Kelly Shen

Care taker, Idea generator, Student

I’m a high school student with a strong interest in economics, and making crafts. I founded my school’s Economics Club to create space for others to explore big ideas. And through academic projects or creative hobbies like crafting, I’m passionate about building thoughtful, inclusive communities.💗 I have lived in different countries and experienced various education systems, including but not limited to public, private, and international schools in mainland China, Hong Kong, and Canada. These diverse experiences have enabled me to adapt to new environments more quickly. I enjoy listening to different people's stories, as they help me enrich my understanding of the world. The more I learn about different perspectives, the better I can empathize with and understand others' experiences. Feel free chat with me!😃

I'm passionate about building bridges (between people, ideas, environments). I love to find ways to connect individuals from different backgrounds and empower those whose voices are often overlooked. I believe all problems can be solved through the power of collaboration. My favorite quote is: "A group is like a rainbow—everyone is a different color. I am committed to help everyone shine their brightest and become their own unique color.🌈

Youth have both the ability and the potential to change the world! When we talk about world changers, we often think of adults, who are experienced, educated, and established. Young people are called “the future,” but rarely treated as the present. We’re told to “wait our turn,” to “learn more before we lead,” to “grow up first.” My idea worth spreading is that: Youth have the ability, and even greater potential to change the world today. What we need is not permission, but opportunity and trust.

Collaboration, Economics, Organization & Planning, Youth leadership

The first time I heard about TED was through a talk on procrastination by Tim Urban, about how procrastinators think when they’re overwhelmed with tasks. As someone who struggles with procrastination, many people around me didn’t understand why it's hard for me to finish things before deadlines. But after watching that TED Talk, my friends began to understand my thoughts and start to empathize with me. It also made me realize how influential TED can be, or rather how influential speakers can be by spreading their ideas through the internet. I am honored to join the TED event this time! This is my first participation in TED, and I look forward to doing well and allowing more people to see the wonderful and outstanding speakings!🌟

While people often see me as someone who is interested in economics, they’re usually surprised to find out how much I love Chinese traditional crafts. I’ve researched a lot about traditional crafts I love, and one of my proudest accomplishments is successfully making a real oil-paper umbrella by hand. It took a lot of time, patience, and care, but it helped me connect more with Chinese culture. ⛱️ I’m also really interested in building model. I started with paper and then building blocks, and now I am designing my own model and bring them to life with 3D printing. Later I want to try to integrate electronic components into my models. I hope to eventually combine mechanics, electronics, and even AI with my model. I had no background in electronics before so it might take me a long long time to reach the goal!🤖