Theme: Fulcrum

ful·crum [Noun] : Discovering stability at the core of acceptance

‘All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy’. Today, our fast-paced lifestyle that is brimming with unique interactions tends to make us lose focus easily, leading to an imbalance in life. Effort and time can support the heaviness and weight of our burdens; but the optimal point in which both sides of the lever are levelled out can sometimes be difficult to find, throwing the definition of a “balanced lifestyle” into obscurity and vagueness.

Balance is fractal, either in the fact that it is balanced or in the fact that it is in a state of flux trying to retrieve it. Sustaining balance stimulates us to assimilate our needs accordingly. Inner balance brings inner peace, societal balance promotes sustainable living, and diverse communal balance depolarizes the differences among us. The endeavour to find a point that achieves equilibrium is imperative to us, as residing in the extremes is typically a diluent to living a fulfilling life.

This year, TEDxUTM2022 presents the theme FULCRUM, the optimal point of a balanced lever. Fulcrum emphasizes the universal finesse of balance that allows us to reconnect, rejuvenate, and ultimately be unparalleled in the lives we live.

Gather
Virtual Event
Skudai, Johor, 81300
Malaysia

Bryan Phua

Calligraphy artist

Professionally known as @mo4ji4, Bryan is a calligrapher writing his mark in this contemporary society, expressing his voice through his words, and innovating from a dormant tradition. At a young age of 10, he began learning calligraphy and won several calligraphy competitions throughout his high school years. After writing calligraphy for more than a decade, calligrapher mo4ji4 decided to integrate editing and creativity into this art, breathing new life into calligraphy. Not only does he do traditional calligraphy workshops and events, but he also does graffiti, digital art, branding, logo design, and his own personal line of merchandise featuring his art.

Charissa Tse Ying Ong

Author

Charissa Ong is a Best-Selling Author and Founder of Penwings Publishing. Her best works include Midnight Monologues and Daytime Dialogues. Her mission is to participate, inspire and contribute ideas and experiences to promote the love of reading and writing. As the Head of Product Design in Inmagine, Charissa's background includes educating, mentoring, consulting, and venture building in various industries like fintech (Boost-eWallet), Medtech, and e-commerce. Her passion for education drives her to create impactful modules and workshops for all institutes suitable for all ages.

Isabella Ying Chen Check

Education advocate

Isabella Check is a Marine Science graduate who is strongly passionate about fighting for women’s rights and empowering unprivileged communities. She is the co-founder of PriviLAD, a youth-led organization that empowers stateless youths with various life-skill educational programmes. She firmly believes that humans rise by lifting others through our daily actions. She is also the founder of TEDxUMSKK, which has inspired over 1000 university students to live their fullest potentials through workshops and conferences. An avid nature lover and diver herself, she finds peace when surrounded by greens (forests) and blues (oceans).

Jun Jie Tan

Student

Jun Jie is a final year student majoring in Mechatronics Engineering at UTM. He considers himself as a student who is not just passionate about science and technology but also in the unique field of management consultancy. His technological know-how is reflected in his 2 years of experience leading the national robotics team, competing in the APAC region. His passion in the realm of business and acumen on the other hand can be seen through his many achievements in major business case competitions from McKinsey, HSBC, Maybank, Unilever, Mondelez, Huawei, Axiata, Sunway, EY, Shell, FWD, and many other global corporations. He is a firm believer in pushing his own boundaries and exploring rewards through risk-taking, gaining valuable experience along the way.

Layla Sania

Singer + actress

Born in 2002, Layla Sania is relatively new in the local professional music scene; she has been exposed to the arts since a very young age. Born into an artistically-inclined family, Layla credits her passion for the performing arts to both her parents. Having appeared on some TV dramas in her childhood and appearing on “I Can See Your Voice”, where she performed a popular Mandarin song by Tiger Huang, Layla is no stranger to the “lights, camera, action!” cue. Armed with her linguistic abilities to speak and sing in fluent Mandarin, Layla hopes to inspire others that learning a new language can be a driving force to elevate one to greater heights; especially in a multicultural country such as Malaysia. She also believes that exposing yourself to other languages and cultures allows bridges to be built between countries.

Mazura Jusoh

Associate Professor + Appointed language expert

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mazura Jusoh is a chemical engineering lecturer and scientist by profession in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, but her passion for the English language since she was little also led her to be an Appointed Language Expert in her faculty. She is also an author, as she has written a book, two book chapters, over 150 international journals and conference papers, as well as being responsible to verify postgraduate abstracts prior to final thesis publication in UTM. Coming from a small village in Pahang, she has always believed in dreaming big to achieve goals, even if you come from small beginnings.

Roshan Nigel Miranda

Social Entrepreneur + Youth Activist

Roshan Nigel Miranda is a Malaysian youth with a passion for foreign relations, youth empowerment, and public policy. He is heavily involved in leadership roles in multiple NGO's/CSO advocating for mental health, SDGs, youth empowerment, and human rights while regularly giving professional talks on these topics. He co-founded Future Leaders of Public Policy (FLIPP) to raise awareness on public policy and governance in Malaysia. Roshan has attended multiple workshops and training hosted by MACC and the federal government when he was the President of the Anti-Corruption Club of his university. He served as a Perdana Fellow to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where his interest in policy was sparked. He is currently working as a social entrepreneur at PETRONAS while completing his Masters of Public Policy in Universiti Malaya (UM) to hone his skills in public policy. In his free time, Roshan enjoys sports, music, reading as well as swimming competitively.

Yasmin Amani

Computer scientist + educator

Yasmin Amani doesn’t consider herself extraordinary by any means, but this computer science graduate is proud of the extraordinary thoughts she would like to share. She is well versed in participating in humanitarian relief efforts both locally and internationally and has an affinity for learning. Currently, Yasmin Amani is delving into the realm of education and aspires to inspire as many people as possible regarding the sharing of knowledge. She believes that many great ideas are cultivated from sharing knowledge with others. She enjoys online content creation tailored to her love for pop culture and the teaching of music and language to others.