Jury

2025 ADFEST LOTUS LEGEND Merlee has dedicated her life to pushing creativity forward. She is the Chairmom and founder of The Misfits Camp, the first-ever safe space in the world to assess and upskill neurodivergent and deaf creative adults, and bridge them into the creative industry.And just this year, she founded Jayme Headquarters (JHQ), a social enterprise creative agency that provides actual workplace experience for divergent creatives. Before this, she was Dentsu McGarryBowen Global co-president and led Dentsu International APAC as Chief Creative Officer to greater heights by winning the Adfest Network of the Year 2020 and 2022, Spikes Network of the Year 2021, Cannes Lions Regional Network of the Year 2021, and AD STARS Network of the Year 2021.Her work pushes Insights and innovation and inspires creative collaboration.Having received major awards, including the Philippines’ only Cannes Lions Grand Prix, she was one of the eight women in the world’s top 100 Chief Creative Officers according to the 2019 Drum Global Ranking.The first Filipino to be named Creative of the Year in Southeast Asia by Campaign Asia, she was also recognized with the first Tambuli Asia & Pacific Agency Leader of the Year 2025, The 4As of the Philippines Lifetime Achievement Awardee in 2023, the Hall of Fame Award by the 4As Creative Guild, The New York Festivals Creative Achievement Award, and the CEO of the Year by the International Association of Business Communicators, the Asian Marketing Federation Woman Marketer of the Year 2019, and the Campaign Asia’s Women Leading Change of the year 2025, and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Champion 2024 and 2025.Merlee is one of CNN’s Leading Women, the author/illustrator of best-selling creative books, the mom of four creative women, and an inspiration for breaking the glass ceiling in this mad men’s world.