Theme: Bold, Creative Ideas

BOLD and CREATIVE ideas are ideas that change the world. Our purpose is to bring you a collection of those ideas. Join us at the upcoming TEDxYouth@TheWoodlands event on September 17th, 2016, and be inspired to solve problems, innovate, and learn new things. This event welcomes both youths and adults, and speakers will be both youths and adults.

Music Hall, Lone Star College - Montgomery
3200 College Park Drive
The Woodlands, Texas, 77384
United States

Ajitha Anand

Student

Ajitha is an aspiring leader and bubbling science enthusiast. When she is not volunteering at the hospital or with LEO Club, she is working on her Science Fair Project which she does with her partner, Nandika Nair. Titled “The Miracle Pill”, the project is dedicated to creating an Oral Insulin Pill. This project is now undergoing its third year in the making, and has received recognition such as the John M. DiLirio award for “Out of the Box Thinking”, “The Most Creative” at Exxon Mobil’s State Science Fair, and has consecutively placed first at multiple different district and regional level expos. Now joining with Sreshta Margan, the trio is currently undergoing the patent process, and hope to share their pill with the world one day.

Andrew Yu

Student

Andrew Yu is in the Class of 2019 at The Academy of Science and Technology at College Park High School. He is actively involved in Orchestra, Boy Scouts, Science Fair, Destination Imagination, Mu Alpha Theta, National Chinese Honor Society, DECA, and the Student Union. He has been the Senior Patrol Leader of his troop for the 2015-2016 Fall Term, qualified for the 2016 International Career Development Conference, and placed first in the 2016 ExxonMobil Texas State Science and Engineering Fair. In his free time, he reads and practices violin. As an ex-debater, Andrew met many people with unique stories to share. For the sake of helping them share their narratives with the world, he joined the TEDxYouth@TheWoodlands 2016 conference.

Annanya Chaturvedi

Student

Annanya Chaturvedi is in the class of 2017 in the Academy of Science and Health Professions at Conroe High School. She is an officer in various clubs around her school such as the TROIKA, the creative writing club, and Interact, a community service club. After graduation, Annanya plans to major in psychology and education and enter the field of education design. Her talk for TEDxYouth@TheWoodlands aligns with those goals, and she hopes to aid in similar endeavors in the future.

Danielle D'Aguilar

Student

Danielle D’Aguilar is an undergraduate at the University of Texas in Austin triple majoring in Islamic Studies, Plan II Honors, and South Asian Languages and Cultures through the Hindi Urdu Flagship. She also has a minor in French and is seeking a certificate in Conflict Resolution and Peace Studies. When she’s not in class, Danielle often volunteers or interns with non-profits who support refugees or women’s empowerment. Most recently, she’s been involved with The Pangea Network, based in the Woodlands, and Interfaith Action of Central Texas, based in Austin. After her undergraduate studies she plans to go to law school for international human rights law. Her creative outlet and source of fun and exercise is dancing with UT’s nationally competing Bollywood fusion dance team, Saaya.

Dorothy Ombajo

Pangea Network County Director

Dorothy Ombajo is a human rights attorney who leads all Kenyan Country Operations working with Pangea Network. She began working with Pangea in 2007 and has served as County Director since 2009. As head of the field office in Kenya, Dorothy’s primary role is to oversee and provide education, training and structural support to our cooperatives. With more than a decade of field experience, Dorothy is a gifted trainer and mentor who continues to spread joy alongside the women and children of The Pangea Network.

Elizabeth Turner

Entrepreneur

Beth Turner is a 28-year-old science, development, music and mountain enthusiast with a heart for innovation and change. An MIT engineer by trade, Beth’s focus in school was split between her love for astronomy, studying rare earth elements and the supply effects on US energy independence and the global ‘green’ tech revolution. She has worked for startups in Israel and NYC and has been to over 60 countries, 6 continents, and has climbed some of the highest mountains in the world. Along with working for NASA, being a Siemens Westinghouse Scholar and the youngest person to ever record an asteroid occultation, Beth has traveled with polar explorer Robert Swan to Antarctica to raise awareness for the continent’s growing environmental threats. Beth is also a musician and has performed with the Houston Grand Opera, appears on a CD with Albany records, and has sung the national anthem for the NBA, WMBA and NFL teams as well as the Houston Rodeo. Beth and her husband currently reside in NYC where she manages a private consulting firm and works with the non-profit The Pangea Network, which focuses on empowering women and youth in Kenya and the USA. In her spare time, you can find her writing, doing yoga, climbing, or working on coding.

Emily Barrera

Student

Emily Barrera is in the class of 2017 for both Conroe High School and Lone Star College. Emily is currently in Conroe High School’s National Honor Society, Student Council, and Mu Alpha Theta program. She is also a varsity violist. In her spare time, Emily writes short stories and practices her instrument. She joined TEDxYouth@TheWoodlands because she loves the idea of working with other brilliant minds to produce an event that shares with the community the remarkable ideas nearby. Emily embraces this opportunity to expand her horizons and participate in something which she have never done before.

Gabriel Poveda

Student

Gabriel Poveda is a student at The Woodlands High School, where he is part of the school’s debate team as well as a member of the Ann Marie Hopkins Art Alliance. His interest in the environment started at a young age, when he first saw Al Gore’s documentary An Inconvenient Truth. Since then, he was inspired to learn and increase awareness about the environment. The son of Colombian immigrants, Gabriel’s parents encourage him to learn about different perspectives through education, and he firmly believes that climate change will be the defining issue of the century. He was recently accepted into the Climate Reality Project headed by Al Gore.

