PH Embassy in Canberra Re-launches Online Cultural Gallery “Mabuhay Straya”
The cultural gallery at the website of the Philippine Embassy called Mabuhay Straya will feature stories and updates on the people, arts, food, products and destinations that bridge the Philippines and Australia closer together. (Canberra PE photo)
CANBERRA 24 October 2022, – The Philippine Embassy in Canberra is relaunching its cultural gallery called “Mabuhay Straya”, a virtual resource featuring the historic and dynamic people-to-people linkages of the Philippines and Australia and the latest developments in the arts, travel, cuisine, and commerce that link the two countries.
In the Philippines, “mabuhay” which literally means “long live” is often used as a greeting and an expression of good wishes. “Straya” or short for Australia is taken from “Straya Day” or how Australians would normally refer to their National Day celebrated on the 26th of January every year. The name, “Mabuhay Straya” welcomes the many stakeholders of the Embassy in Australia to the online gallery that celebrates the friendship and partnership of the two countries.
The Cultural Gallery was originally launched in May 2020 as a public diplomacy initiative of the Embassy in response to the prevailing physical distancing and travel restrictions due to COVID-19. The online gallery allowed the Embassy to continue to engage the Filipino community and various stakeholders in Australia when the conduct of public events was not possible.
Mabuhay Straya institutionalizes the digitization of the Embassy’s public diplomacy programs and provides a platform for the promotion of Filipino thought leaders, artists and influencers in Australia; Philippine arts, cuisine, travel destinations and products; as well as cultural and political advocacies. The digital platform is being launched in October 2022 in observance of Museums and Galleries Month in the Philippines.
The Embassy invites the Filipino community and friends in media, business, and universities to explore Mabuhay Straya at https://cultural.philembassy.org.au/. END
For more information, visit https://www.philembassy.org.au or https://www.facebook.com/PHinAustralia/.