IndieCo

Because we want to end 2021 with a bang, we produced this year ender special from our Founding Team. As we begin a new chapter this 2022, it’s the next chapter for us, too.

In the last year, we featured Young Blood episodes from Philippine Daily Inquirer and have partnered with youth organizations, startup and everything in between. When we won our first seed-grant competition as a then-one-month-old social enterprise last February, we were on Cloud 9. We organized our first Writers' Program, our Writers' Conference and even went as far as putting up a website getting featured on cool magazines. But this isn’t the end of the line.

Our next phase will be even more immersive — a lifestyle, if you will. We call it The Indiependent Collective (IndieCo), and it will transcend what we currently do. Stay tuned for this episode and watch out for our rebranding to know more. Again, from our team, with love, Happy Holidays and Have a Great Rest of 2022 and beyond!

About our partner: The University of the Philippines' Consulting Group (UPCG): Now in its second year, The Business Building Bootcamp (BBC) of the UP Consulting Group aims to educate small business owners on ways to take their business to the next level.

A true gift for avid Young Blood readers and listeners, this year's last featured Young Blood essay is written by our very first featured writer. What's more, her essay reflects what our fellow Filipinos in provinces badly hit by #TyphonneOdettte are going through too, and it also reminds us about one of our great leaders, Former President Ninoy Aquino. Seven years since its publication, here is "The blame game" by Iela Santiago.

Iela Santiago is a third-year biology undergraduate at The Queen's College, University of Oxford. She is broadly interested in evolutionary ecology and is passionate about increasing access to scientific research. She grew up in Bacolod City and is the first person in her family to study abroad.

About our partner: The University of the Philippines' Consulting Group (UPCG): Now in its second year, The Business Building Bootcamp (BBC) of the UP Consulting Group aims to educate small business owners on ways to take their business to the next level.

Leah started running at 12 and was 13 when she first went on a road run with her father. Her first road run, at the end of the line, ended as a rather traumatic and mind-boggling experience. She even vowed never to run again. Unpredictably, years later, she still finds herself out in the open road. Find out why in this episode.

Leah Cioco is a ludicrously passionate individual who wears many hats. She produces this podcast while studying Applied Math and working with Cindy Pom, former CBS International Correspondent and Creator of Newsthink. In her other life, she is a computing enthusiast, a public speaker and a writer. Most passionate about innovation and social impact, finding creative solutions to exceptional problems is her 'why'.

About our partner: The University of the Philippines' Consulting Group (UPCG): Now in its second year, The Business Building Bootcamp (BBC) of the UP Consulting Group aims to educate small business owners on ways to take their business to the next level.

The sequel to her first Young Blood essay, "Tapping into my mother's mind," this one narrates the dreams the writer has had of her estranged father.

Natalya Patolot is a 21-year-old BS Communication Technology Management student at the Ateneo de Manila University who aspires to achieve her dreams and to inspire those around her. When she is not busy with her academics, internships, and business ventures, she does freelance writing from time to time.

About our partner: The University of the Philippines' Consulting Group (UPCG): Now in its second year, The Business Building Bootcamp (BBC) of the UP Consulting Group aims to educate small business owners on ways to take their business to the next level.

Get your calculators and have your pens and papers ready because on this episode, our featured Young Blood writer will talk about the importance of mathematics in life and in the current pandemic. One thing this pandemic has taught the writer, a math major tired of looking at math without numbers, is that math is necessary.

Of course, it is also boring, it is exhausting, it is tedious, it is difficult — but one can’t deny how important it is. And today, he talks just about that on this episode.

Jim Ralphealo Mijares, 21, is a junior at the Ateneo de Manila University, taking up both mathematics and education. He is currently in Dumaguete.

About our partner: The University of the Philippines' Consulting Group (UPCG): Now in its second year, The Business Building Bootcamp (BBC) of the UP Consulting Group aims to educate small business owners on ways to take their business to the next level.

