Ryan Letada
Ryan Letada is a foodie, Fulbright Fellow, and social entrepreneurship junkie. He recently started a new social venture called Next Day Better and is a co-founder of eKindling. He is a team member of Catchafire - an award-winning, startup social enterprise and online platform that matches professionals who want to give their skills with nonprofits that need their help. He is also TEDxYouth speaker on personal failures for social change. Ultimately, his life goal is to squeeze social good out of awesome ideas and to make the world better as a result of his presence. Follow him: @rletada
Nicole Ponseca
Nicole Ponseca is a restaurateur and owner of Maharlika Filipino Moderno, Maharlika Province and an upcoming project to be announced. She is a former advertising and production executive for Saatchi & Saatchi, Euro RSCG and worked on brands including Oil of Olay, Coppertone and with directors like Michel Gondry (Be kind rewind, Dave Chappelle's Block Party, Beastie Boys, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind), Unhappy with her career as an ad executive; she worked two jobs for a decade to fully understand the restaurant world. Advertising exec by day and Dishwasher by night. Her goal was simple: put Filipino food on the culinary map and make pinoys proud.
Nicole has been featured in the WPIX Morning Show, Daily News, Inc.com, TV Patrol, Philippine Inquirer, ABS-CBN, Philippine Star, NV Magazine, Entrepreneur Philippines, NBC, The Cooking Channel, and The Huffington Post to name a few media outlets that have supported her endeavor to put Filipino food on the culinary map.
Maharlika has garnered much attention on New York’s culinary scene from its initial opening last year including a glowing review in the New York Times and the award for “Best New Resturant” by Metromix. Maharlika Filipino Moderno has been a trendsetter in the food world and is recognized by Timeout NY (Best New Food/Critic’s Choice), Tasting Table (Top 10 Cocktail with Pacquiao Punch), Complex Magazine (Top Restaurant for 2012), Inc.com (Entrepreneurship) and The Huffington Post (Best Cuisine) as a major player in the dining scene.
With Maharlika Filipino Moderno, Ponseca aims to combine her professional background and her cultural values to the success of the venture.
Ponseca attended the University of San Francisco earning her B.A. in Business Administration. She now resides in Brooklyn, NY.
Kilusan Bautista
Artist, Humanitarian & Entrepreneur, Kilusan Bautista is an emerging voice for Diasporic communities raised within the Hip Hop Generation. Kilusan means movement in the Philippines and he was given this name in 1999 as a reminder to live as a conscious and caring global citizen. Originally from San Francisco, CA, and currently based in New York City, Kilusan combines the performance elements of theater, spoken word poetry, martial arts and interpretive movement.
He has appeared on Showtime for Top Rank Boxing Light Weight Champion Nonito Donaire (2008). Kilusan was published in the Philippine News after winning the Grand prize for a State-wide letter writing contest sponsored by the California Council for the Humanities (2005). He was awarded the Congressional Community Service Award -Kabataan Komemorative- in 2006 by CA Senator Tom Lantos. Kilusan Bautista's current work, Universal Self, has toured throughout the United States of North America with the purpose of building cross cultural unity and personal healing through the performance arts.
On June 2, 2012, UniPro will host its second annual Multinational Forum for Pilipino Young Adults, Students and Youth, also known as the “the UniPro Summit." The goal for UniPro is to outreach to the Multinational Pilipino Community and create a safe space and open forum for regional issues and facilitate cultural workshops. This year, UniPro's Summit will focus on the theme of a "Pilipino Renaissance," and will feature upcoming figures from the community whose work promotes the culture, welfare, and progress of Pilipinos, particularly in the modern, digital age. The Summit invites delegates from diverse groups to meet, exchange ideas, and organize a global network to promote the idea of such a renaissance.
it is our pleasure to announce the new UniProNow.org website! We will continually update the contents of this site so please come back and check for the latest information.
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