Award-winning broadcast journalist Karen Davila rallied women executives to remain unwavering in promoting diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) values during a DEI conference, warning that it is increasingly under threat with many companies today are removing policy on the practice.

Speaking at the 2025 CSR Conference and Expo of the League of Corporate Foundation (LCF) with the theme “Diversity, Equity and Inclusivity for Shared Prosperity” on 3 July, the United Nations Women national goodwill ambassador and DEI advocate cited the concern of a Filipina friend working at JP Morgan in New York that DEI is becoming a problem and that anti-DEI people are arguing that it takes away the hire from people who deserve it and at the expense of meritocracy.

“I personally have seen that there are so many companies that don’t even have an inclusion program to hire a person with special needs. So we are witnessing a troubling trend,” added the mother of a son with autism.

Davila also said that the Philippines ranks high in the gender equality index. According to the 2025 Gender Gap Index by the World Economic Forum, the Philippines already climbed five spots to the 20th place out of 148 countries. However, when it comes to C-suite posts, there are still more men holding the CEO, CFO, COO posts in a majority of listed companies.

“In the Philippines, we still have all-male gender boards,” she said.

Without DEI, personal biases will be reinforced, according to Davila.

“We all have blinded biases. We have stereotypes in our minds. The formation of DEI as a policy in companies is to strip you of these biases,” she said.

Citing UN Women videos showing cases of pervasive gender and racial discrimination, Davila said silence to the issue can cause the undoing of DEI progress.

“By removing the DEI and by you in this room being complicit to say it’s okay, it’s annoying, believe me when I tell you, you are moving inches back into hell,” Davila warned. “If you don’t speak up, you will be part of the problem. Diversity, equity, and inclusion is not the problem. Resist going back to the old ways because the women in this room, you will be the price.”

To advance gender parity, Davila asked companies to adopt the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs). Several companies in the Philippines have already signed the WEPs which consist of establishing high-level corporate leadership for gender equality; treating women and men fairly at work; respecting and supporting human rights and non-discrimination; ensuring health, safety, and well-being for all women, men, and all LGBTQ plus workers; promoting education, training, and professional development for women; promoting equality through community initiatives and advocacy; and measuring and publicly reporting on this progress.

“We will go to your office and we will help you. We will help you implement this in a systemic manner,” she said.

Davila cited the benefits of DEI: improved performance, creativity and innovation. The 2022 report by UN Women shows that there are more job opportunities, more inclusive workplaces considering women’s specific needs.

She said, “McKinsey and company came out with a report that if you keep DEI in your offices, there is improved financial performance. There’s increased innovation and creativity, 45 percent more revenues from innovation compared to companies with less DEI. More employee engagement. They feel safer. They feel that the company is their home. You strengthen the brand reputation and the market reach of your own company.”

“Diversity is the essence of humanity. We have to recognize that we are all different and that such difference would enrich our collective effort to have a meaningful life. Equity ensures fairness, providing everyone with the same opportunities. Inclusion embraces values of all individuals,” she stressed.

Rising together

Meanwhile, Senator Risa Hontiveros, who spoke on the opening day of the conference, shared Davila’s observation that some people view DEI as preferential treatment.

The chair of the Senate committee on Women, Children and Gender Equality debunked the misconception, defending DEI as “ensuring that equal rights and opportunities are recognized for all.”

“Progress and prosperity must be experienced by all, not just those who happen to have more in life,” the senator said, “When we rise, we must do it together. No one should be left behind.”

Like Davila, Hontiveros thanked LCF members and the private sector for continuing to uphold DEI.

“Through DEI policies that you have implemented in your workplaces, you ensure that your employees are included in whatever leaps your companies take. They leap with you, and their families leap with them with you.”

The author of the Expanded Maternity Leave Law and the Expanded Solo Parents Welfare Act rallied CSR leaders at the event to continue championing DEI.

“The private sector, you, remain a strong driving force for positive change in our society. I’m certain that through your sharing today and tomorrow and the following day of ideas and best practices on DEI policies, you will be able to pave a path towards inclusive progress,” Hontiveros said.

For his part, LCF chairman and Vivant Foundation executive director Shem Garcia admitted that there are still many more steps to take towards true equity despite what is being done by the organization’s members for DEI with different groups.

“We advocate for those we care about and those we love, but we have to remember in that advocacy that there are other groups that we might not have experienced in our day-to-day lives, and they deserve to be a part of this economy, to be a part of this society, and to be part of diversity, equity, and inclusion,” Garcia said, referring to indigenous peoples and persons with disability.

Garcia encouraged LCF members to continue learning and working with one another, particularly organizations that have projects benefitting communities or sectors that they may not be working with yet.