RVR Awards insights: Overcoming 'The Great Rewiring'

In an age of rapid change and digital disruption, Gen Z and Gen Alpha face what some have called “The Great Rewiring”—a fundamental shift in how we connect, learn, and grow. As detailed in the book “The Anxious Generation” by Jonathan Haidt, young people today grapple with a paradoxical world: overprotected in the physical realm, limiting their resilience, yet under protected online, exposing them to new harms. Amid these challenges, I think that the 2024 Ramon V. del Rosario (RVR) Awardees offer hope and inspiration, demonstrating how traditional Filipino values can light the way forward.

This year’s awardees span diverse fields, from peace-building to sustainable tourism to inclusive employment. Yet they are united by a common thread: a commitment to timeless Filipino principles like pakikipagkapwa-tao (empathy), bayanihan (communal unity), and kagandang-loob (innate goodness). By living these values, they show us how to build a future where technology enhances our humanity, and every young person can overcome anxiety.

Take the late Ambassador Howard Q. Dee, the recipient of the RVR Award for Nation Building. His lifelong dedication to social development and peace, whether brokering agreements with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front or co-founding anti-poverty organizations, exemplifies pakikipagkapwa-tao—the transformative power of treating others as fellow humans. In an age of online alienation and echo chambers, Amb. Dee reminds us of the irreplaceable value of face-to-face dialogue and empathy in the real world.

Meanwhile, the Siklab awardees, who are recognized for their entrepreneurial and social impact, embody the spirit of bayanihan. Ariestelo A. Asilo of ThinnkFarm and Varacco has empowered 400 coffee farmers in Cavite and Mindanao, not just economically but also by fostering a sense of community. Similarly, Avin C. Ong built the billion-peso Fredley Group of Companies from humble beginnings while adopting inclusive hiring practices for persons with disabilities.

Other Siklab awardees harness the power of wonder and heritage. Ann Adeline G. Dumaliang’s innovative approach to conservation at Masungi Georeserve, which is home to over 500 species, reflects kagandang-loob—the resilience of the human spirit and our capacity for awe, even in a digital ecosystem that often rewards cynicism. Victor Mari C. Baguilat Jr., through his social enterprise Kandama, wields the tools of e-commerce to bring the ancient tradition of Ifugao weaving to a global audience, balancing innovation and cultural rootedness.

Across their initiatives, the RVR awardees leverage technology not as an end in itself, but as a tool for positive change. Rafael Ignacio S. Dionisio’s MAD Travel uses social media to promote sustainable tourism that uplifts Aeta communities in Zambales. They remind us that digital platforms, thoughtfully used, can create meaningful experiences that connect us with each other instead of heightening our anxieties.

As these exemplars show, Filipino values offer a compass for navigating the uncharted waters of the Great Rewiring. By anchoring their work in empathy, communal unity, and wonder, they cultivate the very qualities needed to thrive in the digital age: authentic connections, resilience, and a sense of purpose beyond oneself. In doing so, they create spaces for young people to develop these capacities, bridging the gap between virtual and real-world learning.

But their example is not just for the young. The 2024 RVR awardees call on all of us—educators, entrepreneurs, policymakers—to bring these values to the center of our institutions and practices. In schools and universities, this means nurturing social-emotional skills alongside digital proficiencies, grounding innovation in ethics and empathy. In business, it means measuring success not just by the bottom line, but by the flourishing of our employees, customers, and communities. Across fields, it means embracing our cultural heritage, not as a relic of the past, but as a living source of strength and inspiration.

Ultimately, the Great Rewiring is about more than technological shifts; it is a challenge to the human spirit. Will we wield these new powers to connect, or to divide? To lift up the marginalized, or to leave them behind? To preserve and celebrate our cultural treasures, or to erase them?

When the world predisposes us to anxiety due to an overload of information and social media, it is our return to, or even re-adaptation of Filipino values that can orient the young towards sparking change and nation-building.