MANILA – Miss Australia Nina Robertson revealed during the coronation night of the Miss Earth 2017 pageant on Saturday that she is half-Filipino.

Before giving her answer in the competition’s final Q&A segment, Robertson was asked how she finds the Philippines so far.

To the audience’s surprise, the 20-year-old beauty queen said: “I am actually half Filipino so for me, this is like my second home. It is so lovely to be here but I am very proud to be representing Australia. Whichever country I am representing, I am just happy to be doing what we are doing here--advocating the conservation of the Mother Earth.”

In an interview with ABS-CBN News, Robertson shared that her mother hails from Nueva Ecija.

According to her profile on the official Miss Earth website, Robertson is the youngest of three children and is constantly surrounded by her big family especially from her mother’s side.

“Living all in the same area means we all grew up spending lots of time together, celebrating special events with lots of food. Another thing that my family taught me was to appreciate all the opportunities I had growing up in a developed country compared to their upbringings in the Philippines,” her bio said.

Robertson also shared in her profile that she and her family frequently visit the Philippines “and make sure to take part in actions to give back to the unfortunate.”

After the coronation, Robertson won the Miss Earth Air 2017 crown.

“I am so excited for all the activities for the year but even after that, we are still going to continue doing what we are doing here at Miss Earth,” she said.

The Philippines’ Karen Ibasco won the Miss Earth 2017 title.