GOVPH

Shanghai PCG attends the China Digital Innovation Expo 2025

SHANGHAI, 16 April 2025 – The Philippine Consulate General in Shanghai attended the China Digital Innovation Expo (CDIE) for the first time through the special arrangements of German-Philippine couple Mr. Mario Bock and Ms. Bibian Pacayra-Bock. The Bock couple and the Philippine Consulate General Acting Head of Post Consul Francis S. Herrera first met at the Kapihan sa Hapon, Talk and Mixer on 22 March 2025.

The CDIE started back in 2015 and has now established itself as a prime venue for insights and information on the latest in digital transformation in various industries and serves as a networking center for key industry leaders, technology users and industry representatives interested in adopting digital innovation to further improve their operations.

Consul Herrera was able to meet CDIE creator and organziser Mr. Ryan Yang, exchanging ideas, with both in agreement that the adoption of digital solutions will be key in modernizing industries and ensuring economic and social transformation. END

Lorelei Saren, Caviteña math teacher in Hangzhou, made it in China

A Filipina from Cavite is making her mark as a mathematics teacher in eastern China.

Since 2017, Lorelei L. Sarren has been serving as a math teacher in the Zhejiang Fuyang High School, a public school which boasts of an international department. It is known in Hangzhou as one of the key schools noted not just for teaching Chinese culture and values but also in preparing students for studies overseas.

Lorelei has been teaching her students advanced mathematics to help them pass the standardized exams required by universities in the UK, Australia and the US, among others.

She has rich experience to lean on. Before going to China, she had taught mathematics and statistics in different universities in Manila and Dasmariñas.

She moved to Malaysia in 2013 and taught there until 2017, a period when Malaysia was in the process of incorporating technology into teaching curriculum.

Lorelei’s success in upscaling math teaching is earning due recognition. In 2020, the Zhejiang Fuyang High School promoted her as the Head of the Mathematics Department.

Twice she was awarded as an Outstanding Teacher in 2021 and 2023.

Lorelei has published and co-authored textbooks and resource materials used in secondary and tertiary education curricula.

“My skills in writing and teaching have helped me succeed,” she says. “My past experiences as an educator has been finally recognized here in Hangzhou.”

Beyond teaching, she has been also using her organizing skills to serve the local Filipino community. As the president of the Filipino Community in Hangzhou (FilCommHz), she is bringing Filipinos in Zhejiang closer. In collaboration with the Consulate General in Shanghai, she and her group have been working to foster harmony among Filipinos and pushing for cultural exchanges with the Chinese community. They have organized donation drives and relief operations for beneficiaries in the Philippines.

For her students, education is a key to knowledge and success. For Lorelei, it’s a bridge to build trust and friendship among the people of the Philippines and China.

Caviteña math teacher Lorelei #MadeItInChina

#PHLinChina #50thAnniversary

Carol and Mike Ong, Bebebalm's founders, made it in China

Carol and Michael Ong’s start up business originated out of necessity: they needed to relieve their son’s skin discomfort.

Their “joint venture” started in 2007, when Carol, an advertising executive from Bacolod, met Michael in Shanghai. “Doc Mike”, a Pasay City native, was a community and family doctor working in Shanghai’s leading hospitals.

They dated and got married in 2009. Three years later, they bore a son. The toddler developed skin eczema, prompting the couple to collaborate in finding relief.

Combining Carol’s propensity to concoct natural health remedies and Dr. Michael’s expertise in biochemistry, they came up with a soothing cream they dubbed “Bebebalm”.

Encouraged by its efficacy, she made extra samples to share with friends, who also gave positive feedback. This encouraged the Shanghai-based couple to produce more.

“This business is being built by friends and fans who continue to inspire us, from designing the packaging to opening ecommerce,” Carol intones.

A self-described “mompreneur”, Carol has since tapped chemists to ensure quality control as their home-based remedies expanded into a full-fledged business.

The success of their first product —the moisturizer ByeDry —has engendered a growing line of mostly China-manufactured products: the Bebebalm shampoo bar; the Bebebugs insect repellent, and the Bebesleep essential oil.

“Our products are meant for our loved ones’ needs,” Carol says.

Their latest product, the calming oil Bebebreathe, won gold as the best skincare product at the 2024 China-ASEAN Expo in Nanning City.

From seeking to alleviate their child’s discomfort and venturing into a start-up, Bebebalm’s Carol and Mike Ong #MadeItInChina

#PHLinChina #50thAnniversary