Last year, everything felt girl-coded—girl dinner, girl math, TikToks romanticizing female friendships set to "What Was I Made For?" from the Barbie soundtrack.
But beyond the trends and nostalgia, what does girlhood really mean, especially for Filipinas? What are the moments—joyful, scary, empowering, heartbreaking—that algorithms and fleeting fads don't capture? That's exactly what we explored all Women's Month long through conversations with our Women of Influence 2025 awardees.
And to keep the conversation going, we brought it IRL at the Women of Influence 2025 Recognition Dinner through the first-ever live version of Cosmo Convos With Ida, hosted by our Chief Editor, Ida Aldana. Alongside Janeena Chan, Ida asked key members of the audience about the defining moments of their own girlhood, sparking an inspiring and heartfelt discussion that felt just like a late-night heart-to-heart with your best girls.
READ MORE: This Is Girlhood: Meet The Cosmopolitan Philippines Women Of Influence Awardees Of 2025
The Highlights Of Cosmo Convos With Ida, Live At The Women Of Influence Recognition Dinner
Janine Gutierrez, Women Of Influence 2025 Headliner And The Creative Catalyst
Ida: What does it mean to you to be a Women of Influence awardee, especially as this year's headliner and The Creative Catalyst?
Janine: Oh my gosh, I just wanna say, hindi ko talaga alam kung bakit ako yung naging part ng Women of Influence, to the point that I really waited for the article to come out. I wonder why? Pero I think this is something I manifested, because I always dreamed of being a Cosmo Girl. Kasi siyempre we all grew up, 'di ba, seeing Cosmo, seeing all these women on the cover. There's so much I learned from Cosmo, even as a young girl, to high school, to today.
And I guess, what it means din, to connect it back to being a Woman of Influence—all these, past women who have been featured on Cosmo, they share their life and their experiences. But also: Their heartbreaks, their failures, and that's something that's been influential to me, and I guess, to all the other leaders of Cosmo. Being a woman is sharing all the facets of yourself, even probably the things that kind of have broken you, but in the end, really shape you to become who you are.
ALSO READ: Janine Gutierrez's Women Of Influence Speech Will Make You Rethink The Power of Your Choices
KD Dizon, Vice President and Head of Globe Business
Ida: As a woman leading Globe Business, how are you using digital innovation to empower Filipino businesses, and specifically, to create opportunities for women in business?
KD: I love the powerful and beautiful ladies here tonight. Digital innovation is actually really fundamental to progress. So we at Globe Business, we really, really believe in driving digital innovation and really promoting access. It's access to technology, to empower the businesses, and therefore it contributes to a much more inclusive society. So I guess for women in business, what this means is it's really unlocking new opportunities, and it also drives economic empowerment.
Women especially, we know the challenges of balancing all our responsibilities and the time constraints. And so, digital solutions such as Cloud-based collaboration, AI-powered solutions—these actually enable businesses to reclaim valuable time that you lose with a lot of manual operations, etc., and having targeted literacy programs actually fosters knowledge [and] confidence for women, and it makes a very equitable digital landscape. So I guess what's really important is to level the playing field, and as we do that, we empower women all over, to be able to lead, to innovate, and to contribute to a stronger economy for all of us.
AK Koteh, Brand Manager at Rexona
Ida: What are the two seemingly opposite traits that help you feel more confident in yourself in your community of girls?
AK: For Rexona, we just came out with our newest campaign called Sweet and Savage Vitamin + Bright, which are our new products. I think we really wanted to make it about the duality [of] every girl, that you can be more than just one thing, even if sometimes those things seem opposite. Things like, your fierce side, but also sometimes [you'd] be like a demure girly. But overall just fall into your "sweet and savage"—whatever you want to be, we empower you with the confidence to be that kind of girl.
Myrza Sison, Cosmopolitan Philippines' Former Editor-in-Chief
Ida: As the first-ever Cosmo EIC, how has girlhood shaped Cosmopolitan Philippines, and are there any nostalgic moments you'd love to share with us?
Myrza: Girlhood was at the heart of Cosmo Philippines when we launched it in 1997. How many of you were born already? Many? Not yet? Remember that Cosmo was your mom's magazine, so Cosmo Girl din 'yung mom ninyo!
When we created Cosmo, we weren't just creating a magazine, we were actually building a safe space for young Filipinas [to] explore who they were, what they wanted to do in their life. They wanted to feel seen and empowered, whether it was through tackling taboo topics that you just whispered about with your friends.
Kasi nung time ng mom niyo, "whispered" talaga, wala pang Internet—giving advice on love, life, celebrating authenticity and female ambition. So our loyal readers are called Cosmo Girls, they wrote letters—anybody know what letters are? [laughs] They said that the pages of Cosmo—anybody know what pages are? [laughs] Anybody know what a magazine is?
So, they said that reading the pages felt like having conversations with your best friend. They were called the Cosmo Girls; they found a sense of community and belonging among fellow Cosmo Girls who they may not have met, but they felt, like, a sense of camaraderie and community
So some people asked, "Why do you call them Cosmo Girls? They're women, not girls." Nothing quite encapsulates that adventurous, fun, and fearless spirit like the word "girl." That's girlhood. That's the magic of girlhood that we celebrated then, and it's something I still carry with me today. And it's something that I feel very much the presence of in the room tonight. So congratulations, happy Women's Month everyone, and happy 28th birthday, soon, to Cosmo Philippines.
Dr. Issa Matibag, OB-GYN and Reproductive and sexual health content creator
Ida: Since we're already talking about Cosmo's rich history of embracing womanhood—including the spicy side of it—and since we’re getting deeper into the night, let's move on to a sexy question from our friends at EZ by Trust.
This one's for our Taboo Breaker awardee, Dr. Issa Matibag. How can we as empowered women empower other women in breaking the taboos surrounding female sexuality?
Dr. Issa: The way we can empower women is to provide a safe space for them to be able to talk about these topics. Because just as what you [Myrza Sison] mentioned, right—before, we have to whisper about these things, we have to keep it a secret, it's not very welcome to talk about these topics. But now, we are more empowered to do so because other people support us when we talk, and we educate other people or women about these topics.
ALSO READ: Dr. Issa Matibag Is Creating A Safe Space For Sex Talk As The Women Of Influence 2025 Taboo Breaker
Notes On Girlhood
At the Women of Influence 2025 Recognition Dinner, girlhood wasn't just a buzzword—it was a conversation, a connection, and a celebration. From Janine manifesting her Cosmo Girl moment to Dr. Issa championing open conversations on female sexuality, the night was filled with stories that felt raw, real, and revolutionary.
And if there's anything we took away from Cosmo Convos With Ida, it's that the best conversations about womanhood are the ones we keep having.
