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Jasmine Curtis-Smith draws from her mother’s story to show how one woman’s choices can widen another girl’s future
Long before girls are asked what they want to become, some have already heard what they should not be.
For actress and World Vision ambassador Jasmine Curtis-Smith, those messages do not always come as outright discouragement
They can be as ordinary as being told to let a brother handle something or hearing that a certain job is not for women.
“Before a girl learns what she wants, she learns what the world expects of her,” Jasmine said during World Vision Philippines’ #GirlsCan event at Gateway Mall 1 in Quezon City on Aug. 22.
The event marked the eighth year of the organization’s Girls Can campaign, which promotes opportunities for girls to learn, lead and pursue their goals.
World Vision Philippines’ #GirlsCan event brings together youth ambassadors, pageant titleholders, artists and child-rights advocates in a discussion on giving girls room to learn, lead and dream
Jasmine said repeated expectations can eventually affect how girls see themselves.
“Sometimes, no one actually tells us, ‘You can’t do that.’ But a girl can still hear a thousand messages about what she should be and who she should be,” she said.
Over time, she said, those messages can turn into self-doubt and make girls narrow their choices before they have fully explored them.
Jasmine traced part of her own outlook to her mother, who grew up in Bolinao, Pangasinan, and began working early to help support her siblings. Her mother did not finish high school at the time and had to set aside some of her own plans.
Later in life, however, she returned to school, worked as a nurse aide and eventually established her own agency.
“My mother’s choices expanded my life,” Jasmine said.
Watching her mother start again showed Jasmine and her sister that the paths available to women did not have to end with what was expected of them.
World Vision ambassadors discuss how support at home, in school and in communities helps girls imagine more for themselves
“One woman’s freedom changes the next girl’s starting point,” she said.
Binibining Pilipinas International 2026 Gwendoline Meliz Soriano offered another side of that experience. Growing up, she imagined becoming a news reporter, theater actress, film director and even a police officer.
“I believed in myself because I had people around me who believed in me first,” Gwendoline said.
She credited her family, education, mentors, community and life experiences with giving her room to explore what she could do.
“When I was a little girl, I didn’t know what the future would look like. I simply needed the space to imagine one,” she said.
Binibining Pilipinas 2026 first runner-up Julianne Raine Antonio, meanwhile, spoke about a different barrier — the doubt that can come from comparing oneself with others.
Recalling her first pageant, Julianne said she repeatedly questioned whether she was good enough to be there. She eventually reconsidered what strength meant to her.
“I don’t have to become stronger by being harder on myself. I can become stronger by being kinder,” she said.
For musician and World Vision ambassador Quest, creating that room for girls also involves the people around them. He urged men to respect women and help protect spaces where they can participate without being diminished.
“Most of these women don’t need us in order to thrive. They can thrive on their own,” Quest said. “We just need to give them space and respect the space they have.”
The messages shared at #GirlsCan point to a simple gap: girls may be encouraged to dream, but what they hear at home, in school and from the people around them can shape how far they allow those dreams to go.
— Jasper Valdez
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Credit belongs to: www.manilastandard.net
