Theme: Ripple Effect

The power of a single action can create immense change in society. As individuals and groups, we are all connected. Just like a stone thrown into a pond, our ideas, thoughts, and actions, can cause a ripple which has far-reaching consequences and impacts.

At TEDxQueensU this year, we want our delegates to leave our conference feeling that they have the power to create change and that no action is too small to impact the world around them.

We are very excited to virtually bring you the TEDxQueensU RIPPLE EFFECT on February 28th, 2021.

309 King Street West
Kingston, Ontario, K7L 2X4
Canada

Ambika Opal

Ambika Opal is the Manager of Global Programs at the Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Energy (WISE), a research institute at the University of Waterloo. In her role at WISE, Ambika manages the Affordable Energy for Humanity consortium, a global network of energy experts who work together on initiatives regarding access to affordable and clean energy. Contact information: Ambika.Opal@uwaterloo.ca

Camille Di Iulio

Camille Di Iulio will share her thoughts on teaching practice, student achievement and the traditional Canadian Indigenous pedagogy of storytelling, the oldest form of teaching. She is a two-time Queen’s University alumna (BScH ’13 and PME ’18) and now a doctoral student in Education at Western University with a focus on Indigenous education from a culturally informed perspective. In particular, she is interested in curriculum reform within a community-based framework and the potential impacts on Indigenous students. She is a Professor at Seneca College in Toronto, ON where she teaches various courses in English and Indigenous Studies

Cheryl Bradshaw

Psychotherapist and Author

CHERYL M. BRADSHAW, R.P., B.Ed, M.A., is a registered psychotherapist and author of three books: Real Talk About Sex and Consent; How to Like Yourself; and The Resilience Workbook for Teens. Each has been a #1 New Release on Amazon, and featured on various television and radio shows, articles, and podcasts, including Breakfast Television, Global’s The Morning Show, and Today’s Parent. Find out more about Cheryl at www.cherylmbradshaw.com, and @cherylmbradshaw for Instagram and Twitter.

Crystal Ali

Crystal Ali is a student currently in her final year of high school. She is a firm believer in discussing various social issues in an effort to ignite change. She does this through the Equity Team she founded and leads at her highschool. A primary issue Crystal cares about are those pertaining to the Black community; be it police brutality, or social conflicts Black people have to face. You can reach out to Crystal via her instagram @crystalaliiii of by email at alicrystal246@gmail.com.

Daniel Norland

Dan Norland is a high school history and civics teacher in San Diego, California, where he teaches a course titled “Justice & Injustice” to eleventh and twelfth graders. Before becoming a teacher, Dan was an attorney at WilmerHale in Boston, where he had the opportunity to work on pro bono matters including a death penalty appeal and the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” While at WilmerHale, Dan’s colleagues introduced him to two men, Lakhdar Boumediene and Mustafa Ait Idir, who had been wrongfully detained in the notorious military prison at Guantanamo Bay for seven years before winning a landmark Supreme Court case and establishing their innocence. Dan met Lakhdar and Mustafa and helped them write their memoirs, Witnesses of the Unseen (see www.WitnessesBook.com). Email: DNorland@LJCDS.org

Hamidah Oderinwale

Hamidah Oderinwale is a teenager passionate about social entrepreneurship and technological innovation. Being an avid writer has led her to become a curated writer on Medium, who discusses topics ranging from self-development to ethical investing. Seeing the lack of resources available to high schoolers interested in pursuing engineering, she launched an organization that works to provide motivated students with shadowing opportunities and educational opportunities that mimic those available at the post-secondary level. Being interested in starting a company, she hopes to create a business in the educational sector that supports students from under-represented groups. Email: oderinwaleh@gmail.com Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hamidah-oderinwale-8928b4202/ Website: https://hamidahoderinwale.github.io

Jane Philpott

Dr. Philpott is Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences and Director of the School of Medicine at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. She spent the first decade of her medical career in Niger, West Africa. In 1998, she moved to Stouffville, Ontario, where she was a family physician for 17 years. In 2015, Dr. Philpott was elected as the Member of Parliament for Markham-Stouffville. She served in federal cabinet positions, including Minister of Health, Minister of Indigenous Services, President of the Treasury Board and Minister of Digital Government.

Lane Desborough

CEO of Nudge BG

Lane is a proud Queen’s chemical engineer whose three decade career has rippled across half a dozen industries and continents, to land in his present role as CEO of Nudge BG, a company developing automated insulin delivery - an artificial pancreas - to reduce the burden for millions of people living with insulin-requiring diabetes - people like his son. From academia, to the smallest startups, to the largest and most successful companies in the world in their respective industries, Lane has developed and applied a handful of methods and principles which have brought him to where he is today.

Rebecca Klaassen

Program Manager

After graduating from the University of Ottawa with a degree in International Development and Globalization, Rebecca has since focused her career on helping youth become more civically engaged, connected to social issues, and equipped to take action. Her reflections on voluntourism have been published in HuffPost. She continues to expand her own learning to better understand how to make impactul and meaningful change.

Scott Gingrich

Scott grew up in Grimsby, a small town in the Niagara Region. He completed his Bachelor of Commerce at Queen’s University, where he focused on sales, marketing, and entrepreneurship. Upon graduating in 2020, Scott took part in the Queen’s Innovation Centre Summer Initiative (QICSI), an incubator program where students and recent graduates receive training and mentorship to launch their own business venture. During this program, Scott and his co-founders launched Promovere, an HR software that leverages a virtual marketplace and machine learning to increase employee engagement, retention, and growth. Scott continues to work on the venture, which recently placed as a finalist in several prominent pitch competitions, including the Queen’s Entrepreneur Competition and the Western Ivey Business Plan Competition. Scott is also a Teaching Assistant for several marketing and entrepreneurship courses. In his free time, he enjoys surfing, skiing, photography, and cooking. Scott can be reached at scott.gingrich@queensu.ca or www.linkedin.com/in/scott-gingrich.