Deewai Mabunga Rodriguez:

Name: Dyan Aimee "Deewai" Mabunga Rodriguez
Country: Philippines
Languages: Filipino, English

Relevant Experience:

In 2005, I served as Member of the Board in a non-government organization based in Northern Mindanao. This NGO, Luntiaw Mindanaw, is dedicated to rural development, women empowerment, youth leadership and microfinance. I am currently involved with the Asian Youth Network as well. I recently took part in an international seminar on Freedom and Property Rights at the International Academy for Leadership in Gummersbach, Germany on 11-17 April .

Why do you want to serve on the Board?

I became acquainted with the WYMD when I received an e-mail about the biennial essay writing competition. This was during the local and national elections in our country and at that timeI was actively involved in the re-election campaign of Deputy Minority Leader and Representative TG Guingona. I felt that my experiences on the campaign trail would be relevant to the essay topic.

In 2008, I participated in the 5th World Movement for Democracy Assembly in Kiev, Ukraine as my award for winning the competition with another participant from Belarus. The event made me appreciate democracy in a deeper and a more expansive point of view. In one of the workshops, I was asked to discuss teaching human rights and democracy to the youth in our country. This experience made me realize that in the face of language barriers, different backgrounds and a collage of experiences, we all have similarities and interconnected threads of ideals, which include the appreciation for democracy. To become part of the board means the privilege to serve in a wider platform, to expand my horizons and to contribute to the strengthening of the group through initiatives, dialogues and various forms of communication.

What skills can you contribute to the leadership and objectives of the network?

I am currently involved in initiatives for rural peoples, women and youth, and I use communication skills in public speaking and writing as ways to get messages across and to gather insights and feedback. Since I also teach ESL (English as a Second Language) part-time, I find it interesting to communicate with people from other parts of the globe using English as the mode of communication. I have also taught communication subjects at the university. I have a zeal and passion for tasks, whether complicated or simple, as long as these contribute to the promotion of democracy, because I acknowledge that much is yet to be done.

What do you envision for the future of WYMD?

I envision that the WYMD is a multicultural haven, a peace zone, an open "university" and a stronghold of young democracy and human rights activists from all over the world reaching communities and small towns.