Theme: Inspiring Young Minds to Shape the Future

Join us for the fourth edition of TEDxAOSR Youth, a captivating event where students share their bold ideas, unique perspectives, and innovative solutions to today’s most pressing challenges. Taking place on 14 November 2024 at 5:30 PM in the AOSR Performance Center, this event offers a platform for young speakers to inspire, engage, and challenge the status quo.

With a dynamic lineup of up to 14 talented students, TEDxAOSR Youth will explore a diverse range of topics from science and technology to art, culture, and social change. Each speaker will bring their own voice to the TEDx stage, aiming to spark conversations and ignite change both within the AOSR community and beyond.

Whether you're a student, educator, or simply passionate about the future, this event is an opportunity to witness the power of youth-driven ideas that can shape the world.

Mark your calendars, and come ready to be inspired!

TedX Roma
Via Cassia 811
Rome, Lazio, 00189
Italy

Anastasiia Litovchenko

Planning to be a diplomat or a lawyer

My name is Anastasiia Litovchenko. I am 16 years old and I am half Russian and Ukrainian. I value education and passion the most. Without those two things, there would be no "Anastasiia". Discovering the world has always been an interest and a love of mine, thus I learned and continue to master four languages: English, Russian, Chinese, and Spanish. I enjoy reading and writing, particularly writing; I have two Oxford journal articles published under my name, I was recently shortlisted for the John Locke essay competition. Recently I also explored modeling which became yet another passion of mine. Sports has always been a huge part of my life. I tried myself in professional ice skating, karate, and tennis. However, volleyball is what I am most passionate about. I play as a middle blocker in a Division 3 team in Rome. However, helping people is the most important thing anyone can do. In the future, I want to leave a mark on the world, specifically in the international relations sphere.

Arash Shirazimoghadam

Doctor and athlete in the making

My name is Arash Shirazimoghadam, and I'll be talking about the importance of sleep and its effects on the human body in my TED talk. Not enough people recognize the cruciality of sleep in our daily lives, and I'd like to address that fact.

Aurora Ruotolo

Stargazing Student

I am a high school freshman who believes my greatest attribute is my passion for everything I set my mind to. I am intrigued by all areas of science and international relations, and have participated and won several math competitions and MUN conferences. I am currently involved in AOSR’s Speech and Debate, MUN, and STEM clubs. I am also a third culture kid: I was born in Italy and spent my childhood in South America (Argentina and Brazil) allowing me to experience countless cultures and meet diverse individuals. Furthermore, I adore reading, as I learned to read when I was only three years old, and haven’t stopped since. In my eyes, reading is a way to experience countless lives in the span of one: as George R. R. Martin said, “A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one.” I constantly seek a challenge to defy, striving not for perfection but for excellence, in doing so constantly improving myself as I journey through life.

Giulia Ji

Planning to be a doctor

I’m Giulia and I’m a student attending the American Overseas School Of Rome (AOSR). I’m 17 years old and I’m currently enrolled in the International Baccalaureate (IB) program. I was born in Italy but I am of Chinese origin. I joined AOSR in 9th grade, where I improved my English and communication skills, and became passionate about global learning and academic excellence. Here, at AOSR, I developed strong analytical and critical thinking abilities, with a deep sense of empathy and community care. I hope to make a positive impact through my learning, community involvement, and personal growth, and am eager to continue working hard and achieving success in the future.

JingRu Hu

Future AI Scientist

My name is Jing Ru, I am currently a Junior in Highschool and this will be my 2nd TedEx speech. I have a passion for all things AI and hope to become an expert in the field so that this technology can be used for it's positive potential.

