TEDxMakati

Speakers

Speakers may not be confirmed. Check the event website for the latest lineup.

• Chanel Olive

  Filipino-Australian host, Speaker, Former beauty queen, and Founder of the platform Flourish GodlyConfident

  Chanel Olive is a Filipino-Australian speaker, host, and founder of Flourish GodlyConfident—a faith-based platform empowering women to dream boldly at any life stage. A former beauty queen crowned Binibining Pilipinas Supranational 2017 (Top 10 at Miss Supranational) and Miss Philippines Earth Air 2015, she made headlines in 2025 by returning to pageantry after an 8-year hiatus as a married woman under Miss Universe Philippines’ new inclusive rules—proudly representing both Nueva Ecija and the Filipino Society of Melbourne. Blending her background in counseling, ministry, and pageantry, Chanel inspires others to break limitations through transformative talks and content. Her journey proves confidence and purpose only deepen with time.

• CJ Urquico

  Father, Artist, Marketing and Design Generalist.

  Filipino-American CJ Urquico brings 30+ years in art, design, and branding. As a marketing communications leader in hospitality, he turns stories into guest experiences—and as PR/Marketing & F&B Chair for the Guam Hotel & Restaurant Association, he champions sustainable tourism and island culture. A former web design adjunct professor, CJ also wrote and illustrated a children’s book on coping with Covid. He serves on the Advisory Board of The Salvation Army Guam Corps, building partnerships and fundraising to support at-risk families. From brand strategy to community relief, CJ’s through-line is clear: connect people and possibilities to create kinder, smarter and more resilient communities

• Dr. Felix Veroya

  Award-winning Engineer, Educator, and Entrepreneur dedicated to lifelong learning and meaningful innovation.

  Dr. Felix Concepcion Veroya, PIE, MBB, HonD Award-winning Engineer, Educator, and Entrepreneur dedicated to lifelong learning and innovation.

• Dr. Jake Bryan Cortez

  Planetary Health Champion| Physician-Educator, Innovation Leader

  Dr Jake is board-certified Family and Community Medicine physician, medical educator, and recognized advocate for planetary health and sustainable healthcare. A cum laude graduate of St. Luke’s Medical Center College of Medicine, he has built a career that bridges clinical practice, academic leadership, and global health advocacy. He is shaping a new generation of globally competent and socially accountable physicians, equipped to meet the evolving health challenges of the 21st century. Beyond the classroom and clinic, Dr. Cortez is the inaugural convenor of the Philippine Academy of Family Physicians Special Interest Group on Planetary Health, uniting practitioners nationwide in advancing sustainable, people-centered healthcare. His research and publications—including works in The Lancet and Harvard Public Health Review—as well as presentations in global health forums, position him as a thought leader at the intersection of health, policy, and sustainability.

• Dr. Katrina Burrus, MCC

  Founder/CEO, Author - "Managing Brilliant Jerks”

  Dr. Katrina Burrus, MCC is a globally renowned executive coach and author of "Managing Brilliant Jerks," specializing in transforming high-potential yet difficult leaders into inspiring visionaries. With decades of experience across five continents, she combines sharp business acumen with cultural agility to help Fortune 500 companies, the UN, and organizations like Nestlé and WHO foster collaborative leadership. As CEO of Excellent Executive Coaching LLC (USA) and founder of MKB Conseil & Coaching (Switzerland), Katrina has developed proprietary methods to align technical brilliance with emotional intelligence—turning abrasive executives into trusted, impactful leaders. Fluent in three languages, she hosts the Excellent Executive Coaching podcast (400+ episodes), sharing insights on leadership transformation worldwide. Her mission: to help brilliant minds lead with both competence and compassion, driving sustainable organizational success.

• Dr. Malaya Santos , MD, MPH

  Educator |Public health physician | Dermatologist

  Dr. Malaya Pimentel-Santos has worked at the intersection of public health, education and research over the past three decades, in various capacities within the academe, public healthcare system, and non-government sector. She aims to harness the transformative power of education, while highlighting digital mastery, global readiness, and the social determinants of health through active, immersive, and authentic approaches to teaching and learning. A long-term advocate for primary health care, community empowerment, and health systems science, she has designed and implemented capability building projects for health workers and community-based health programs. She embraces lifelong learning as both a teacher and a learner, both within and beyond the walls of physical and digital classrooms

• Elizabeth Abela

  Biohacking Pioneer of the Philippines, Vitality & Anti-Aging Expert, Human Potential Coach

  Eli is a pioneering holistic health innovator, blending neuroscience and ancient healing as the Philippines' sole certified practitioner in both Germanische Heilkunde and Anat Baniel Method NeuroMovement®. Her groundbreaking approach transcends symptom management, focusing instead on biological reprogramming to address root causes of imbalance. Elizabeth's work demonstrates that chronic conditions and neurological differences can be gateways to transformation. Through neuroplasticity techniques, she helps differently-abled children achieve breakthroughs, while adults with burnout or autoimmune conditions rediscover vitality. Her methods—spanning energy medicine, neuro -somatic retraining, and circadian optimization—offer what conventional medicine often cannot: true healing from within.

