Two Dr. Charles Best secondary school students are putting their passion and ideas onto videos and sharing them with the world through TEDxKids@BC.
Modelled after the famous TED Talks, which brought technology, entertainment and design ideas to the masses through talks, videos and conferences, the TEDxKids program is geared to young people.
The two girls discussed their plans during a presentation at a board of education meeting on Feb. 21.
On a recent trip to Antarctica with Students on Ice, Selin Jessa asked students to contribute their ideas about how the trip changed them and will use their posts for a video for TEDxKids@BC.
She said it's important for youth to be able to reach out to the global community with their ideas, and TEDxKids is a perfect vehicle for such exchanges. "That's something I've become very passionate about," she said.
During the trip, which took place over the winter break, Jessa saw how animals endure in an extreme environment, worked with scientists and artists, and played a game of soccer on an ice flow.
Her friend Zoya Jiwa is also using the power of video to get her message across. She's listed as a speaker on the TEDxKids@BC site and gave a short clip of her talk to trustees about how lupus changed her life.
At first, Zoya said, she was dismayed when drugs to control the disease changed her looks but she overcame feelings of low-self esteem with the help of friends and family.
She discovered that surrounding herself with positive people made her feel better and so she decided to create a support group for girls called Simply You. The group meets weekly to talk about ways to have a healthy outlook on life that doesn't revolve around appearance.
"It's an opportunity for them to talk about their inner beauty," Zoya said.
To see Jiwa's video, visit www.tedxkidsbc.com.
WHO IS TED, ANYWAY?
From the TED website:
TED is a nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design. Since then its scope has become ever broader. Along with two annual conferences -- the TED Conference in Long Beach and Palm Springs each spring, and the TEDGlobal conference in Edinburgh UK each summer -- TED includes the award-winning TEDTalks video site, the Open Translation Project and TED Conversations, the inspiring TED Fellows and TEDx programs, and the annual TED Prize.
