihI

This panel is scheduled for:

Day 1:  Nov. 4,  9:00-10:00 p.m. ET  (Nov. 5,  9:00-10:00 a.m. Philippines)

Francine Maigue has been recognized as “The Face of Global Pinay Power” and as “1 of the 100 Most Influential Filipinas in the World.” In 2020, she was included in San Diego Metro Magazine’s “Top 40 under 40” selected as “Woman of the Year.”

She graduated with her Master’s in Management from Harvard University and her Bachelor’s in World Arts & Cultures from UCLA. She received awards from both including the Commencement Speaker Prize, Young Humanitarian, Outstanding Senior, Chancellor’s Service, Woman for Change, and Homecoming Queen Awards.

She is an accomplished performer & director. She studied the Royal Academy of Dancing technique, receiving High Honors. Francine danced at The Kennedy Center, The Lincoln Center and The Seoul Olympic Stadium, to name a few. She’s contributed to multiple Emmy Award-winning shows and was the Director and Choreographer of the World Premiere Theatrical Production of Disney’s MOANA.

She is in her eighth year as District Director for California State Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, tenaciously working to develop and sustain programs and events that help ensure equity, inclusivity and resources for all of their ~500,000 constituents. Francine is in her 12th year as a weekly columnist for The Filipino Press and is the Poet-in-Residence for New Americans Museum, advocating for immigrant rights through her art.

 


Aika, TRICIA and JILLIAN Robredo

Observing from the backstage: Insights on building a community and carrying a legacy

Jessica Marie “Aika” G. Robredo is the Executive Director of Restart Micro-Enterprise (RestartME), Inc., a microfinance wholesale lending organization that provides post-disaster quick response livelihood funds to microentrepreneurs. She is also Chairman of Jesse M. Robredo Foundation.

Previously, Aika spent significant years working in the private sector, particuarly in the oil, gas and power industry. She also worked in the Department of Transportation, and eventually in the Office of Civil Defense, where the focus was on Disaster Risk Resilience and Management.

Aika finished her master’s degree in Public Administration (MPA) from Harvard Kennedy School in 2018. She obtained her bachelor’s degree in Management Engineering from Ateneo de Manila University in 2008.

Janine Patricia “Tricia” G. Robredo is a primary health physician and a public health advocate in the Philippines. Aside from working in the frontlines, she has been deeply involved in various initiatives that strive to improve delivery of healthcare. She was instrumental in the development and operation of Bayanihan eKonsulta, a free telemedicine and emergency response platform created to make healthcare more accessible to indigent Filipinos and to decongest hospitals working beyond capacity due to the ongoing pandemic. Tricia is also the Executive Director of the Jesse M. Robredo Foundation.

Tricia obtained her bachelor’s degree in Health Sciences from Ateneo de Manila University in 2014. She finished her medical degree (MD) and master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA) from Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health (ASMPH) in 2020.

Jillian Therese “Jill” G. Robredo is currently a senior at New York University double majoring in Mathematics and Economics.  On campus, she’s the Consulting Director of Bridges for Enterprise New York, a non-profit organization supporting social entrepreneurs in developing countries.In 2018, she graduated from Philippine Science High School – Main Campus.

Turon or not to run: Live food demonstration and Filipino Street Food! Presented by Suyomano

Test your knowledge of Filipino street food as Chef Kristen Dominguez creates turon and Banana Cue!

 

Watch it on Youtube: https://youtu.be/nngPh4eu1A8

 

This panel is scheduled for:

Day 1:  Nov. 4,  7:30-9:00 p.m. ET  (Nov. 5,  7:30-9:00 a.m. Philippines)

 

Kristen Dominguez has worked in the culinary industry for over 10 years, with her experience ranging from corporate kitchens to small business kitchens and everything else in between. Her specialties include vegan and vegetarian cuisine, baking, and Asian cuisine (with a focus in Philippine cuisine). She is currently based in the San Francisco Bay Area.

 

John Sherwin Felix is a food heritage advocate and a BA Communication graduate of Far Eastern University (magna cum laude, batch 2019). Using his communication background, he specializes in documenting indigenous and endangered ingredients found across the Philippine archipelago. He shares knowledge, recipes, photographs of native food items in various online platforms.

 

Celebrated not misrepresented: Developing a Filipino American History Curriculum for Schools in Hawaii

This group of students from Hawaii is on a mission to include Filipino history and culture in every school’s curriculum. Questions were raised why Filipinos were not included in the books even though it’s the largest Asian population in the entire State. Listen in on their presentation and progress so far.

