City of Cupertino, CA / TEDxYouth@TorreAve

Navigating the Social Media Minefield by Aniruddh Suresh

Aniruddh enjoys playing percussion, mountain biking and playing video games. He’s also an active member of his school’s speech and debate club, competing for and helping run the team. Using personal experiences, along with those of friends and family, he focused his attention to a growing problem in the modern world today. His talk, “Navigating the Social Media Minefield,” focuses on the vulnerabilities that are exploited in order to take advantage of the millions of people who are using social media, and he hopes to provide a greater awareness of how to protect those who could potentially fall victim to such schemes.

TEDxYouth@TorreAvenue unites the global network of high school students in Cupertino through the power of ideas. Staffed and run entirely by Cupertino Teen Advisory Board and Cupertino Teen Commission, TEDxYouth@TorreAvenue aims to showcase the biggest ideas by filling the gaps created by misinformation and social barriers.

The Importance of Biculturalism by Neha Washikar

Neha has been practicing Indian classical dance for the past 12 years and can speak six languages. In her free time, she likes to hang out with friends, paint, and play volleyball. Growing up in the Bay Area, she noticed many children of immigrants did not pay much attention to their parent's culture. Her talk, "The Importance of Biculturalism", outlines what it means to have cultural awareness and explains the numerous personal and professional benefits of being bicultural.

TEDxYouth@TorreAvenue unites the global network of high school students in Cupertino through the power of ideas. Staffed and run entirely by Cupertino Teen Advisory Board and Cupertino Teen Commission, TEDxYouth@TorreAvenue aims to showcase the biggest ideas by filling the gaps created by misinformation and social barriers.

Generation Z Making an Impact by Samvi Ranka

Generation Z is fortunate enough to be in the midst of the digital and social media revolution. This entire exposure gives them so many opportunities and ideas that could be used towards helping a worthwhile cause and make the world a better place. In Samvi’s speech, “Generation Z making an Impact," she wants to inspire all her Generation Z people out there who have so many influential ideas. By sharing her journey and experience, she wants all young people out there to be able to take risks that would lead to an applause-worthy product and make the world a better place, one step at a time.

TEDxYouth@TorreAvenue unites the global network of high school students in Cupertino through the power of ideas. Staffed and run entirely by Cupertino Teen Advisory Board and Cupertino Teen Commission, TEDxYouth@TorreAvenue aims to showcase the biggest ideas by filling the gaps created by misinformation and social barriers.

The Psychology Behind Climate Change by Shanlea Tabofunda

Shanlea is 16. In her talk, "The Psychology Behind Climate Change", she discusses the psychological barriers preventing individuals from acting against one of humanity’s most pressing threats. As citizens, we are constantly inundated with statistics that don’t motivate us to change our behavior, but by understanding the science behind our actions, we can ignite a significant change in our own lives.

TEDxYouth@TorreAvenue unites the global network of high school students in Cupertino through the power of ideas. Staffed and run entirely by Cupertino Teen Advisory Board and Cupertino Teen Commission, TEDxYouth@TorreAvenue aims to showcase the biggest ideas by filling the gaps created by misinformation and social barriers.

The Bubble of Silicon Valley by Srutika Sureshbabu

Srutika is a 15-year-old captain for the Speech and Debate team and president of the Tino Student Doctors club. Srutika uses these platforms to advocate for students’ well being by propagating a collaborative environment. In her free time, she enjoys doing Indian classical dance as well as binge-reading book series. In “The Bubble of Silicon Valley,” Srutika explains how growing up in Silicon Valley can be a conflicting whirlwind of an experience. With the influence of the tech industries and the competitive spirit, students struggle to find a balance that allows them to prosper.

TEDxYouth@TorreAvenue unites the global network of high school students in Cupertino through the power of ideas. Staffed and run entirely by Cupertino Teen Advisory Board and Cupertino Teen Commission, TEDxYouth@TorreAvenue aims to showcase the biggest ideas by filling the gaps created by misinformation and social barriers.

TEDxYouth@TorreAvenue unites the global network of high school students in Cupertino through the power of ideas. Staffed and run entirely by Cupertino Teen Advisory Board and Cupertino Teen Commission, TEDxYouth@TorreAvenue aims to showcase the biggest ideas by filling the gaps created by misinformation and social barriers.

