MANILA, Philippines – Rappler CEO Maria Ressa and National Youth Commissioner-at-large Dingdong Dantes received the Friedrich Naumann Foundation (FNF) Freedom Flame award on Wednesday, February 4.

“Dingdong and Maria are recognized for going the extra mile in making Filipinos more free,” FNF country director Jules Maaten said, citing the winners’ innovations that promote freedom and contribute to social change.

“Freedom is something that doesn’t come naturally,” Maaten said. “We have to work for it day in and day out.”

Dantes, who leads the efforts of the youth commission on disaster risk reduction and management, said the award will help boost youth participation in governance. (READ: NYC: More involvement for young Pinoys in disaster planning)

“It will serve as my inspiration to continue encouraging the youth to be part of the solution to our country’s problems including the issue of climate change,” he said.

“The youth must take the lead in making climate change a history,” Dantes said in receiving the award.

For her part, Ressa stressed how technology paved the way to produce solutions to different societal problems, enabling people in more ways than before.

“Social media allows us to connect without boundaries of time and space,” the veteran journalist said. 

“It is taking each of the individual power we have, multiplying it, putting it all together, and collaborating to do something that never existed before,” Ressa said  before an audience of 200 guests, mainly young leaders from universities and communities.

Rappler, which Ressa leads, combines journalism, technology, and social media to promote informed people’s partcipation in addressing issues like disaster and climate change. One of its online platforms, Project Agos, ensures that critical information reaches vulnerable areas before, during, and after a disaster.  

FNF, a German political foundation, gives the citation annually to individuals for their outstanding commitment to freedom and good governance. – Rappler.com