Ms. Tonette de Jesus is the Senior Program Manager for Governance and Foreign Relations at the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) Philippines. Prior to her work at KAS, she was a Political Economy Consultant for the Philippine Governance Advisory Team at the World Bank Office in the Philippines, Program Manager for the Asian Development Bank-Asian Institute of Management Knowledge Hub, and Research Officer at the International Rice Research Institute. She has authored chapters for and edited international and regional security publications. Her opinion pieces as an international development practitioner have been featured in Rappler and the 9DashLine. After earning her bachelor’s degree in Management Economics (Merit Scholar) from the Ateneo de Manila University and a brief stint in the corporate world, Tonette pursued her master’s degree in International Political Economy and Development, specializing in International and Development Economics, from Fordham University, where she received the Matteo Ricci Award for Outstanding Scholastic Achievement.

Created by:

Dr. Hall is the Executive Director of University of the Philippines Center for Integrative and Development Studies, UP’s policy research unit. She is a Professor of Political Science at University of the Philippines Visayas and UP Scientist III, with an established research and publication portfolio on security, civil-military relations, and gender/rebel integration in the army. She earned her Masters and PhD from Northeastern University, USA on a Fulbright-Hayes scholarship. She is a member of the Executive Board of the Asian Political and International Studies Association; former President of the Philippine Political Science Association; current editor of International Science Perspectives; and current member of the Philippine Commission on Higher Education Technical Panel for Political Science.

Created by:

Since he founded The Stratbase Group in 2004, Prof. Victor Andres “Dindo” Manhit has provided top-level strategic analysis and thought leadership on global issues in the Philippines.

He is the President of Stratbase Institute, an independent, international think tank based in the Philippines. In the age of geopolitical uncertainties and technological advancements, Stratbase ADR Institute gives equal importance to the interdependent nature of states, sectors, and stakeholders for its strategic analyses and policy initiatives in a multi-polar world.

As a public policy analyst and geo-strategist, he thinks beyond politics for his political risk assessment that is also data-driven. With his extensive experience in legislation and policy making including serving as Undersecretary of the Department of Education, Deputy Secretary of the Philippine Senate and being Chief of Staff of a Senate President, he continues to help Stratbase’s clients and partners understand the interplay between business and government and the impact of legislative, regulatory, and geo-politics on their strategic initiatives.

Professor Manhit obtained his Master’s Degree in Public Administration and Bachelor’s Degree in Philippine Studies (Major in Political Science and History) from the University of the Philippines. A member of Phi Gamma Mu International Honors Society Beta Chapter.

Created by:

Mr. Don McLain Gill is a geopolitical analyst, author, and lecturer at the Department of International Studies, De La Salle University, Manila. He is also a non-resident fellow at the Stratbase ADR Institute, a visiting senior fellow at the Impact and Policy Research Institute (IMPRI), and a non-resident fellow at the USANAS Foundation. He specializes in Philippine foreign policy, Indo-Pacific geopolitics, and India-Southeast Asia security relations. He has written several books, book chapters, peer-reviewed international journal articles, newspaper columns, and commentaries for renowned international affairs publishers. He is also regularly invited as reviewer by various scopus-indexed journals on international security. He attained his Masters of Arts (MA) with Distinction in International Relations at Oxford Brookes University, United Kingdom.

Created by:

RADM Rommel Jude Ong (Ret) served in the Philippine Navy until his compulsory retirement.in 2019. His last posting was as Vice Commander, during which he chaired various committees covering naval diplomacy, naval modernization, basing and infrastructure development, and career management
program for the uniformed and civilian personnel. Earlier in his career he has successfully commanded three (3) commissioned naval vessels, and later the Naval Intelligence Security Force, the Naval Task
Forces 11 and 80, Director of the Fleet Marine Warfare Center, and the Naval Forces West, which has operational jurisdiction over the West Philippine Sea. He has also occupied senior staff positions such as the Assistant Chief of Staff for Naval Operations (N3), the Assistant Deputy Chief for Joint Operations (AJ3)
and the Naval Inspector General. While he was still in the active service, he has written four (4) naval manuals focusing on the following subjects: naval decision-making process, naval exercises, naval operations, and protocols of the naval inspector general service. He is currently affiliated with the Ateneo School of Government (ASOG) as a Professor of Praxis and Senior Research Fellow.
RADM Ong is a graduate of the Philippine Military Class of 1987. He completed his GSC-equivalent training at the US Naval War College and his Senior Executive
Course on National Security (MNSA-equivalent) at the National Defense College of the Philippines. He
completed his Masters in Development Management at the Asian Institute of Management.

