Hello! My name is Alyanna. I am a writer, journalist, and researcher based in Toronto, Canada. I am originally from Manila, Philippines.

I am a 2023 ✨ graduate ✨ of the University of Toronto, where I finished at the top of both my areas of study: socio-cultural anthropology and human geography. I also won multiple prestigious university-wide and national awards, one of which you can read about here. 

I got my start in journalism at my student newspaper, The Varsity, where I served as news bureau chief and associate features editor. I wrote over 50 articles and covered university politics, and governance, international students, and food insecurity, among many others, during my tenure there. I also edited, copyedited, and fact-checked articles for the publication.

Now, I work as an assistant editor at Maclean’s, where I manage the print magazine’s back-of-book section and edit web articles.

In terms of my writing, I love weaving lived experiences with context and data. I possess an eye for nuance and write with a strong narrative voice. Ultimately, I aim to tell moving and intelligent stories that expose the human condition and hold power to account. 

Outside of work, I love to read books — mostly classics, literary fiction, historical fiction, and literary journalism (I will forever recommend the work of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Kazuo Ishiguro, and Jane Austen, just to name a few!). I also watch movies, take care of my plants, and explore Toronto’s exciting food scene with friends and loved ones.