Theme: Bounce

Follow our instagram page @tedxoldsconaacademic

Old Scona Academic
10523 84 Avenue
Edmonton, Alberta, T6R 0P1
Canada

Alexander Cai

Student

We seem to spend our lives in search of some greater satisfaction; a miraculous day when suddenly everything works and there is nothing left to be desired. But for young, ambitious people, as Steve Jobs said, perhaps it is better to stay hungry and to stay foolish; to let one's internal curiosity burn and to challenge the status quo. As a math competitor, fencer, and computer enthusiast, Alexander discusses his own experiences conquering others' expectations to achieve a better sense of self. He is the Co-President of Math Attack Society, a Canadian non-profit organization that seeks to break down barriers for students learning math. He has also published poetry in national anthologies and enjoys leading local computer science outreach programs.

Areej Shaikh

Student

Areej is a grade 12 student at Old Scona Academic with a passion for leadership and activism. She is a political columnist for the Written Revolutions, a youth-run nonprofit dedicated to giving youth a platform to discuss political affairs. Areej is actively involved in the speech and debate community, where she enjoys discussing political and social issues, as well as mentoring beginner speech and debaters. She is excited to be speaking on the TEDx stage and for the opportunity to use her voice to empower youth to be better activists and allies.

Bishal Sarker

Student

Bishal Sarker is a high school school who loves computers, space, and dinosaurs, and also happens to be a bit of a mathematician and environmentalist. He is very pleased to be able to be up on the TEDx stage to talk about motivation and its adverse effects on our lives. He hopes that his audience will both be enlightened a bit more about motivation and will also learn to and actually use it better, thus leading to the betterment of their lives.

Charlotte Moyela

Student

Charlotte Moyela, a grade 10 student at Old Scona Academic High school, is a lover of poetry, roller skating, and all kinds of music. She is an avid believer in the potential this generation holds. When she’s not figuring out how to skate backwards, she is buy exploring the many ways in which creativity and passion can spark social change in this day and age. She encourages everyone to find the activity inside them that excites them to explore innovation in their communities.

Danna Hristova

Student

High schooler, neuroscience nerd and mental health advocate, Danna Hristova is grateful to have received the opportunity to share her love for the brain with the audience through a TEDx talk. Bad mental health is a problem that has become disproportionately prevalent during COVID-19 lockdowns, however Danna believes in the value in sharing experiences with others as a first step to mediating the problem by breaking the barriers of mental isolation. In her talk she is going to be discussing her personal experiences during lockdown as well as using the brain’s unique rewiring capability to “bounce back”.

Ghalia Aamer

Founder and CEO of TalkMaze

Ghalia went from being afraid to speak up as a child to founding two companies before turning 19 - how did she gain the skills and confidence to do that? Ghalia’s talk will detail the life changing impact that public speaking and debate had on her at a young age and why building effective communication skills needs to be a priority for youth. As the Founder and CEO of TalkMaze, Ghalia works with hundreds of students across the world empowering them through public speaking and debate programs.

Inam Siddiqui

Student

An accomplished public speaker, an avid trivia enthusiast, and an unapologetic bibliophile, Inam Siddiqui is a Grade 11 student who regards our age of information with both optimistic hope and critical trepidation. As a student and friend who spends (too) much of his time on the web, he recognizes the many threats presented by the increasingly digitized world. In a similar vein, he believes that it is not too late to retrieve what we have lost in the streams of code. Over the past 10 years, he has represented Edmonton and Alberta at various Speech Arts festivals, competitions, and venues, as well as at provincial trivia competitions. His spare time sees him relaxing with his family, a relationship he holds as critical to his success. Having spent his years engaging with his community at large, he wishes to see the spirit of human connection embodied in all our interactions, particularly those online.

Lele Xiao

Bilingual nursing student

Lele is a bilingual nursing student at the University of Alberta. She is passionate about science, teaching, sustainability and sleep! Through research and physiology, she hopes to highlight the effects of sleep and especially as an aspiring healthcare professional, address the role of sleep in our daily lives and in the long term management of our health.

Sanaa Bhaidani

Student

Leader, changemaker, and fanatical baker, Sanaa Bhaidani is a grade 11 student above all else. Every day, she experiences successes in her activities and extracurriculars, but she fathoms at how they are accompanied by their fair share of failures. She believes that failure is the crucial foundation of her story, hoping to use it as an inspiration for others. Most importantly, she hopes that her environment will accept herself and those around her by validating their failures, helping make the world a slightly better place.

Yoyo Liu

Student

Yoyo is a grade 10 student and a double bass player. Music is her love, and she really loves jewelry making, painting, and many arts and crafts activities. But her love for arts didn't start until junior high. When she was a little kid, her mom described her as an "imaginative and curious" kid, but this "ability" slowly disappeared as school work piled up. She quickly realizes this issue after struggling making something creative for a school project. After reading her childhood writings, she realized how fascinating imagination is and how it could be extremely important, and continued with arts. In her TEDx talk, she will be talking about the benefits of imagination and how to enhance imagination with a few tricks.