It is with immense pride and pleasure that I welcome you to the first print edition of Bridges Magazine, focused on the Philippines. This issue marks a significant milestone; not only for Bridges but also for our ongoing commitment to fostering meaningful connections and celebrating global partnerships.
The relationship between the Philippines and Japan stands out as a fascinating example of cross-border collaboration.
Since 2002, I have had the privilege of developing a close working relationship with The Japan Times, Japan’s oldest and most-renowned English-language newspaper. Through this partnership, we have produced influential business reports focused on bilateral relationships, cultural exchanges and economic synergies. Our high-quality content has contributed to the development of closer cross-border economic ties.
This inaugural Bridges issue is an extension of the 2024 Philippines Report published in The Japan Times on July 22, 2024. The report featured an exclusive message from Philippine President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., reflecting on the enduring partnership between Japan and the Philippines. We are honored to republish his words in this edition; words which strongly resonate with our theme: the power of collaboration.
This issue includes some of the most popular content from the 2024 Philippines Report, translated into the Japanese language, enabling us to better connect with our wider Japanese audience.
As we celebrate the launch of our first print edition of Bridges, we want to reflect on how this journey began. With a rich history; The Japan Times has a legacy dating back to its first edition in 1897 during Japan’s Meiji Restoration. This period marked Japan’s reopening to the world, and today, Bridges embodies that same spirit of openness and collaboration.
This first edition contains a short timeline of The Japan Times. In addition, we’ve included a retrospective on one of our earliest bilateral business reports, published in 2004 while Franz Fricke, our Editor-in-Chief, and I were working with World Eye Reports — a pioneering company focused on bilateral business reports and established by Gina Albert.
We are continuing this legacy of producing successful publications with the magazine you have in your hands: Bridges.
That report, also published in The Japan Times, highlighted the deep historical and economic ties between Japan and one of its closest trading partners in East Asia.
Synergy Media Specialists Ltd, which Franz and I founded in 2011, established partnerships and collaborations with leading publications such as The Business Times (Singapore), South China Morning Post (Hong Kong, China), and Foreign Policy (Washington, D.C.). We are continuing this legacy of producing successful publications with the magazine you have in your hands: Bridges.
While Bridges has thrived as a digital magazine since 2021, this print edition represents a new chapter in our journey: one in which we seek to carve out a unique niche, focusing on collaboration across cultural, educational and economic spheres. Our mission is to uncover the fascinating stories that emerge from the confluence of cultures and our shared human values – stories that inspire us to build bridges.
I invite you to join us on this journey. Together, we will continue to explore and celebrate the connections that unite us, one story at a time.
Phil Demack
