by Joana Marie C. Edera
Assistant Professor Marlo C. Novino from the College of Business Administration and Accountancy, Marketing Department is back from YSEALI Professional Fellows Exchange Program ready to share his new knowledge on Economic Empowerment. He has been placed in Pennsylvania State University in State College, Pennsylvania for a month-long fellowship since October 10, 2018.
The Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) Professional Fellows Program is a professional development exchange program for the best and brightest community leaders from Southeast Asia, working in the fields of civic engagement, NGO management, economic empowerment, governance, legislative process, environmental and natural resources management. The YSEALI Professional Fellows Program provides participants a month-long fellowship at U.S.-based non-profit or other organizations, government offices or legislative bodies. Fellows will work with community leaders to enhance their practical expertise, leadership skills and professional contacts to address issues in their home communities.
Asst. Prof. Novino was assigned to train on Economic Empowerment. “My interest in this fellowship falls on Entrepreneurship and its role in empowering communities in the countryside like Mindanao. Specifically, I would like to explore on the frameworks American universities use to become highly entrepreneurial with respect to the academe-government-industry model” says the Assistant Professor.
He was deployed in the Penn State Global Strategic Initiatives under the supervision of Dr. Esther Obonyo whose works are mainly focused on finding ways to create entrepreneurial ecosystem in low-income communities in the US and abroad. Dr. Obonyo has involved Asst. Prof. Novino on research/project collaboration, professional leadership, and an outbound project specifically, the Rust Belt City project in New Kensington in Pennsylvania.
His placement – Pennsylvania State University in State College consistently ranks among the top one percent of the world’s universities. Across 24 campuses, the 100,000 students and 17,000 faculty and staff know the real measure of success goes beyond the classroom—it’s the positive impact made on communities across the world.
The (YSEALI) is the U.S. government’s signature program to strengthen leadership development and networking in Southeast Asia. Through a variety of programs and engagements, including U.S. educational and cultural exchanges, regional exchanges, and seed funding, YSEALI seeks to build the leadership capabilities of youth in the region, strengthen ties between the U.S. and Southeast Asia, and nurture an ASEAN community.
The YSEALI Professional Fellows Program offers exchange opportunities under the following themes:
- Civic Engagement (designed for emerging civil society/NGO leaders who focus on underrepresented populations).
- Economic Empowerment (designed for emerging entrepreneurs and community leaders who focus on economic development).
- Governance and Society (designed for emerging policymakers, political leaders, public administrators, journalists and NGO leaders who focus on legislative/governance processes and practices).
- Sustainable Development and the Environment (designed for emerging urban and green space planners, planning and sustainability directors, natural resource managers, and other private and public sector leaders who focus on sustainable development and environmental issues).
The YSEALI Professional Fellows Program is part of the broader Professional Fellows exchange program.
Other Filipino fellows in the economic empowerment cohort include Stephen Michael Co, President and CEO, Nipa Brew Craft Beer; Patricia Corazon Lim Co-founder and CEO, Wovencrafts, Inc.; and Florian Rhiza Nery, Business Continuity Program Manager, Philippine Disaster Resilience Foundation
Topics : Marketing Department