The Team

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Ajantha Nadesalingam

Ajantha is a grade 11 student at NTCI. She is the founder and head of TEDxYouth@NTCI club, and organizer of TEDxNorthToronto conference. Ajantha is also the founder of the Me-to-We club at the Orde St PS, and the Valedictorian of the Deer Park PS in 2013. Her primary interests lie in Science-Technology-Engineering-Math (STEM) fields, and she feels that fulfillment in her life will be achieved by making contributions to the world of science. She has been doing science projects, and received multiple awards at TDSB science fairs (2 gold medals) and at Canada-wide science fairs (1 silver and 1 gold medal). She also enjoys studying languages, including Latin, French and Tamil. She holds the belief that changes on a micro level, when undertaken by the masses, is the key to global change. Therefore, Ajantha is extensively involved in her community: She is an executive of NTCI NEAT club, the school outreach director of Toronto Youth Environmental Council, a writer in Graffiti, an active participant in the Youth Leadership Program (YLP) of the Center for Leadership and Innovation, and a Fulbright Canadian Youth Ambassador to the USA. Ajantha also gives motivational speeches, create films on social issues, and conduct scientific research in the University of Toronto.

 

DSC_0041Caitlin Heffernan: Treasurer/Outreach Director

Caitlin Heffernan chose to be a part of TEDx because of the great joy she finds in acquiring a greater understanding of the world, and a desire to generally know everything. At North TorontoCollegiate Institute she is also involved in symphonic band, orchestra,the school newspaper, and Reach for the Top.  Her hobbies include knitting, sewing, and as a result, she spends a plentitude of time convincing others she isn’t secretly an old lady.  She has a passion for words, be it etymology, lexicography, or dialects. Her current favourite word is “defenestrate”, which means to throw someone out a window.

 

 

 

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Charlie Littler: Graphic Design/Website Design

Charlie Littler is a grade 11 student at North Toronto Collegiate Institute. They work heavily in human rights, and they are the current president of the North Toronto Gay Straight Alliance (GSA). Additionally, they are involved in student leadership, the debate team, school newspaper, and playing on the field hockey team. Charlie is interested in pursuing degrees in history and political science. Their other hobbies include writing, art, film. martial arts, and canoeing.

 

 

 

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Andrew Farley: Graphic Design/Website Design

Andrew Farley is a grade eleven student at North Toronto Collegiate Institute. Andrew is a student who enjoys engaging in the community he is in. As a result, he is highly involved in the North Toronto community. He takes an active role in the highly successful robotics club at North Toronto Collegiate Institute. Further, he is also involved in other activities, which include curling, fencing, and lifeguarding. In the future, he would like to become either a computer scientist or an engineer.

 

 

 

DSC_0002Anastasia Zaritovskaya: Graphic Design/Website Design

Anastasia Zaritovskaya is in Grade 10 at North Toronto Collegiate Institute and is passionate about art, writing, and interesting ideas in general – the reason why she joined TEDxNorthToronto. She moved to Canada from Russia five in 2010, and never gets tired of talking of her experiences there (and on her other travels). Anastasia spends her free time either looking for books at the local library, participating in extracurricular activities or having small existential crises. Her favourite quote and general motto in life is “Life is short. Eat dessert first.”

 

 

 

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Ethan Wong: Graphic Design/Website Design

Ethan Wong is an eleventh grader at North Toronto Collegiate Institute. Among his varied and diverse interests are robotics, curling, and skiing. At school Ethan has had numerous successes. These include being awarded MVP on the curling team during the 2014/2015 season. Further, he has consistently achieved the top 25% score   in the Waterloo math exams during his time at North Toronto Collegiate Institute. In the future, is considering pursuing a career in applied sciences, particularly computer science.

 

 

 

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Hana Abdelmeguid: Graphic Design/Website Design

Hana Abdelmeguid, a grade eleven student at North Toronto Collegiate Institute, is a very passionate individual. Her interests vary, and she feels passionate about both arts, citing it as her golden ticket to self expression. Within the school, she participates in numerous extracurricular activities, including junior strings and biology club. Further, Hana is also interested in sciences, and she plans to pursue a career within the medical field. 

 

 

 

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Lucy Ma: Secretary 

Lucy Ma, a grade 10 student at North Toronto Collegiate Institute, is a challenge driven individual. She is determined to attempt everything she is passionate about. Her  personal goal is that before she goes to sleep, she should start something worth waking up for. She believes that life is simply too short to wait for the next opportunity.  Given her outlook on life, she feels that she will be someone who will eventually look back at the past, and find endless stories to tell.

 

BilmerShannon Bilmer: Staff Supervisor

Shannon Bilmer is passionate about literature, the performing arts, working for charities and travelling around the world. When studying to complete post secondary education, her volunteer efforts with a global project dedicated to providing clean water to the world’s poorest people, sparked her interest in exploring the world and her desire to become an educator. She has taught in England and Japan and currently she teaches English and Social Sciences at NTCI in Toronto. She often uses TED talks in her classroom as she believes it instills a sense of empathy in her students and also offers a global perspective, imperative in today’s classroom.  This year, it has been a privilege to witness students recognizing the strength of their own voice in our local community through their planning of our own TEDx event.  When we create compassion, we create an environment that is much richer and much more meaningful for our students.