Hannah Meiseles

Student

Hannah Meiseles is in the class of 2017 at The Academy of Science and Technology at College Park High School, where she is involved in DECA, Interact Rotary Club, National Honor Society, and Science Fair. She has received international awards from the Intel ISEF and the American Chemical Society for her work in chemical energy. In the future, Hannah hopes to pursue a degree in biochemistry and join in the world of innovative biotech companies. Hannah first became interested in TEDx after watching TED videos online, leaving her thrilled to this year be finally able to give a speech of her own.

Kae Roemershauser

Student

With a charismatic and peppy personality, Kae loves to speak in front of large groups and share ideas with the world. In the class of 2017 at The Woodlands High School, she has been elected as both TWHS Band President and TWHS Science National Honor Society President, bringing together her two biggest passions of music and science. Kae plans on studying Physics, with an emphasis on Astrophysics, and bringing her skill of leadership and passion for physics into the science community.

Kelly Zhou

Student

Kelly Zhou is in the Class of 2019 at The Academy of Science and Technology at College Park High School. She is actively involved in Orchestra, Interact, Science Fair, Destination Imagination, Mu Alpha Theta, National Chinese Honor Society, DECA, and Science Bowl. Kelly has also had experience in FIRST Robotics and the Engineering Design Competition. In her free time, she enjoys playing the violin and piano as well as spending time with friends and family. Kelly has a strong interest in the medical field and business/finance, hoping to pursue a career in either field while continuing her hobbies in music and visual arts.

Megan Alam

Student

Megan Alam is in the Class of 2017 at The Academy of Science and Technology at The Woodlands College Park High School. She is particularly interested in the medical field including research, education and nutrition. Megan recently won Grand Award at the Science and Engineering Fair at Houston (SEFH), Bronze Award at the International Sustainable World Project Olympiad in Energy, Engineering and Environment (I-SWEEEP), and was a finalist at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in Translational Medical Science. Megan has volunteered in her local hospital’s ER, completed a medical mentorship in Neurology/Neurosurgery, and spent the past summer conducting research at the University of Texas, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center at the Medical Center in Houston. In scouting since elementary school, Megan is currently an Ambassador and was just awarded her Gold, the highest achievement in Girl Scouts of the USA. An active member of her high school community, Megan was selected as a trumpet Section Leader in marching band for the past two years, is active in National Honor Society and DECA, and is a science fair judge as well as panelist who has been invited to present her research to younger students and local community leaders. She plans on pursuing a Biology degree and, ultimately, giving back through Doctors Without Borders.

Michael Du

Student

Michael Du is in the class of 2017 at Cypress Falls High School, where he is a leader in in Science Olympiad, National Honor Society, and Computer Club. Michael’s passion for science extends beyond his classroom education. In Science Olympiad, Michael is a team captain and has won medals at the district, regional, and state levels. After eight months of research, Michael was invited to speak at the Texas Junior Science and Humanities Symposium and Texas Children’s Cancer and Hematology Research Symposium. Michael’s research project also placed first at the Houston Science and Engineering Fair and was a finalist at the Texas Science and Engineering Fair. Finally, he was published in Nature Scientific Reports as the first author. He is also a contributing author to another publication in New Investigational Drugs in Springer Journals. In addition to his love for science, Michael has played baseball player for over 8 years, leading his team in On-Base Percentage freshman and sophomore year. In college, he plans on continuing research and entering the medical field.

Nandika Nair

Student

As an active member of her high school community, Nandika can be found on the tennis court as a key player on her school’s Varsity Team, spending countless hours volunteering with INTERACT, practicing for Math UIL, or working on her Science Fair Project with her partner Ajitha Anand. Their award-winning project has been applauded and recognized by many members of the local scientific community.

Nivedhitha (Nila) Selvaraj

Student

An avid reader, Nila especially loves science fiction and fantasy stories. Her diverse interests include computer science, learning languages, and Hamilton (the musical). She has been a student of Bharathnatyam dance since age five, performing in temples and culture festivals. With over seven years of yearbook experience, she leads the TWHS Yearbook Staff as Editor-in-Chief as well as being President of Sociedad Honoraria Hispanica, Robotics Media Captain, and Mu Alpha Theta Treasurer. Nila regularly competes in UIL events for computer science, social studies, and spelling. She was a 2016 NASA High School Aerospace Scholar. Outside of school, she devotes time to community service, especially in the field of education.

Oliver Camargo

Entrepreneur

Oliver Camargo is Co-founder and CEO at WePlann.com, a venture capital funded startup disrupting the Latin American travel space. In a prior life, Oliver spent seven years as a turnaround & restructuring consultant working in the United States, United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Colombia and Mexico. Mr. Camargo has an Economics degree from The University of Texas at Austin and an MBA from ESADE Business School. An American national, Mr. Camargo is fluent in English and Spanish. After nine years in Barcelona, Oliver moved to San Francisco as part of WePlann being chosen in Batch 7 of 500 startups, a premier accelerator in Mountain View, California. Oliver, a proud father of one son, hopes to dedicate himself to working with underprivileged children in his parents’ homeland: Colombia.