Championing the LGBT Contribution in Philippine Business
Business Believes in Diversity
#IDAHOT with the Netherlands Embassy
May 17, 2017 — Manila, Philippines
The Netherlands Embassy to the Philippines in cooperation with the Philippine LGBT Chamber of Commerce and the Philippines-Netherlands Business Council held an event on the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHOT), as a means to promote diversity in business and industry in the region.
Brian Tenorio, Chair and Founder of the LGBT Chamber of Commerce, in his talk, explained that the “Out in Business” (#outinbusiness) event is a means to show that diversity in business is a good thing – that it is profitable, efficient, and an overall better environment for workers.
The COO of Maynilad, Randy Estrellado, was the first panelist to speak. He told the story of how he came out, after years of his superiors telling him that he had to get married in order to get a promotion. He says he has never been an activist, but that a good life meant he had the responsibility to speak about his experiences.
They were then asked questions regarding organizational policy, their realizations about their SOGIE, and how they had the courage to come out in the open about their identities. Her Excellency, Ambassador Derckx, then awarded the official token of the event, the DIVERSITY PLATE, to the panelists, saying that it should be displayed in their offices as a symbol of their commitment to accepting diversity.
The formal programme was capped off by the Chair of the Philippines-Netherlands Business Council (PNBC), Mary Ann P. Sayoc.
Videos of the event are available via facebook.com/lgbtchamber. They will also be available on the Chamber’s Youtube Channel.