Martina Gangemi

Planning to be a future lawyer

Hello everyone, I am Martina Gangemi and this is my first year taking part in TEDx youth in American Overseas school of Rome. I will be presenting the topic of eating disorders, specifically I will be talking about anorexia and obesity. I chose this topic because I think it’s a less and less debated argument which people give less and less importance to. I chose it also because it’s an issue I feel really close to me and I think many other people in the world suffer from it. My goal will be to make you all try to have the right conception of it, showing the many ways in which these eating disorders unfortunately can start, the consequences, how they both are similar and different but at the same time I will be offering possible solutions to them.

Nina Israilovici

Planning to be a movie director and screenwriter

Hello I’m Nina Israilovici and this is my first year taking part in Tedx Youth at the American Overseas School of Rome. I will be presenting Artificial Intelligence in entertainment, specifically the movie business. I chose this topic because I am interested in working in cinema as a director and screenwriter and want to know more and inform others on how Artificial Intelligence will impact this industry for the better or worse financially, economically, socially, and mentally.

Nina Neroni

Future Educator

Hello everyone, my name is Nina Neroni, today I would like to share with you a couple of thoughts on the present technological revolution we are all witnessing. I'm talking about AI and, in the specific, the release of Chatgpt. Also if this is the dawn of artificial intelligence, I have, somehow, already noticed changes in students' behavior. After the implementation of such a versatile tool, writing long texts without the help of AI, have become way more challenging for students. I believe that the "shortened attention span", which is also a result of the advent of artificial intelligence within social platforms - namely TikTok the most popular one - that subjects users to a bombardment of information within a very short time frame, no longer allows for a conceptual thought elaboration and consequently the creation of texts long enough for truly deepening the topics. I find interesting researching such a topic from a social and anthropological point of view.

Penelope Woodford

Planning to be an art historian and author

I was born and raised in Cambridge, England, and moved to Rome when I was 13. My main interests lie in the arts, as I enjoy painting and music, and I love sharing my enthusiasm for these things. As I grow older, I hope to continue exploring these interests, and I would to continue my education in the UK. I care a lot about gender equality, and I am eager talk about why feminism is still necessary in our society. I hope to inspire more young girls to be vocal about sexism and injustice in their daily lives.

Pierfilippo Peruzzi

Planning to study business or psychology

My name is Pierfilippo Peruzzi and I am a tenth grader here at AOSR. I have lived in Rome my entire life and have been attending AOSR since the age of four. I would describe myself as a diligent, introspective, and open-minded person who tries his hardest to be the best version of himself every day. This is my first year doing TEDxAOSR and I am excited to be discussing the topic of the psychological effects of social media with the world. My talk will go in-depth on what actually happens in our brains when we are on social media and the long-term effects they can have on our brain’s functions.

Pietro Gazzola

Politician in the making

My name is Pietro Gazzola. I am a tenth grader at AOSR, and this is my fourth TEDx event. I love to question, discuss, and on the other hand participate in sports, such as rowing, surfing, and skiing. I am excited to participate in this year's event, and I want to inspire people who listen to my TEDx to find out more about themselves, their potential, and how we can work together as a society to make a better world.

Virginia Fara Pennisi

A futuring wise woman, starting from her ideals to work on ideas’ progression

I'm Virginia, a 3rd millennium girl in a world floating in an accelerated time! Instead of running to uncertain directions, I try to spend my time as best possible…as I already run to School every day attending the 11th Grade at Aosr in Rome. My motto is:"Life is the train not the station" I love traveling always in company of a good book, discovering the world, but trusting in the importance of being deeply rooted to the place where we belong. I'm from Apulia- southern Italy-Land of millennial Olive trees- which gifted me some helpful tips for the future. My TedX talk proposal is sharing with you the wisdom of their precious teachings!

Yebin Lee

Planning to be a aerospace engineer

My name is Yebin Lee, and I am a junior here at AOSR. I have struggled with anxiety for a long time. Anxiety used to be my biggest opponent, which caused insomnia, stomachaches, or even breathing difficulties. However, now I understand that anxiety can be a friend if I know how to manage it. I hope that my presentation can help other people like me become friends with anxiety by sharing skills for managing it.