In it’s second year, TEDxYouth@TorreAvenue is pleased to feature the following teen speakers and topics including:

Opening statement “Inspiration” by Eesha R.
Inspiration is a powerful word because even just moments of inspiration can do so much. TedX
provides a platform to feel inspired and to inspire others. Together with the help of our community, our library, schools, students, and organizers, we have come together to share our insights and inspire each other.

The Importance of Biculturalism by Neha W.
In an increasingly diversified world, people often overlook the importance of being bicultural. Neha will highlight what cultural awareness is, its benefits, and ways to develop it.

The Psychology Behind Climate Change by Shanlea T.
As citizens, we are constantly inundated with statistics about climate change that don’t motivate us to change our behavior. By understanding the psychology behind our actions, we can take action against one of humanity's most pressing threats.

The Bubble of Silicon Valley by Srutika S.
Srutika explains how growing up in Silicon Valley can be a conflicting whirlwind of an experience. With the influence of the tech industries and the competitive spirit, students struggle to find a balance that allows them to prosper.

Generation Z Making an Impact by Samvi R.
A truly digital native, Generation Z, is the most informed, evolved, and empathetic generation of its kind. In this presentation Samvi R. speaks about how Generation Z can build applause worthy products, resulting in a positive impact.

Navigating the Social Media Minefield by Aniruddh S.
In this presentation, Aniruddh will talk about a few of the most common ways people get taken advantage of on social media, with key examples illustrating such subterfuges, and provides a timely reminder to stay vigilant when using online tools.

Special thanks to the City of Cupertino, the Cupertino Library and the Friends of the Cupertino Library for making this event possible.

Cupertino teens make a positive impact in both the local community and the greater society, as they raise awareness regarding six socially relevant subjects in a series of special TEDx presentations recorded June 8, 2019 at the Cupertino Community Hall. The event is co-sponsored by TED, the City of Cupertino, and the Cupertino Library. Speakers include...


Ashley Kang
Student Art Enthusiast
Ashley Yelin Kang is a 16-year-old sophomore attending Cupertino High School. "Art is everywhere. Learn to use it" is about the connection between innovation and art; how bursts of creativity follow flourishes of advancement. Many people believe that art and STEM are distant from each other, but this thought only hinders people from better inventions, artwork, and ideas. In understanding this, she believes that our next generation of young, brilliant minds can succeed where our predecessors failed. She believes we can create on a far grander scale.


Eesha Ramkumar
Student raising awareness about Autism
Eesha Ramkumar is a rising junior at Monta Vista High School, Cupertino. Inspired by special needs students, she teamed up with two others and created a mobile app to help kids with autism cope with their daily challenges. The app won the US championship at Technovation and was a world finalist among 20,000 contestants. To help her community further, she founded a non-profit organization, Kids Who Kode, where she taught over two hundred kids to code in Scratch, Python, and Java. At school, she is the president of the Women In AI Club, and mentors younger girls as they create apps. Eesha also knows classical Indian dance as well as how to speak fluent mandarin.


Janvi Prasad
Gender Equality Advocate
Janvi Prasad is an 8th grader at Lawson Middle School. From the Silicon Valley, she has grown up in a world that has pushed for women to continuously excel in their career and home life. The problem arises when women are the only ones being pushed, but other genders, are not aware of the strides taken to achieve such success. This, in effect, contributes to the overall misogyny that continues to run rampant in the society. The lack of education on equality creates an inherent divide between the sexes. In Janvi’s speech, “Just Telling Girls They’re Equal Isn’t Enough,” she explores the importance of education for all genders on the struggles that women go through in order to succeed in society—breaking the common narrative of women having to struggle to push for equality alone.


Pranjal Mishra
Gender Equality Advocate
Pranjal Mishra is an 18-year-old, up-and-coming musician in the industry who also tries her hand in acting and modeling. She is known by her stage name V!CE. Graduated from Cupertino High School, she is ready to take on the world. She is starting off that goal with a Ted Talk. The name of her speech is: Out of the box: “The good Indian girl culture” in which she will be talking about how this culture emphasizes the importance of everyone else's thoughts and opinions about you….except for your own. She will go in depth on how “traditional confinements” such as these keep women in the “good Indian culture” box and make it almost impossible for them to even dream about thinking “out of the box.”


