2014 Young Filipino-Canadian Leaders Summit: iPinoyCan!

YFCL Summit 2014

Toronto, ON – On March 8, 2014, Filipino-Canadians, ages 18-35, from the Greater Toronto Area and other nearby cities including Ottawa and Montreal, will converge at St. Michael’s College, Centre for the Arts, Lecture Hall, for the first Young Filipino-Canadian Leaders Summit.

The 2014 theme is “iPinoyCan! Understanding the Filipino-Canadian Identity – Key to Transformational Leadership”. The Summit hopes to provide a space and opportunity for young community leaders and professionals to explore and create a fuller sense of their identity towards the ultimate outcome of inspiring a generation of youth who will be a visible and united national force in Canadian society. It aims to empower them, cultivate pride and provide them with the tools and support to be able not just to echo but also put into action the vision of the Summit within their own communities.

The following speakers have been invited to share their wisdom and to inspire the next generation of leaders:

• Dr. Anton Juan, award-winning and internationally recognized playwright, actor and director, currently a senior professor and theater director at the University of Notre Dame Du Lac in the USA, will provide a backgrounder on Philippine history and culture
• Professor Roland Coloma, currently an Associate Professor and Associate Chair of the Department of Humanities, Social Sciences and Social Justice Education at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) of the University of Toronto, will share his insights on the disturbing invisibility of Filipinos in Canada
• Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog, incumbent mayor of Iloilo City (Philippines), will talk transformational leadership and exemplify it through his accomplishments as a public official and as a civic leader
• Senator Tobias Enverga Jr., the first Filipino-Canadian senator, will deliver the closing remarks

A panel of young Filipino-Canadian leaders will impart their success stories, challenges and learnings to inspire a new generation of leaders who will go back to their respective communities and organizations with much pride, a better understanding of their identity and motivated to lead because they are Filipinos and they can … iPinoyCan!

This initiative is produced and executed through the joint efforts of two emerging companies – iKubo Media, the publishing company of Kubo Magazine, and TPF Canada, organizer of Toronto Paskuhan Festival. The Philippine Embassy in Ottawa and the Philippine Consulate General of Toronto are supporters of this initiative together with Eskwela Incorporated. The Summit is sponsored by Sun Life Financial, Dr. Vicky Santiago, TFC and RM Printing.

Early registration is $50 which includes the summit entry, kit, t-shirt, lunches and a matinee ticket to the Bayan-Bayanan play directed by Dr. Anton Juan. Deadline for registration is February 28, 2014. Late registrants will be charge $60 with no guarantee on t-shirt size/availability. Community and organization leaders are welcome to attend and register as coordinator/mentor.

For Summit updates, visit facebook.com/YoungFilCanLeadersSummit. For registration and sponsorship information, contact Ronnie Dela Gana, Event Director, at (647) 300-1970 or email at ronnie.delagana@ikubomedia.com.

Article and poster courtesy of YFCL Summit 2014 press release, 14 February 2014.