Theme: Illuminate

In this modern age, we as humans have been giving great bearings on our individual performances and aspirations. However, aren’t we forgetting to have a glance on the wonders that surrounds us? Aren’t we forgetting the need to explore new elements and enlighten the world together? Each and every one of us bears a different glow with the uniqueness we possess, but it only shines so dimly alone.
TEDxUniversityofMalaya 2019 aims to deliver the message that we as humans are the master of ourselves but not to forget the nature of humans – to articulate among one another and cast a radiant glow on this land where we build our stories. We urge everyone to constantly discover new elements and enrich ourselves; to consistently connect with the people around to share and exchange the wisdom, the encounters that each of us bears differently. And by congregating the different glow we all have, together we will be able to give out a spectrum of light that will be ever wonderful.

University of Malaya
Lembah Pantai
Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, 50603
Malaysia

Adelina Asmawi

University Lecturer

Doctor Adelina Asmawi is the Head Department of Language and Literacy Education, Faculty of Education, University of Malaya. Her areas of expertise are professional development of teachers, TESL and instructional technology. She is author of The Art of Reflective Thinking (2016), and The Art of Creative Research (2017), and is Chief Editor of the book, Language Education for a World on the Move (2019). In her TEDx talk, Doctor Adelina questions critically to break down the stereotypes of 21 st century education learning to focus on knowledge and skills rather than tools and technology developed. Her talk engages the audience with consequences of how 21 st century learning will be implemented into the Malaysian education system.

Alsu Kashapova

Breathwork Instructor

In this modern age, we as humans have been giving great bearings on our individual performances and aspirations. However, aren’t we forgetting to have a glance on the wonders that surrounds us? Aren’t we forgetting the need to explore new elements and enlighten the world together? Each and every one of us bears a different glow with the uniqueness we possess, but it only shines so dimly alone. TEDxUniversityofMalaya 2019 aims to deliver the message that we as humans are the master of ourselves but not to forget the nature of humans – to articulate among one another and cast a radiant glow on this land where we build our stories. We urge everyone to constantly discover new elements and enrich ourselves; to consistently connect with the people around to share and exchange the wisdom, the encounters that each of us bears differently. And by congregating the different glow we all have, together we will be able to give out a spectrum of light that will be ever wonderful.

Alwyn Lau

Researcher

Dr Alwyn Lau's research interests covers Žižekian psychoanalysis, political philosophy, Christian theology, Malaysian politics and, most recently, risk and probability studies by Nassim Nicholas Taleb. During his almost two decades as a teacher and trainer (with students ranging from teenagers to university students to corporate executives), he's witnessed first-hand the academic pressure and stress foisted on to students. His goal is to persuade educators and parents to nurture higher levels of optionality and a love for uncertainty and variability in today's learners, thereby nurturing a new generation of anti-fragile students.

James Choong

Banker and Part-time Coach

James Choong graduated from the United States with a Marketing degree, then went to Sarawak to teach at a high-need school for two years under the Teach For Malaysia Fellowship. Since then, he’s worked at a bank, taught literacy and numeracy at a low-cost flat, and designed The Cikgu Life - a board game simulating the life of a teacher in a Malaysian public school. James currently coaches teachers with Teach For Malaysia. During his free time, he dabbles with game design and is passionate about using games to change the world. James will be sharing about his journey of how The Cikgu Life came to be, and how games can be a tool to create social awareness and social change.

Marta Kondryn

Head of People and Culture at Mindvalley

Marta Kondryn is passionate about turning workplaces and universities into places where people bring their hearts to and know that they are a part of. She believes that the driving force of longevity are relationships, strong family is the foundation of success, and belonging to the community is the cure for modern loneliness. In her talk, Marta urges organizations to start acting as a healthy community in order to create more value, not just for individuals, but the collective.

Nazli Ebrahimi

Motivational Speaker, Corporate Trainer and Social Environmental Entrepeneur

I am a motivational speaker, corporate trainer and social environmental entrepreneur. My work extends from working with varied clientele like CEOs, entrepreneurs and professionals to refugees and young underprivileged women. In this talk I’m going to share my 20 years of experiences in women’s empowerment field and the importance of the social environment factor in shaping women’s growth, particularly the decisions they make.

Shad Saleem Faruqi

Lecturer

I am Shad Faruqi, Holder of the Tunku Abdul Rahman Chair at Universiti Malaya. Malaysia’s Constitution is illuminated by a spirit of accommodation and a vision of shared destiny among the various peoples and regions of the land. Till the nineties we were a shining example of successful inter-communal living. Sadly, we have regressed. We need to revive the spirit of 1957 and 1963 through constitutional literacy and constitutional patriotism.

Shirin Shafiei

Postdoctoral Research and Lecturer

Dr Shirin Shafiei Ebrahimi is a postdoctoral researcher and lecturer in English; however, her areas of interest are not limited to teaching English only. Her various papers indicate her enthusiasm on the interdisciplinary areas such as Education, Computer Assisted Language Learning and Teaching, Psycholinguistics, Sociolinguistics, Literature, and Politics. Dr Shirin's concerns on high quality education is her drive to keep stepping on her path to provide highest standards of literacy and training for the society. She enjoys meeting people as she believes that every and each person is like an open book to study. Her deep theoretical knowledge in the field of Education besides many years of experience have left lasting impressions on her outlook on changing lives through education. She is a strong believer of an old saying that “giving a man a fish, you feed him for a day while teaching him how to fish, you feed him for his whole life”.

Sina Meraji

AI Product Manager

Sina is an AI Product Manager at Supahands.com, and a University of Malaya Artificial Intelligence graduate. He is an education idealist and has co-founded Malaysia's largest technology student community at UM. In his TEDx talk, he engages the audience in a conversation around the point where education, economics, governance and technology intersect, and presents his life goal: building world's next education system sometime in the next 30 years.

Wesley Chan

Life Coach

Mr Wesley Chan, Certified NLP Trainer & Master Coach on human excellence and habits and former national Taekwondo exponent. He said that “Medals will rust, experience will last”. With his energetic, enthusiastic and engaging delivery methods, he is driven to empower and enlighten others on why only with passion, we cannot be successful. Why Passion Equals Success is Broken?. He'll be telling his own life stories, as a prove to above statement.