Sripad Sureshbabu
Student interested in antibiotic-resistant bacteria
Sripad Sureshbabu is a 16-year-old junior from Cupertino High School who is devoted to biology. He has created a 1st-place project in Biological Sciences at the Synopsys Science Fair. He is also a semifinalist for the USABO and loves spending his free time reading and playing basketball. He has focused his attention on the most dangerous threat of the next decade: Superbugs. Strains of antibiotic-resistant bacteria are on the rise, and people are not giving it the attention it deserves. To defeat such a foe—one that evolves much faster than the medicines we create—we have to start implementing experimental nanotechnologies, vaccines, and even phage therapies that bring a whole new meaning to "Out of the Bo(x)." This is his talk, “The Superbug—and the Biological AI Can Fight It.”


Stuti Upadhyay
Student raising awareness about Hepatitis B
Stuti Upadhyay is a junior at Monta Vista High School. In her free time, she enjoys playing soccer, hanging out with friends and family, listening to music, and doing anything outdoors. She also loves watching TV shows with her family, especially Modern Family, Blackish, White Collar, Pysch, and more. Her talk is about the prevalence of Hepatitis B in Asian communities, and the need for Cupertino to be more aware about the disease and the stigma surrounding it. Through her talk, she hopes to generate awareness about the disease and encourage students to become ambassadors and advocates of the subjects they are most passionate about

(This is the long broadcast version of the event. A series of shorter segments are also available online)

Janvi Prasad is an 8th grader at Lawson Middle School. From the Silicon Valley, she has grown up in a world that has pushed for women to continuously excel in their career and home life. The problem arises when women are the only ones being pushed, but other genders, are not aware of the strides taken to achieve such success. This, in effect, contributes to the overall misogyny that continues to run rampant in the society. The lack of education on equality creates an inherent divide between the sexes. In Janvi’s speech, “Just Telling Girls They’re Equal Isn’t Enough,” she explores the importance of education for all genders on the struggles that women go through in order to succeed in society—breaking the common narrative of women having to struggle to push for equality alone.

Ashley Yelin Kang is a 16-year-old sophomore attending Cupertino High School. "Art is everywhere. Learn to use it" is about the connection between innovation and art; how bursts of creativity follow flourishes of advancement. Many people believe that art and STEM are distant from each other, but this thought only hinders people from better inventions, artwork, and ideas. In understanding this, she believes that our next generation of young, brilliant minds can succeed where our predecessors failed. She believes we can create on a far grander scale.

Eesha Ramkumar is a rising junior at Monta Vista High School, Cupertino. Inspired by special needs students, she teamed up with two others and created a mobile app to help kids with autism cope with their daily challenges. The app won the US championship at Technovation and was a world finalist among 20,000 contestants. To help her community further, she founded a non-profit organization, Kids Who Kode, where she taught over two hundred kids to code in Scratch, Python, and Java. At school, she is the president of the Women In AI Club, and mentors younger girls as they create apps. Eesha also knows classical Indian dance as well as how to speak fluent mandarin.

Pranjal Mishra is an 18-year-old, up-and-coming musician in the industry who also tries her hand in acting and modeling. She is known by her stage name V!CE. Graduated from Cupertino High School, she is ready to take on the world. She is starting off that goal with a Ted Talk. The name of her speech is: Out of the box: “The good Indian girl culture” in which she will be talking about how this culture emphasizes the importance of everyone else's thoughts and opinions about you….except for your own. She will go in depth on how “traditional confinements” such as these keep women in the “good Indian culture” box and make it almost impossible for them to even dream about thinking “out of the box.”

Sripad Sureshbabu is a 16-year-old junior from Cupertino High School who is devoted to biology. He has created a 1st-place project in Biological Sciences at the Synopsys Science Fair. He is also a semifinalist for the USABO and loves spending his free time reading and playing basketball. He has focused his attention on the most dangerous threat of the next decade: Superbugs. Strains of antibiotic-resistant bacteria are on the rise, and people are not giving it the attention it deserves. To defeat such a foe—one that evolves much faster than the medicines we create—we have to start implementing experimental nanotechnologies, vaccines, and even phage therapies that bring a whole new meaning to "Out of the Bo(x)." This is his talk, “The Superbug—and the Biological AI Can Fight It.”

Stuti Upadhyay is a junior at Monta Vista High School. In her free time, she enjoys playing soccer, hanging out with friends and family, listening to music, and doing anything outdoors. She also loves watching TV shows with her family, especially Modern Family, Blackish, White Collar, Pysch, and more. Her talk is about the prevalence of Hepatitis B in Asian communities, and the need for Cupertino to be more aware about the disease and the stigma surrounding it. Through her talk, she hopes to generate awareness about the disease and encourage students to become ambassadors and advocates of the subjects they are most passionate about