• Eric McDermott

  Best-Selling Author, Tik-Tok Influencer

  By day, Eric is an equity partner at a financial services firm with more than 60,000 clients. As a financial advisor, he and his team focus on helping business leaders make their financial strategies as successful as their career. Eric holds multiple advanced financial designations, including Certified Financial Planner® (CFP®), as well as WMCP®, RICP®, ChFC®, CLU®, CEPA®, CLTC®. Behind the suit, in his other company, Eric was named "Best Business Influencer of the Year" winning two Stevies (the Oscars of the business world) for his social media channels. Having amassed more than half-a-million social media followers, his live keynotes and workshops educate in a unique brand of visual story-telling. Eric is also a three-time best-selling author (USA Today and Amazon), and has numerous published Forbes articles.

• Jackie Caniza

  Certified Coach | PCC, HCC, CNTC| Chief Instigator | Founding Partner| Purposeful Story Teller

  Jackie Caniza is a visionary in leadership transformation, blending two decades of corporate experience with cutting-edge neuroscience as founder of Haraya Coaching. As both a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) and Certified Neuro Transformational Coach, she's developed an ICF-accredited certification program that's trained coaches across Asia. Her unique approach combines human-centered design with brain-based techniques, helping over 40,000 professionals and 100+ organizations achieve breakthrough performance. Currently completing her MS in Applied Neuroscience at King's College London, Jackie simultaneously leads MindYou as Managing Director, bringing mental health innovation to ASEAN workplaces. A cancer survivor turned advocate, she embodies her core philosophy that "human potential expands when courage meets science."

• Kylie Verzosa

  Actress | Model | Entrepreneur | Miss International

  Kylie Verzosa is a Filipina actress, model, entrepreneur, and Miss International 2016 titleholder, widely recognized for her advocacy on mental health awareness. Having personally experienced and overcome clinical depression, she turned her journey into a mission to break stigma and foster open dialogue on mental well-being. Kylie founded Mental Health Matters, an online community and advocacy platform that provides education, support, and safe spaces for those facing mental health challenges. Beyond advocacy and entertainment, she is the Founder and Creative Director of SOLA, a shapewear company designed to empower women with confidence, and the Brand Director of &you, a telehealth platform advancing access to healthcare. With candor and compassion, Kylie continues to inspire individuals to seek help, embrace healing, and recognize mental health as vital to overall well-being—using her influence to create meaningful and lasting impact.

• Rea Celine Villa

  Trailblazing Psychologist

  A pioneering psychologist driving mental health innovation across clinical, corporate, and community settings. she architects workplace mental health programs to design scalable psychological interventions. Her multifaceted impact includes serving as Chief Psychologist at at a Women and Children Protection Unit, where she oversees trauma cases and ethical research standards. A trusted consultant for Save the Children and World Vision, she develops mental health solutions for vulnerable populations. Her groundbreaking work includes co-authoring the Filipino Youth Depression Scale and penning the bestselling book "Tama Na, Brain!" With 600,000 TikTok followers (@psychreavilla), she's revolutionizing mental health education through engaging, research-backed content.

• Robert Francis Rubin

  Spiritual Educator and Intuitive Storyteller

  For 29 years, Rob has used the language of the cards to help people make sense of their stories and reclaim a deeper sense of meaning in their lives. As a spiritual educator, he has introduced thousands to intuitive practice as a grounded tool for self-reflection, choice, and personal responsibility. He has written five self-published books that connect mystical insight with everyday challenges and created a Tarot deck devoted to surfacing truth and authenticity.

• Shinichiro Matsuguma, Ph.D

  Licensed Japanese psychologist, Educator at the University of the Philippines, and dedicated mental health advocate who bridges academia and grassroots action to foster resilient communities.

  Dr. Shinichiro Matsuguma's revolutionary approach to positive psychology was born from a profound cultural exchange. When the Japanese psychologist first arrived in Tacloban after Super Typhoon Yolanda, he carried textbook theories of trauma recovery - but the Filipino survivors taught him something more valuable: the culturally-rooted resilience of bayanihan (community unity), tibay ng loob (inner strength), and innate optimism that defied Western psychological models. This cultural awakening led him to pioneer a new approach during his Ph.D. at Keio University - developing psychological frameworks that honor local wisdom alongside clinical research. Now teaching at the University of the Philippines Diliman, Dr. Matsuguma dedicates his work to decolonizing positive psychology.

• Sho Sakamoto

  Founder| Author|Change Agent.

  Sho Sakamoto was born in 1990 in Kobe, Japan. At 23, he became the youngest certified administrative scrivener in Hyogo Prefecture and launched his own business. After successfully gathering over 1,100 participants through social media for his events, he founded a social media marketing company. At 25, he published his first book commercially. His publications have now sold over 240,000 copies and have been translated into multiple languages. He supports various corporate clients with their social media strategies and is also active as a speaker on marketing and entrepreneurship.

• Yuri Marshall

  Mental Health Advocate

  Yuri Marshall is a suicide survivor, mental health advocate, with lived experience at the intersection of ambition and emotional collapse. Yuri is on a mission to help individuals and organizations redefine success before it breaks them.