ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Embassies at Work devider Australia honors outstanding Australia-educated Filipinos

Australia honors outstanding Australia-educated Filipinos

Published Mar 12, 2024 03:27 am
01.png
The awardees with Australian Embassy’s officials: (left to right) Director General Jeremy Barns, Imari Roble-Cesario, Abigail Tan, Dr. Ma. Asuncion Beltran, Australian Embassy Political-Economic Counselor James Yeomans, Dr. Ma. Soledad Antonio, Australian Embassy’s CDA Dr.  Moya Collett, Dr. Dexter Dela Cruz, Dr. Amy Dy, Col Ariel Querubin (Ret), Mary Grace Belviz, Emmanuel Belviz, Dr. Jayson Ibanez, (representing Dr Dionisia Rola), Maria Luisa Mapili, Prof. Wendy Umberger and Civil Service Commission Chairperson Karlo Nograles

The Australian Embassy in the Philippines recognized the exceptional achievements of outstanding Filipinos educated in Australia at the annual Australia Alumni Excellence Awards. Held at the Rigodon Ballroom of the Manila Peninsula, the event, hosted by the embassy, is an annual gathering organized to acknowledge exceptional Filipinos who have trained or studied in Australia. It is a crucial component of the Australia-Philippines Strategic Partnership. This year's Australia Alumni Excellence Awardees are impressive individuals utilizing their Australian education, expertise, experience, and networks to contribute significantly to the Philippines, as stated by Australian Chargé d'Affaires Dr. Moya Collett. 

02.jpg
The hosts were Australian Embassy’s Second Secretaries Matt Boyall and Nicole Giffard

The alumni honored with the Australia Alumni Excellence Awards at the event included Dr. Dexter dela Cruz, awarded as the Alumnus of the Year. He earned his PhD in Marine Biology from Southern Cross University in 2019. Dr. dela Cruz was recognized for spearheading the development of groundbreaking coral reef restoration techniques applied in the Philippines and Australia, contributing to enhanced climate change resilience. His reef experiments and studies in the Philippines played a pivotal role in restoring degraded reef areas, with the methods later adopted in the Great Barrier Reef. Notably, Dr. dela Cruz is also a recipient of the prestigious John Allwright Fellowship from the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research.

 

03.jpg
Serely Alcaraz, Executive Director of ITD World Philippines with Elvie Tarrobal, Managing Director of Career Clinic & Enterprise Solutions Inc. 

Dr. Ma. Asuncion Beltran, who earned her Masters in Tropical Veterinary Science from James Cook University in 2003, received the Excellence in Innovation Award. She was acknowledged for her contributions in developing innovative agricultural technologies and practices that enhance food security in the Philippines. Dr. Beltran introduced transformative technologies aimed at improving the viability of backyard poultry, serving as a sustainable source of livelihood for farmers throughout the country.

 

The third exceptional alumna, Abigail Tan, who completed her Graduate Diploma of Health Promotion at Deakin University in 2020, was honored with the Young Achiever Award. She received recognition for her efforts in promoting health-seeking behavior and enhancing health governance at the local level throughout the Philippines. Abigail Tan played a pivotal role in leading the Optimizing Health Literacy and Access to Health Services initiative in collaboration with the Department of Health's Health Promotion Bureau.

 

04.jpg
MB’s Badette Cunanan with Jeffrey Tarayao, President of One Meralco Foundation, Inc.

Seven additional alumni received Special Citations for their remarkable contributions in various fields. These individuals, recognized for their excellence, include: alumni network and Medal of Valor awardee Col. Ariel Querubin (ret.); culture and arts represented by National Museum of the Philippines Director General Jeremy Barns; community development champions Emmanuel and Mary Grace Belviz; health advocate Pediatric Oncologist Dr. Amy Dy; education leader Dr. Dionisia Rola; environmental Conservation expert Dr. Jayson Ibanez; and gender equality, disability, and social inclusion advocate Imari Roble-Cesario.
 

05.jpg
Australian Embassy’s Media and Public Affairs Manager Mariel Eduarte, Australia Alumni Excellence Awards recipient 2024 Dr. Ma. Asuncion Beltran, and Australia Alumni Excellence Awards recipient 2019 Dr. Rene Abesamis

Since the 1950s, thousands of Filipinos have studied in Australia and are now integral members of the dynamic Australia Global Alumni community in the Philippines. This community encompasses senior Philippine government officials, scientists, esteemed members of the academe, as well as business and industry leaders.

Related Tags

Australian Embassy in the Philippines
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.