More than 200 delegates attended the first Philippine-Australian FUEL Conference, an all-day career and lifestyle event held on Sunday, October 13 at Bowman Hall in Blacktown.
Designed for university students and young corporate professionals, the conference offered speed mentoring sessions featuring Filo-Aussie professionals across many disciplines including accounting, medicine, nursing and technology.
The conference also featured an amazing dynamic lineup of speakers, included the Oscar-nominated animator Robertino Zambrano, social media influencer Elysa V and financial adviser Sheila Cabacungan, who shared their insights and strategies for success.
“It’s not all roses, and things do take time,” said Zambrano, referring to his long journey from doing basic graphic design work to his Oscar nomination.
Voice coach Marcus Rivera enthralled the audience with a mini-workshop on how to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ properly while wellness advocate Paola Llorando brought energy to the room with a famous Tik Tok routine.
Many delegates gave praise to the panel session “How to put ‘no’ in FilipiNO”, which was a discussion on how Filipinos can learn how to set boundaries in their social life and finances for their mental health. Representing the different generations, Julian Macasil (Gen Z), Rey Morcilla (Baby Boomer), Dr. Marietta Languido (health expert and Baby Boomer), Madel Guevarra (Millennial) and facilitator Michelle Baltazar (Gen X).
“You can disagree – without being disagreeable,” said Dr. Languido.
Guevarra stated that because of the Filipino’s collective culture, we don’t like disagreeing or saying ‘no’ but that we should rethink our mindset on this because being a crowdpleaser can derail a Filipino’s career.
Among the feedback on social media came from Filo-Aussies podcasters ‘The 1% Maritess’: “Last Sunday, we attended the FUEL Conference to learn and grow and para makipag marites . It’s remarkable to meet creatives, content creators, professionals, business leaders, community leaders and business owners from the Filipino-Aussie Community, ALL UNDER ONE ROOF! ”
“We enjoyed every talk and the fireside chat about how we can Put the “No” in FilipiNO. We have a long way to go in normalising saying “No” and we think it will continue to become an everyday dialogue for our community,” they said on Facebook.
The Filipino-Australian FUEL event was produced by High & Loud Voice Network by Marcus Rivera. On community engagement was Michelle Baltazar, president of Kababaihang Rizalista Sydney Chapter, and event direction by Chi de Jesus.
“We would like to thank everyone who supported the first FUEL conference, including community leaders, volunteers and the media. We invite you all to join us again next year,” said Rivera.
The next FUEL conference will be held on Saturday, August 9 at a venue in Western Sydney. The conference program will be finalised early next year, said Rivera.