 

Watch it on Youtube: https://youtu.be/4y1rfh50ADU

 

This panel is scheduled for:

Day 3:  Nov. 6,  7:30-9:00 p.m. ET  (Nov. 7,  7:30-9:00 a.m. Philippines)

• Lead – Marissa Halagao, a Punahou student who is collaborating with HIDOE students and schools by creating a Filipino curriculum that centers on the history and culture of the Philippines. The curriculum focuses on overarching themes that all students can connect to. Including curriculum about the Philippines is important to me because as a Filipina American, she sees a lack of Filipino representation in Hawaiʻi’s education, despite Filipinos being the largest Asian ethnic group in the state.
Source: Teach For America Hawai’i

Caitlin Jayne Agnes, Temple University, College Freshman (Kapolei c/o 2021)
Blaine Bacerra, Kapolei High School, Junior
Raymart Billote, UH West O’ahu, College Freshman (Waipahu c/o 2021)
Jalen Espejo, Farrington High School, Senior
Mariah Ramo, Waipahu High School, Junior
Halle Myan Umayam, Kapolei High School, Senior
Lauren Watarida, Kapolei High School, Junior

The State of the Filipino Community’s Mental Health

A panel of Filipino students from Columbia University will share presentations on their research, share personal experiences and challenge participants to find parallels and perspectives on the state of our mental health, especially during this pandemic.

Watch it on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avYbfvc0Uc4

This panel is scheduled for:

Day 3:  Nov. 6,  7:30-9:00 p.m. ET  (Nov. 7,  7:30-9:00 a.m. Philippines)

Joanne Michelle Ocampo

 

Raisa Alexis Santos
Raisa is pursuing a Masters in Public Health at the Columbia Mailman School of Public Health. She currently interns as a reporter for Health Policy Watch, an online non-profit independent global health platform. She has worked in the past with Global Brigades in underserved communities of Panama and Nicaragua. As a daughter of Filipino immigrants, she has a special interest in immigrant mental health and immigration policy. And in her spare time, she enjoys writing fiction and taking her friends out to eat Filipino food.

 

Christian T. Gloria, PhD, MA, CHES
Christian T. Gloria, PhD, MA, CHES, studies the protective and resilience factors that enable people to adapt, grow, and thrive against chronic stress and adversity. He has worked with and served various vulnerable communities including immigrant, marginalized, military, minority, and low-SES populations in Texas, Hawaii, and the Republic of the Philippines. His present research is focused on the health and well-being of Filipino communities locally in New York and nationally across the United States. Other professional and scholarly interests include physical activity, nutrition, weight management, employee-work engagement, and public health workforce development.

Dr. Gloria is a Visiting Scientist of Mental Health for the Philippine Council for Health Research & Development and a Visiting Professor of Public Health for several higher education institutions in the Republic of the Philippines (specifically, Angeles University Foundation, Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle University, Silliman University, University of San Agustin, University of the Assumption, and University of the Philippines Manila).

Previously, Dr. Gloria was the Department Chair and Associate Professor of Public Health at Hawaii Pacific University (2012-21) as well as the Vice President (2016-17) and President (2017-18) of the Hawaii Public Health Association. With over 20 years of experience, he has planned, implemented, and evaluated public health programs and research projects with various organizations including community health centers, hospitals, NGOs, government agencies, private/corporate institutions, and school systems.

How Filipinos are breaking the mental health stigma in their communities

A panel of mental health professionals and a Filipino undergraduate student from the Harvard Philippine Forum will address how they are breaking the mental health stigma in the Filipino community and the wider community by sharing stories from their mental health careers and mental health advocacy work. Our goal is to inspire other Filipinos to help break the mental health stigma in their communities.

Watch it on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sE47pWUlrzY

This panel is scheduled for:

Day 2:  Nov. 5,  7:30-9:00 p.m. ET  (Nov. 6,  7:30-9:00 a.m. Philippines)

 

Michelle Lopez Clark is a psychotherapist based in California and fluent in the Filipino language. She is passionate about helping people through life transitions, relationship difficulties, and multicultural issues. Michelle is also the author of “With You,” a children’s book that promotes diversity and the value of emotional connection.

 

Roanne de Guia-Samuels

 

Anjeli Macaranas is a second-year premedical student at Harvard College studying Neuroscience and Global Health. She currently serves as the Education Director of the Harvard Philippine Forum and works to stimulate conversation surrounding mental health advocacy among Filipino youth. In 2018, she founded the Little Virtuosos Project, an international student initiative dedicated to spreading awareness about the impact of music therapy on mental health and wellbeing.

As a reporter for The Harvard Crimson, Anjeli has collaborated with several experts at the Harvard Medical School and School of Public Health and has written multiple articles regarding the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on population mental health, particularly among minority groups. Additionally, she works as an undergraduate research assistant at the Developmental Risk and Cultural Resilience Lab at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, where she studies the association between Covid-19 related racial discrimination and mental health outcomes among Asian-American college students.

Anjeli is thrilled to be a part of FYLPROCon’s Mental Health Panel, as she has a strong passion for reducing cultural stigma around mental health within the Filipino  population and the AAPI community as a whole.

