Business upstarts, cultural workers, civic leaders and education advocates which comprise the Class of 2009 of the Philippines 21 Young Leaders Initiative convened during the Philippines 21 Young Leaders Forum held last August 27-29, 2009 at the Asian Institute of Management Conference Center and International Rice Research Institute in Makati City.
The Class of 2009 represented the country in the Asia 21 Young Leaders Summit held last November 20-22, 2009 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, with the theme “The Changing Face of Leadership: Crisis and Opportunity.” Philippine 21 Fellows were among the 150 young leaders from Asia-Pacific and US who took part in the yearly event.
The Philippines 21 Young Leaders Initiative Class of 2009 are: Mr. Steve Laurence Arquiza (Non-Profit/Civil Society); Ms. Jocelle Batapa-Sigue (Government-Local); Mr. Jose Romeo de la Cruz (Government-Local); Ms. Cecile Victoria Dominguez (Non-Profit/Civil Society); Mr. Jaime Enrique Gonzalez (Business); Mr. Ryan Guinaran (Arts and Culture); Mr. Dennis Gupa (Arts and Culture); Mr. Rommel Juan (Business); Mr. Darwin Mariano (Business); and Mr. Efren Peñaflorida (Non-profit/Civil Society).
This year's Philippines 21 Fellows are a mix of prominent names and promising young talent. Business leaders know of the success of Mr. Enrique Gonzales and Mr. Rommel Juan. Mr. Gonzales took his IT start-up IPVG Corp. from garage to public and has since expanded operations from their Philippine homebase to seven countries, including India and the United States. Mr. Juan’s native food chain Binalot Fiesta Foods, on the other hand, has become one of the more successful local franchises.
Recently, Mr. Peñaflorida was hailed as CNN Hero of the Year for his group, Dynamic Teen Company’s alternative kariton (pushcart) classrooms for out of school youth to serve as alternative against gang membership. Mr. Efren Peñaflorida was not able to join the delegation in Malaysia since the awarding ceremony for CNN’s Hero of the Year was held on November 21.
The Class of 2009 is the most geographically representative Philippines 21 batch to date, with seven out of ten Fellows coming from or residing outside Metro Manila. Mr. Steve Arquiza and Ms. Cecile Dominguez hail from Davao and Sarangani respectively, and are dynamic examples of young Mindanaoan leadership. Mr. Arquiza is secretary-general of Junior Chamber International (JCI) Davao and immediate past president of the Mindanao Young Leaders Parliament, while Ms. Dominguez heads the Conrado and Ladislawa Alcantara Foundation. And though City Councilors Jocelle Batapa-Sigue (Bacolod City, Negros Occidental) and Jose Romeo de la Cruz (Santiago City, Isabela) may hail from different parts of the country, they share a vocation for public service, and support environment and youth issues.
Aside from demonstrating expertise in their chosen field and the spirit of community service, Philippines 21 Fellows also share an inclination for cross-sectoral activities. Mr. Darwin Mariano’s day job as public affairs head of Cemex Philippines does not hinder him from his duties as core member of Movement for Good Governance http://www.mgg.ph/. Mr. Mariano has supported this advocacy since his days as the founder of Aksyon Demokratiko Youth. Mr. Ryan Guinaran, on the other hand, is a licensed phycisian whose Cordillera heritage has imbued him with a sense of cultural pride. He founded two NGOs: KOSDEY, which promotes and preserves Ibaloi culture, and DITENG, which advocates culture-sensitive health programs. And while UP Los Baños’s Dennis Gupa is primarily a stage director schooled in classical and contemporary theater, his work in theater-in-education has led him to collaborate with science researchers and social scientists to develop educational and/or socially relevant plays.
Established in 2006 by Asia Society Philippines and social entrepreneur/governance advocate Harvey Keh, the program is the first locally-organized chapter of the Asia 21 Young Leaders Initiative, which aims to develop a core group of leaders aged 25-40 to meet, educate and inspire each other; collaborate and share ideas on public service and other meaningful initiatives, and build relationships of trust and understanding.
For more details on the Philippines 21 Young Leaders Forum, contact Ms. Patricia Vega at (632)752-4374, 810-8983 or email patriciav@asiasoc.org.ph.
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