In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized (subject to certain rules and regulations).

TEDxTaipeiAmericanSchool
No. 800 Zhongshan N. Rd. Sec. 6 Shihlin District, Taipei City 111
Taipei, Taipei, 11151
Taiwan

Andy Xu

Originally from Corning, New York, Andy Xu has had the opportunity of living in two distinctly different places: a small town with just one supermarket to a bustling metropolis full of everyone and everything. Now a sophomore at Taipei American School, Andy is grateful for all the vast opportunities offered, with participation Originally from Corning, New York, Andy Xu has had the opportunity of living in two distinctly different places: a small town with just one supermarket to a bustling metropolis full of everyone and everything. Now a sophomore at Taipei American School, Andy is grateful for all the vast opportunities offered, with participation in Cross Country, MUN and Debate, as well as Jazz Band. While humbled by the kind community present at the school, he reflects on his challenge with Tourette’s Syndrome throughout his time in Taiwan and the United States. Through his revealing, and often humorous anecdotes, he hopes to not only spread his message but to also provide the audience with an enjoying time. In the end, he hopes that such message can be a positive and one of perseverance, including the need to accept others regardless of who they are or how they act.Originally from Corning, New York, Andy Xu has had the opportunity of living in two distinctly different places: a small town with just one supermarket to a bustling metropolis full of everyone and everything. Now a sophomore at Taipei American School, Andy is grateful for all the vast opportunities offered, with participation in Cross Country, MUN and Debate, as well as Jazz Band. While humbled by the kind community present at the school, he reflects on his challenge with Tourette’s Syndrome throughout his time in Taiwan and the United States. Through his revealing, and often humorous anecdotes, he hopes to not only spread his message but to also provide the audience with an enjoying time. In the end, he hopes that such message can be a positive and one of perseverance, including the need to accept others regardless of who they are or how they act.in Cross Country, MUN and Debate, as well as Jazz Band. While humbled by the kind community present at the school, he reflects on his challenge with Tourette’s Syndrome throughout his time in Taiwan and the United States. Through his revealing, and often humorous anecdotes, he hopes to not only spread his message but to also provide the audience with an enjoying time. In the end, he hopes that such message can be a positive and one of perseverance, including the need to accept others regardless of who they are or how they act.

Carly Bargiel

Carly Bargiel is a lower school PE teacher who has been working at TAS for five years. Carly values physical freedom and wellness. She can been found around campus coaching, laughing, dancing, and creating positive movement experiences for all. Has anyone ever told you to “look on the bright side” or to “see the cup as half full”? Chances are that the person who made these comments is a positive person. Even if positive thinking does not come naturally to you, there are plenty of ways you can start implementing it to increase your positive to negative ratio. During this talk we will discover that positivity is like a muscle and you will leave with many exercises to strengthen it.

Dhirpal Shah

Dhirpal Shah is a sophomore at Taipei American School. He has been at Taipei American School for only three years, but has lived in Taiwan for the majority of his life. During his three years at TAS, he has been a part of the athletics program, MUN, the dance production, and more. He has experienced stereotypes all around him not only at TAS, but also throughout the course of his childhood in Taiwan. But, he emphasizes that stereotypes should exist, for no one would seem exceptional and unique without these stereotypes. In addition, he recognizes that stereotypes are relevant for a reason - there are in fact seen quite often in the groups of people that the stereotypes are targeted towards. Dhirpal hopes that when people listen to his talk, that they will understand a more realistic view of the world and understand that judgemental ideas will always continue to be a part of culture. However, he hopes that people will learn how to be unique in their own way.

Luke Walker

Luke Walker teaches students at Taipei American School as a member of the Upper School History and Social Studies Department. He is a self-proclaimed and proud “history nerd”. Luke has an authentic passion for history and strives to instill a similar love for the subject in his students. He believes that history is so much more than a collection of stories, dates, and trivial facts about dead people. He believes that history is a debate about the past—one that challenges us to embrace an essential critical habit of mind when considering our place in the world.

Melissa Chang

Melissa Chang is a senior at TAS who participates in dance and MUN and is passionate about electrical engineering. Having grown up in Northern California, her childhood was imbued with Silicon Valley legends like Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. As a kid, Melissa played with her dad’s old computers, she took them apart and played with the PCB boards - pretending that they were tiny cities. These little experiences fostered her love for math and science and encouraged her to explore more subjects related to electronics. Melissa then interned at tech startup, Tomofun, where configured and soldered for the RD team. She’s really excited to share her perspective on optoelectronics — the field that intersects light and electricity - and what it means for the next generation of computers.

Rachel Hsu

Rachel Hsu is a junior at Taipei American School who enjoys dance and writing, among other things. Since August, she has been running her website, Graphic Prosetry, where she uploads prose, poetry, and graphic fiction pieces. She accepts topic requests on Facebook for her biweekly academic comic segment, which she hopes will not only help her viewers understand the selected topics but raise awareness and direct positive attention to graphic fiction in academic environments. Her talk will include an informative crash course on comic creation, as well as insight with regard to the significance of visual literature. In turn, she hopes that her teachers and peers will be able to view comics as a medium of both entertainment and legitimate education.

Sisy Chen

Did you know that Sisy and Tingjen are cousins!? They met in middle school while performing at the end of the year BBQ. They enjoy eating together, having late night chats, and performing music of all genres - music runs in the family! The two of them agree with Queen B when she says, “Your self-worth is determined by you. You don’t have to depend on someone telling you who you are.” Tingjen and Sisy have noticed that stereotypes and peer pressure greatly affects the self esteem of teenagers. They believe that although self confidence is often stressed in media, it is crucial for us to not confuse artificial confidence with true confidence. There is more than one way to find your true confidence, and Tingjen and Sisy would like to initiate a shift in our view of morale and guide the community in the direction of finding beauty in their true colors.

Tingjen Hsieh

Did you know that Sisy and Tingjen are cousins!? They met in middle school while performing at the end of the year BBQ. They enjoy eating together, having late night chats, and performing music of all genres - music runs in the family! The two of them agree with Queen B when she says, “Your self-worth is determined by you. You don’t have to depend on someone telling you who you are.” Tingjen and Sisy have noticed that stereotypes and peer pressure greatly affects the self esteem of teenagers. They believe that although self confidence is often stressed in media, it is crucial for us to not confuse artificial confidence with true confidence. There is more than one way to find your true confidence, and Tingjen and Sisy would like to initiate a shift in our view of morale and guide the community in the direction of finding beauty in their true colors.

Vivian Chiang

Vivian Chiang is an alumni from Taipei American School. She’s an entrepreneur with a deep technical background and many years of experience building consumer brands. Vivian co-founded Orbit Baby, a premium baby gear company, and sold it to Ergobaby in 2011. While Vivian wore many different hats at Orbit Baby, her primary emphases were in marketing and sales, building the brand and sales organizations from the ground up. Vivian is currently a founder and co-CEO of SpeedSmith, a digital footwear brand. She has a BS and MS in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University, and an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business. A mom of three girls, she enjoys swimming, biking, and running. Through her own journey from Taiwan to the US and back, she shares the importance of embracing and creating discomfort in both her career and family life.