The Student Publications Unit (SPU), which oversees the College’s official student publications, the Benildean Press Corps (BPC) and Ad Astra, earned another international recognition after one of its student journalists received a Special Award at the Young Stars Marketing, Advertising, and Digital (MAD) Competition 2026 held on Aug. 28 in Busan, South Korea.
Representing De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) as an individual competitor under Team 7 and bearing the competition name Lone Star, Business Administration Major in Human Resource Management (BSBA-HRM) student and BPC News Editor Mikaela Amira Barrosa received the Young Stars MAD Chairperson’s Special Award for her entry, “My Tiny Ocean.”
Held from Aug. 25 to 28 at SIGNIEL Busan, the Young Stars MAD Competition is an international marketing and advertising competition for college students that aims to discover and challenge emerging creatives to develop innovative and actionable solutions to a global brief.
The 2026 edition brought together 93 college students from 10 countries, with participants given 30 hours to develop and submit their campaigns after the brief was revealed on-site. Entries were then evaluated by professionals from the global creative industry, with Mr. Chow Kok Keong, Creative Partner at Atomiq, serving as the Young Stars Executive Jury, while finalists were also given opportunities to network with members of the international jury.
In an interview with The Benildean, Barrosa discussed how she translated the brief into “My Tiny Ocean” and developed the concept within the competition period. The 2026 brief challenged participants to raise awareness of marine environmental pollution and encourage people to take action by identifying one small thing an individual could do.
For Barrosa, her “My Tiny Ocean” sought to make caring for the ocean more personal by showing how seemingly small actions could contribute to a larger solution.
“My idea for the proposal was that the ocean is vast, which is why for many people it can be hard to connect to,” Barrosa said. “I wanted for us to get rid of that mindset, so the idea is to make caring for the ocean personal to each and every one of us.”
Drawing inspiration from character mascots, keychain trends, and virtual pets such as Tamagotchi, “My Tiny Ocean” transforms plastic bottles collected through cleanup drives into character keychains. Participants also received personalized digital marine characters with habitats they maintained through ocean-saving actions in their daily lives.
Barrosa’s Special Award adds another international achievement to SPU’s growing presence in the Young Stars MAD Competition. In 2025, BPC student journalists Claire Denise Chua and Yohanna Elyse Mendoza received a Crystal Award for their campaign “Smoke and Mirrors.” The recognition marked the return of a Filipino entry to the Young Stars winner’s roster since 2021. Barrosa’s Special Award adds to the growing body of work produced by Benildean students on the international stage.
Reflecting on her experience in Busan, she shared that the recognition was especially meaningful as it marked her final competition during her College years. As a solo participant with a business and journalism background, she viewed her interdisciplinary experience as a strength rather than a disadvantage.
“I used those [skills] as my unique strength to give a different perspective to the problem,” she said. “I am really happy, and I believe that this [award] is proof that we Benildeans have a lot to showcase on the global stage.”
The Young Stars MAD Competition 2026 awarded the following 11 entries:
Gold: “One More Wear For The Ocean” – Jeonghwan Lee (Yosei University) and Eunseok Kim (Dankook University)
Silver: “SAVE THE SEAMEN” – Sunghun Kim and Daeun Kim (Hongkik University)
Bronze: “RAISE AN OCEAN” – Dan Yao and Siyi Zhou (Beijing Normal-Hong Kong Baptist University)
Crystal: “Correct the word, correct the bin” – Ha Vy Nguyen and Chi Mai Nguyen (Macquarie University)
Crystal: “Be a Fan of the Ocean” – Hyeyoon Hong and Eunbyul Kwon (Keimyung University)
Crystal: “NAPKIN FISH” – Chanjoo Park and Gyeongwon Park (Hallym University)
Special: “My Tiny Ocean” – Mikaela Amira Barrosa (De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde)
Special: “Bill from the Ocean” – Valentino Matthew Daniel Hutabarat and Salma Nur Faizah (Institut Teknologi Bandung)
Special: “ITA bottle” – Hannah Hsiao and Hannah Ng (Fu Jen Catholic University)
Special: “Welcome to Real Ocean” – Rinto Kubo and Yamato Dowaki (Kansai Gaidai University)
Special: “Ocean Matters” – Uizen Tenuun and Tsevelmaa Jargal (University of Finance and Economics)
The Young Stars MAD Competition is set return to Busan for its 2027 iteration from Aug. 25 to 28, 2027, continuing its platform for student creatives to develop campaigns in response to global issues and connect with professionals in the international creative industry.
With another Benildean entry now among its recognized works, the competition leaves room for future student creatives to carry the College’s name beyond campus and into the global creative scene.
