Women Empowerment and Breaking Glass Ceilings Discussed 

 The Philippine Consulate General in New York held “An Evening with Distinguished Filipino Women” on Wednesday. 30 March 202z at the Kalayaan Hall of the Philippine Center to honor and feature notable Filipino and Filipino-American women who find ways to elevate the representation of Filipino-American women in society. Four trailblazing Filipino- American women in the fields of law, design, music, and the academe shared their accounts of breaking the glass ceiling and empowering women in their respective fields. The discussion offered insights about how to thrive as a Filipino-American woman in the United States, highlighting the virtue of empathy, and the importance of developing a culture of paying it forward.Top right photo: . This year, the honorees are (from 2"d to the left to right): Ms. Myrish Cadapan Antonio, the Senior Director for Fellowships and Global Initiatives at the Legatum Center for Development and Entrepreneurship at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Ms. Concepcion A. Montoya, the only Filipino- American Partner at Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, a national full-service law firm of over 4oo lawyers with offices throughout the United States, Ms. Nicole Sylianteng, Interaction designer and senior product designer at Mark43 and NYC[x] Innovation Fellow working with the Robotics Unit of the Fire Department of New York, and Ms. Marissa Pizarro, one of Billboard’s top female music executives (not in photo). Filipino actress, Lourna Jane “LJ” Reyes served as moderator (leftmost). Bottom right: In his Welcome Remarks, Consul General Elmer G. Cato (at the podium) thanks the honorees for sharing their inspiring stories on how they are serving as catalysts for change by debunking stereotypes and by disrupting the status quo. (Photos from NYPCG)