China-Philippines Gen Z unites to promote cultural cooperation and exchanges

Gen Z is a new and important force influencing the world today. In order to deepen youth exchanges among Asian countries, a seminar titled "Dialogue with Generation Z, Seeing the World Together" aimed at spreading the colorful culture through exchanges and mutual understanding between the Chinese and Filipino youth, was held online on Sunday.

The seminar was organized by the Beijing People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries and the Association for Philippines-China Understanding, with the support of China Energy Engineering Group Co Ltd.

During the seminar, experts, scholars and youth representatives from China and the Philippines discussed the opportunities and challenges of cross-cultural communication between China and the Philippines in the post-epidemic era. They agreed that exchanges and mutual learning between youths in China and the Philippines will promote understanding and contribute to the friendly and peaceful development of both countries in the future.

"As digital natives, Gen Z was born and grew up in the age of technology and is an important participant in international communication and people-to-people exchanges. With diverse topics, this activity is a communication platform tailor-made for the young people of China and Philippines. It will, by focusing on the common concerns and responsibilities of Asian countries in the eyes of the youth, facilitate mutual understanding between the youth of the two countries, advance friendship between the two countries and deepen exchanges and mutual learning," Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian said in his congratulatory letter to the seminar.

Xiong Ying, general manager of China Energy Engineering Corporation News Center, echoed Huang's view. She said China Energy Engineering has constructed and operated nearly 70 projects in the Philippines so far, and was continually making efforts to promote the relationship between Chinese and Philippine people, especially youth groups. May the Gen Zers of China and the Philippines go hand in hand to make a strong voice of the times to contribute to the cause of promoting human progress and create a better future for China and the Philippines.

Generation Z (born between 1995-2009) grew up in an era of unprecedented technological change, Wu Meihong, director of Gen-Z Creative Communication Center of Beijing Foreign Studies University, said, adding that they are truly "the first generation of internet natives".

In both China and the Philippines, there are many Gen Z online influencers who have hundreds of thousands of followers. As friendly neighbors, currently, Chinese and Filipino Gen Zers are telling their own cultural stories, while gradually leading their young people to understand and appreciate other cultures, promoting two-way cultural interactions between the two countries, Wu said.

"Whenever I upload a video or create a video for Ni Hao Manila, a project of the Chinese embassy in the Philippines, people are almost always amazed at how different China is and how I, a Filipino, was living my life here in China. Which only shows that the videos I created are reaching the right audience," said Charmaine Paula Oliver Magbuhos, postgraduate student in Global Business Journalism at Tsinghua University.

Magbuhos has been in China for about six years now, and since 2017, the year she arrived in China, there have been a lot of changes both in China and the Philippines. "As an international student in China, I feel excited to see and be a part of the changes that will unfold right before my eyes," she said.

Magbulos created her personal brand "CharinChina," to share a Filipino perspective of what China is like and to show China the Filipino culture. "China is my second home. I want to share my second home with the Filipino people. Though my country, the Philippines, might be small, the Filipino people have so much to offer, and our culture is worth getting to know, she said.

In recent years, many student associations in the Philippines are also paying attention to use innovative ways to organize cultural exchange activities, inviting more young people from China and the Philippines to join and enhance mutual understanding of both countries.

The Chinese Students and Scholars Association in the Philippines, for example, organized a series of events such as "The First Chinese-Filipino Youth Concert" in 2022 and the "2022 Philippines-China Friendship Photography Exhibition," to build more platforms for young people from China and the Philippines to get familiar with each other, said Chen Hong, founder and president of CSSAP.

By showcasing the diversity of Chinese and Filipino culture through various social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, Chinese and Filipino young people expresstheir strong interests in each other's countries and common desire for peace and a better life, Chen said.

Eril Yuri D. Edullan, national president of Power of Filipino Youth, a non-profit, youth organization that focuses on Filipino youth's access to learning and education, is also one of Chen's cooperative partners. Edullan hopes to work with CSSAP to promote the expansion of Chinese learning among Filipino youth.