 

Andrea Cabrera Jakucs, LCSW 97252 is a Filipino-American licensed clinical social worker who is passionate about wellness and deeply cares about providing the highest quality of mental health services for her clients. She received her Master in Social Work from the University of Southern California and currently serves as the co-chair of the health and human services committee of Historic Filipinotown Coalition. Today she provides individual psychotherapy to adults in English/Tagalog, presents at conferences to discuss her work in the mental health field, conducts wellness workshops for organizations, and provides business consultations at Wellness with Andrea Jakucs & Associates located in Altadena, California. Her work has been featured in news outlets such as Fox 11 Los Angeles, NBC News, Canada’s Omni News, and Balitang America. In her spare time, she enjoys biking along the beach, snowboarding, and watching musicals. For more information, you can go to her website at www.wellnesswithandreajakucs.com or follow her on Instagram at wellnesswithandreaj.

 

Panel Lead and Moderator:

Frances Maher is a biotechnology professional working as a Research Associate in cancer drug development in the DC/Maryland area. She graduated from Brandeis University with a B.S. in Biology and is passionate about cancer research and business.

This Way, That Way or the Highway: Asserting One’s Filipinoness in a Foreign Workplace

Overcoming impostor syndrome, and navigating nuances and cultural conventions – our panel will deliberate on ‘how things are done’ from their experiences as a Filipino in the US, Spain, HongKong and Dubai. If you can share some insights from your country, kwentuhan tayo!

Watch it on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQaoe4pXQJA

This panel is scheduled for:

Day 2:  Nov. 5,  7:30-9:00 p.m. ET  (Nov. 6,  7:30-9:00 a.m. Philippines)

 

John Paul Obillos Dela Rosa teaches both Tagalog and ESL (English as a Second Language) in his home county, the Philippines. He participated in the Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA) program in the United States back in 2019 to 2020 at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois. Kuya Paul (Big Brother Paul), as what his Tagalog students fondly call him, is currently teaching at Tarlac National High School-Annex, a public secondary school in the Philippines. Kuya Paul also does virtual Tagalog classes for second- and third-generation Filipino-Americans who would like to learn the Filipino language and reconnect to their Filipino heritage. At present, he is a PhD in Applied Linguistics candidate at Philippine Normal University – Manila. He is proud of his Kapampangan and Ilonggo roots.

 

Rex Yadao is a dreamer. A passionate self-starter that has never been afraid to fail. A risk taker that is focused on his goals, but is always ready to take it you to the best parties. A proud UP alumnus his first overseas stint was in Dubai in 2014 as a Marketing Specialist. He is currently working as Sales and Business Development Lead for ABS-CBN Spain, handling South Eu.

 

Rawnna Low

 

 

ConGen Paul Raymond Cortes, who headed the Philippine mission in Dubai and the neighboring northern emirates for the past six years, has been promoted as assistant secretary for migrant workers for the Dept. of Foreign Affairs.
He served as Consulate General of Dubai where he was able to address a gamut of concerns for the 400,000 Filipinos under the purview of the Philippine Consulate in Dubai. He advocated for innovations and streamlined the consulate’s procedures to provide efficient, effectie and client-centered consular services.
Cortes served as Deputy Consul General at the Philippine Consulate in Honolulu from 2010 to 2012, and was Third Secretary and Vice Consul of the Philippine Embassy in Budapest from 1998 to 2004.

 

Gold in Our Veins: Mark Lewis Lim Higgins at the Ayala Museum

On 21 February 2019, the Ayala Museum in partnership with the BPI Foundation and Mercedes Zobel opened to the public a landmark exhibition featuring the works of artist and educator Mark Lewis Lim Higgins – its last exhibition before the museum closed for renovations in 2019.

Entitled Gold in Our Veins, the exhibition tells the story of a re-imagined antiquity through a series of portraits inspired by the ancient histories of Indochina, the East Indies, and the Philippine Archipelago.

Together with these works of art are objects from the Ayala Museum’s collection handpicked by Higgins himself to expand the exhibition’s narrative; an unprecedented undertaking as the museum’s objects for the first time will be shown beyond their historical and cultural significance.

Watch it on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4miNqDDcco

Scheduled for:

Day 2:  Nov. 5,  10:00-11:30 p.m. ET  (Nov. 6,  10:00-11:30 a.m. Philippines)

 

 

Day 2 Plenary Session presented by The Filipino Channel

Watch it on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-HFzklEUGc

This panel is scheduled for:

Day 2:  Nov. 5,  9:00-10:00 p.m. ET  (Nov. 6,  9:00-10:00 a.m. Philippines)

 

Atty. Francis Padua Papica started the Francis Padua Papica Foundation, Inc. (FPPFI) in 1997. Today, the foundation has given hundreds of scholarships, provided thousands of books, and school supplies, conducted the annual FPPFI leadership conventions.