Daan van Winkoop

Concerned citizen, Entrepreneur, Explorer, Musician, Project manager, Student

I care deeply about making the world a better place. I see that technology, and in particular AI, plays a pivotal role in shaping our future. That’s why, next to my entrepreneurship studies, I’m taking AI classes. If anything, this experience taught me that AI will drastically change our world, and that we need to do everything that we can to make sure that this transformation will be for the better. For the past 2 years I’ve been an Effective Altruism community builder and board member. I have found that connecting people with each other and the betterment of the world gives me energy and joy–which is one of the reasons I’m so passionate about organizing this TEDx event. I love nature: hiking through it, exploring it, and admiring it are some of my favorite things to do. Our environment is something that I want to protect, so that all the generations that come after us will be able to cherish the raw beauty of nature just like I can. I have a curious mind, and love to explore as many things as I can in this life–whether that’s food, places, books, music, or new people. In short, I’m passionate about helping to protect nature and build a better world, while making sure to explore and enjoy it.

Back when I was in high school, I saw my first TED talk video: “Inside the Mind of a Master Procrastinator” by Tim Urban. I remember it vividly–the unique storytelling stuck with me after all these years. Although it was very insightful learning more about my own procrastination habits–if procrastination was a sport I would have been ready to participate in the Olympic Games–it’s not the reason why it is my favourite TED talk. At the very end of the video, Tim visualizes all the weeks in our lives as tiny boxes. Seeing them laid out like that suddenly made me realize that, if everything goes well, I have a long life ahead of me–and that I need to take a lot of steps to become the person that I want to be. It opened my eyes to the potential that my life has, and to my self-gratifying habits. That same day I took a self-help book from my fathers shelf and I have been on a journey of self-improvement ever since. This is why I’m so passionate about TED talks–because, next to the educational value, TED talks have the power to open people's eyes. They have the power to change people’s courses for the better and, in doing so, make the world a better place.