Theme: The Unexpected

In the last few years, we have learned to expect the unexpected. But are we humans prepared to cope with it? In this edition of TEDxSaintLouisUniversityMadrid, we intend to reflect on how we deal, both as a group and as individuals, with all sorts of unexpected situations. We will explore the human reaction to the unexpected and look back to past unexpected events in order to see how they have shaped our present lives and society. We also want to learn how the unexpected is used as a resource in the fine arts to channel and enhance the public’s experience.

Saint Louis University - Madrid Campus
Avenida del Valle, 34
Madrid, Madrid, 28003
Spain

Ana Patricia Romay Febres

Student of Politics and International Relations, musician and expert in Iberoamerican Culture

I am an undergraduate student at SLU-Madrid, double majoring in Political Science and International Studies and minoring in Ibero-American studies. I was born and raised in Venezuela, where I studied and sang popular music and traditional Venezuelan music since the age of 7, later obtaining the title of Professional Singer in 2017, after 4 years of study in the Solo Tu Voz singing and performance academy in Caracas. I was also part of the Compañía de Actores Fábula where I obtained preparation in acting and musical theater. At SLU-Madrid I have taken part in the musical ensemble and have performed as a soloist. I have published creative writing works in the university’s Mad Convivium magazine and have written articles for the Political Science department’s Observatory of Contemporary Crises. I have volunteered with the ONG Rescate in Madrid and am currently leading the soup kitchen volunteering initiative at SLU-Madrid, as well as the Club Francophone.

César Astudillo

Expert in leadership and strategic design

César Astudillo formula su actual misión profesional como “ayudar a los líderes a tener éxito de forma responsable en un mundo en transición”. Reconocido diseñador estratégico internacional con más de 100 proyectos en su historial, César ha ayudado a líderes empresariales, de Administraciones Públicas y de organizaciones del Tercer Sector a abordar problemas estratégicos complejos y novedosos en escenarios de gran incertidumbre en más de 15 sectores. César es miembro del Grupo de Trabajo de Diseño y Administración Pública del Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, fue nombrado miembro del jurado de los Premios Nacionales de Diseño en 2019, y ha ejercido como profesor invitado y conferenciante en más de 30 instituciones.

Deeksha Sharma

Postdoctoral researcher in Mental Health, PhD in Emotional Intelligence

Dr. Deeksha Sharma is a postdoc at Cornell University. At present, she is building a game for understanding emotional behavioral patterns with decision making abilities. She is working on a new Emotional Intelligence model by collecting data from countries–USA, Australia, Canada, Israel, Dubai, and India. Her previous projects at Cornell include administering fMRI study for valence and arousal of emotions. Dr. Sharma is part of the Cornell Multicultural Academic Counseling mentoring program, counseling and guiding PhD students, and is part of WE Cornell, a women’s entrepreneurial club. Her podcast Student of the World focuses on communicating with students of different countries and understanding how they are evolving in the unique times of the pandemic. She also curates Art & Sound Therapy sessions under her initiative ENSO LIFE to promote and advocate about mental health.

Laura Tedesco

Associate Professor for Politics and International Relations, expert in Iberoamerican Politics

PhD from Warwick University, she is Associate Professor in the Department for Political Science and International Relations of Saint Louis University/Madrid Campus, and an expert in political leadership in Latin America. Together with Rut Diamint (Universidad Torcuato Di Tella, Buenos Aires) she published (in English and Spanish) the results of a research in five countries (Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela and Uruguay) about political leaders: "¿Demócratas o Usurpadores? Un análisis de líderes sudamericanos" (EUDEBA, Buenos Aires, 2019) and "Latin America´s Leaders" (ZED Books: London, 2015). Since 2016, she is the leader of a research project on policital scenarios and the role of armed forces in Cuba.

Luis Borruel

Technology, digital art, photography

Luis Borruel is has been working on applied research for more than 20 years on different multidisciplinary fields and international teams. He holds a Ph.D. and BEng in Telecommunications Engineering and an MSc in Physics. He has always been fascinated by computers, algorithms, and problem-solving. In the last years, an active area of learning has been the use of deep neural networks and the developments in blockchain technologies. Beyond those traditional technical areas, topics of his interest are public communication and photography, where he has been doing travel photography for two decades. In recent times he has experimented in the area of algorithms and art.

Pedro Cifuentes

Secondary school teacher and comic author

I am a Social Science teacher at the Jaume I high school in Borriana (Castelló, Spain), as well as author of educative comics such as “History of art in comic” (three volumes, Desperta Ferro Ediciones) and “Instructions to save the world” (two volumes, Random House). I launched my last project in October: History of Spain in comic, the first volume being dedicated to “Prehistory in the Iberian Peninsula” (Desperta Ferro Ediciones). And moreover, I published “A travel through literature” (Harper Kids) in November, a tour on the history of universal literature! I give training and talks about education and graphic narrative in the classroom. I still believe that education can change the world. “The opposite of funny is not serious, the opposite of funny is not funny”, Chesterton said, and I try to apply this every day in my class.

Track Dogs

Music band

Comprised of 2 Irishmen, 1 Englishman and 1 American the band came together in 2011 to make their unique brand of acoustic music; a veritable 4×4 of voices and instruments identified by their dynamic fusion of styles including folk, Latin, Americana & even some Bluegrass. Track Dogs sing with four voice harmonies backed by guitar, bass, cajón and trumpet, in place of the standard electric guitars and drum set. The music of the Track Dogs, whose artistic name derives from the maintenance crews of the dark subterranean world of New York’s subway system, reflects a wide mixture of styles. At present the group is preparing its tenth recording to be edited in October 2023. On April 10, they will be performing in the infamous Royal Albert Hall in London.