MANILA, PHILIPPINES — The International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) Philippines and COMCO School of Communications are set to launch of the first-ever Communications Olympiad in the Philippines. This pioneering initiative is set to elevate the standards of communication education by equipping collegiate students with practical, real-world skills through an immersive learning experience and competition.
The Communications Olympiad is a nationwide communications training program for collegiate students taking up Mass Communication, Communication Arts, Public Relations, Advertising, Marketing, Marketing Communications, Journalism, Broadcast Communication, Communications Research, Development Communication, Digital Marketing, and other related disciplines. Through a partnership between COMCO School of Communications and IABC Philippines, the Olympiad will hone the next generation of communication professionals by challenging them with real-world applications of strategic storytelling, advocacy, and brand communication.
This year’s Olympiad revolves around the theme: Rewrite Climate Change. The focus is not on developing scientific solutions but on reshaping the narrative and practices surrounding climate change through effective communication. Participants are called to inform, educate, and inspire, emphasizing the role of storytelling and advocacy in driving awareness, shifting behaviors, and fostering collective action.
As a country at the frontline of climate change impacts yet contributing minimally to global emissions, the Philippines plays a crucial role in shaping this narrative. The Olympiad challenges students to develop communication strategies that can be adopted on a realistic scale, driving action and influence where it matters most.
The Olympiad unfolds in three key phases: the Qualifier Phase, the Elimination Round, and the Grand Championship.
- Qualifier Phase: Universities will nominate one team of five students, each taking on specialized roles: project leader, writer, designer, researcher, and lead presenter. Teams must submit a position paper and entry form through www.comcomundo.com/the-communications-olympiad/ by March 14, 2025. A panel of experts will evaluate entries, selecting 30 teams to move forward.
- Elimination Round: The top 30 teams will undergo exclusive training sessions on best practices in communication, the role of communication in environmental conservation, and innovations in strategic storytelling. Following this, teams will be given 24 hours to develop a 10-slide communications plan, which will determine the 15 finalists proceeding to the Grand Championship.
- Grand Championship: The final 15 teams will compete for category medals, with the top three finalists presenting their communication plans before an esteemed jury. One team will emerge as the first-ever Communications Olympiad Grand Champion, with the first and second runners-up also receiving major recognition. Apart from prestigious trophies and prizes, winners will earn the honor of bringing home distinction for their academic institutions.
IABC Philippines and COMCO School of Communications invite companies, brands, media outlets and student organizations to be part of this initiative through sponsorship and partnership opportunities. Companies and brands can participate as a co-presenter or sponsors while media groups and student organizations can join as partners of the program. For more details, interested parties can email communicationsolympiad@comcomundo.com.
Ferdinand L. Bondoy, Corporate Secretary and Lead for Youth and Education of IABC Philippines as well as Group Chief Executive Director and Overall Lead for Strategic Communications / Partner and Co-Founder of COMCO Mundo shared, “The Communications Olympiad drives the power of Meaningful Storytelling in facing head-on real-world issues on climate change. With COMCO’s expertise in communication training and education fueled with grit and excellence together with IABC Philippines’ strong support in the promotion of sustainability, we aim to make this a very productive learning journey not only for the students but for the industry and relevant stakeholders as well, which can help propel action for the environment.”
Belle Tiongco, President of IABC Philippines and Vice President and Co-Founder of Football for Humanity, meanwhile said, “At IABC Philippines, we believe that effective communication has the power to drive real change. In line with the organization’s focus on sustainability as demonstrated by last year’s Triple P Awards, IABC is now embarking on a new chapter, together with COMCO School of Communications, combining both thrusts on education and advocacy, which is The Communications Olympiad. We aim to achieve bigger social impact by putting sustainability as one of our stepping stones for development.”
To know more about The Communications Olympiad, please visit www.comcomundo.com/the-communications-olympiad/ and follow us at www.facebook.com/communicationsolympiad on Facebook and www.linkedin.com/company/the-communications-olympiad on LinkedIn.