Join us as we welcome December with The Quotation Marks Project (TQMP)! TQMP is a non-government, youth-led organization that aims to give voices to non-prominent people by showcasing how inspiring and relatable they are through their words, both written and spoken. The organization believes that everyone has a voice worth listening to, but not everyone has a platform in order to let their voices be heard. It would like to break the stigma that popularity is needed to be noticed.

Aaliziyah Cabauatan is the Founder and Executive Director of The Quotation Marks Project. She is a freshman in De La Salle University-Manila currently taking up AB Literature. She is passionate about sharing her ideas through her podcast and amplifying the voice of non-prominent people through her youth organization.

About our partner: The University of the Philippines' Consulting Group (UPCG): Now in its second year, The Business Building Bootcamp (BBC) of the UP Consulting Group aims to educate small business owners on ways to take their business to the next level.

Growing up in an unconventional family setup is difficult and at times, frustrating. Those of us who never had the chance to have meals with a complete family or perhaps to spend events and milestones in our lives with both our parents can attest to this. It is painful, but as what our featured writer says, this pain must be embraced. Listen more to find out why and how exactly he has done this.

Nathaniel Magpantay, 25, works as a communication instructor at First Asia Institute of Technology and Humanities in Tanauan City, Batangas. He finished Master of Arts in Communication Arts at University of the Philippines Los Baños. He enjoys reading coming-of-age novels and watching Filipino films and Japanese anime.

About our partner: The University of the Philippines' Consulting Group (UPCG): Now in its second year, The Business Building Bootcamp (BBC) of the UP Consulting Group aims to educate small business owners on ways to take their business to the next level.

While some premature babies have serious medical complications or long-term health problems, many also go on to live normal healthy lives. Leah, this week's featured writer, is one of the lucky ones. But prior to that, she had to go through a series of milestones to overcome her sickly childhood before being completely free from serious negative impacts of her premature birth. She tells us more about her story on "Premature baby."

Leah is a ludicrously passionate individual who wears many hats. She produces The Young Blood Podcast while studying Applied Math and working with Cindy Pom, former CBS International Correspondent and Creator of Newsthink. In her other life, she is a computing enthusiast, a public speaker and a writer. Most passionate about innovation and social impact, finding creative solutions to exceptional problems is her 'why'.

About our partner: The University of the Philippines' Consulting Group (UPCG): Now in its second year, The Business Building Bootcamp (BBC) of the UP Consulting Group aims to educate small business owners on ways to take their business to the next level.

Opening up may be hard, but many patients with cancer find solace and unexpected benefits by sharing their stories. And this is exactly what Alexa did. She may have hesitated to reveal such a personal and vulnerable part of her life at first, but she summoned the courage to speak up. More so, with COVID19 at its peak during her diagnosis, Alexa struggled but fought on and bravely shared her story.

Alexa Grace Fontanilla is on leave as a Juris Doctor student at the University of the Philippines College of Law. She is proud of her indigenous heritage Tuwali community of Kiangan, Ifugao. She loves the outdoors, but for now she mostly enjoys baking bread, journaling, and reading books.

About our partner: The University of the Philippines' Consulting Group (UPCG): Now in its second year, The Business Building Bootcamp (BBC) of the UP Consulting Group aims to educate small business owners on ways to take their business to the next level.

For this month's Special Episode, we have "Sirang Plaka: Paano Laspagin ang Gasgas with Carlos Palanca Memorial Awardee Salvador Biglaen" in partnership with Miranda Training and Tutorials (MTT).

About MTT: Miranda Training and Tutorials is a community of inspiring and passionate mentors. They are dedicated to making a variety of relevant training and purposeful lessons accessible to students of all ages. We believe that everyone should strive to be wealthy in mind and spirit.

About our partner: The University of the Philippines' Consulting Group (UPCG): Now in its second year, The Business Building Bootcamp (BBC) of the UP Consulting Group aims to educate small business owners on ways to take their business to the next level.