Digital Talent Boost: The 10th Huawei ICT Competition APAC Finals wrapped at ASEAN Headquarters in Jakarta, drawing 8,600+ students from 14 countries/regions and crowning NUS with the Grand Prize, while Timor-Leste’s teams also took awards and 16 finalists now head to global finals in Shenzhen. Health Research: Ochsner pediatric cardiologist Dr. Craig Sable was named principal investigator in a $15M American Heart Association push to improve early detection and treatment of rheumatic heart disease, with the SHIELD Center funded at $4.4M and partners including Timor-Leste. Regional Diplomacy & Culture: At the ASEAN Summit in Cebu, Timor-Leste moved further into the spotlight as leaders welcomed its full membership and kept energy security, Myanmar, and Thai-Cambodia tensions on the agenda. Local Sports & Community: Cebu’s “Bakbakan 2 Sa Barangay Buot” junior boxing event shows grassroots talent scouting in action, aiming to feed athletes into bigger regional meets.