Created by:

Renato Cruz De Castro is a distinguished professor at the Department of International Studies, De La Salle University, Manila, and holds the Dr. Aurelio Calderon Chair in Philippines-American Relations. He is an adjunct faculty at the National Defense College of the Philippines (NDCP), where he handles the module International Security Studies. (ISS). He was a visiting fellow at the National Institute for Defense Studies (NIDS) of the Japanese Ministry of Defense in the summer of 2018. He was a visiting researcher at the Japan Institute of International Affairs (JIIA) from June to August 2017. From September to December 2016, he was based in the East-West Center in Washington D.C. as the U.S.-ASEAN Fulbright Initiative Researcher from the Philippines. He is an alumnus of the Daniel Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (DIAPCSS) in Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.A. In 2009, he became the U.S. State Department ASEAN Research Fellow from the Philippines and was based in the Political Science Department of Arizona State University.

Created by:

Commodore Jay Tristan Tarriela is currently serving as the Chief of Coast Guard Staff for Human Resource Management (CG-1) and is also the Adviser to the Commandant on Maritime Security Affairs, as well as the Philippine Coast Guard Spokesperson on the West Philippine Sea. He successfully completed his Ph.D. at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS) under the GRIPS Global Governance (G-cube) Program in Tokyo as a Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) ASEAN Public Policy Leadership scholar. He has participated in various military and coast guard training programs both in his home country and internationally. Dr. Tarriela holds a graduate degree from the Philippine Merchant Marine Academy Graduate School and a Master of Policy Studies from GRIPS and the Japan Coast Guard Academy. He was among the first batch of participants in the Maritime Safety and Security Program jointly launched by both institutions in 2016.

Furthermore, Dr. Tarriela was selected as part of the inaugural cohort of the 2021 Pacific Forum US-Philippines’ Next Generation Leaders’ Initiative. Additionally, he has been chosen as a fellow for the 2021 East-West Center US-Philippines Alliance Fellowship in Washington, DC, USA. Dr. Tarriela has authored opinion-editorial articles for renowned publications such as The Diplomat, The National Interest, and Analyzing War. He also serves as a visiting lecturer at the National Defense College of the Philippines, the Philippine Public Safety College, Ateneo De Manila University School of Government, and the Philippine Merchant Marine Academy Graduate School.

Created by:

Justice Antonio T. Carpio was sworn in as member of the Supreme Court of the Philippines on October 26, 2001. He served in the Supreme Court for 18 years, retiring on October 25, 2019 upon reaching the compulsory retirement age of 70. Justice Carpio retired with a zero backlog of cases. Justice Carpio obtained his law degree from the College of Law of the University of the Philippines where he graduated valedictorian and cum laude in 1975. He was conferred a Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, by the Ateneo de Davao University in 2009, by the University of the Philippines in 2020, and by the Ateneo de Manila University in 2021. On October 29, 2011, as Guest Speaker at the 50th Founding Anniversary of the Ateneo de Davao College of Law, Justice Carpio launched his advocacy to challenge the validity of China’s nine-dashed line before a tribunal under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Ever since, he has been giving lectures all over the country on the invalidity of China’s nine-dashed line. In 2015, the Department of Foreign Affairs sponsored Justice Carpio on a world lecture tour on the West Philippine Sea dispute. Justice Carpio presented the Philippines’ perspective on the dispute before think-tanks and universities in 30 cities covering 17 countries. In May 2017, Justice Carpio published the book titled The South China Sea Dispute: Philippine Sovereign Rights and Jurisdiction in the West Philippine Sea.

Created by:

Created by:

Gen. Eduardo Año is a Filipino public official and retired general of the Philippine Army who currently serves as the National Security Adviser under the administration of President Bongbong Marcos since 2023. He previously served as Secretary of the Interior and Local Government in the Cabinet of President Rodrigo Duterte from 2018 to 2022, the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines from 2016 to 2017, and the Commanding General of the Philippine Army from 2015 to 2016.

Created by: