TEDxUTS Youth

Speakers

Speakers may not be confirmed. Check the event website for the latest lineup.

• Derek Hu

  Student

  Derek Hu is a high school student attending the University of Toronto Schools who enjoys eating lasagna. When he is not being swamped by the pile of schoolwork accumulated from his lack of time management skills, you can find him playing video games or making useless machines. He has a passion for innovation, no matter how big or small, as well as for communicating unknown and little known issue in our world.

• Edlyn To

  Student

  Edlyn is a grade 11 student at the University of Toronto Schools with an interest in biomedical sciences. She was raised by her grandma and shares her love for turtles, music and telling stories.

• Isaac Aster

  Student

  New to public speaking and eager to try it, Isaac Aster is a Grade 11 student at University of Toronto Schools. He has a passion for storytelling and a fascination for how we understand the world around us. After the witnessing both his parents lose their childhood homes through sales and demolitions, Isaac became aware of the grief that we often feel for the places we lose. Through family stories and the perspectives of human geographers, Isaac's talk invites his audience to recognize the significance of the relationships we have with the places around us. In addition, his talk encourages his audience to prepare for the possible experience of losing a place that's meaningful to them.

• Joanna Zheng

  Student

  “One day, somebody will think about you for the very last time. Even the most famous person in history will eventually be forgotten.” Optimistic nihilism explores the idea that life lacks inherent or universal meaning, and that this absence is not something to fear. When paired with existentialism, it reframes impermanence as freedom, arguing that meaning is not discovered, but created through choice, effort, and lived experience. Joanna is a student at University of Toronto Schools.

• Marcus Liu

  Student

  Marcus Liu is a grade 11 student at UTS. In his spare time, he enjoys composing and producing original songs as well as both participating in and problem setting for competitive programming contests!

• Nkechinyem Oduh

  UTS Teacher

  Nkechinyem Oduh is a writer, educator and public library fangirl. She centers her work in community engagement, arts activism and immigrant experiences with a specific focus on the African diaspora in Canada. She is a visionary teacher who is committed to building a safe and community based environment in her classrooms. Her practice is based on her unyielding dedication to building real, meaningful relationships and rapport with students to inform her pedagogy. It is her job and her joy to empower the big ideas of young people.

• Selena Li

  UofT MechEng Student

  Selena Li is a third-year mechanical engineering student at the University of Toronto and one of the co-captains of the University of Toronto Concrete Toboggan Design Team: an undergraduate student club which builds a toboggan with concrete skis and competes at the annual Great Northern Concrete Toboggan Race. With a dedicated group of leads and general members, her team navigates the unique engineering challenges administrative responsibilities, and school spirit required to make a toboggan. When not inundated with school or design team work, Selena enjoys drawing and playing piano or trumpet.

• Stephanie Lu

  UofT EngSci Student

  Stephanie Lu is an Engineering Science student at the University of Toronto who’s passionate about making AI and machine learning approachable, hands-on, and genuinely fun to learn. She leads Canada’s largest student AI community as Co-President of the University of Toronto Machine Intelligence Student Team (UTMIST), where she helps students from all backgrounds go from “I’m curious about AI” to building real systems from scratch. Along the way, she’s worked across research, finance, aerospace, and healthcare, from generative models for portfolio optimization to predictive tools for jet engines, and is especially interested in teaching, mentorship, and creating accessible learning environments for AI.