TEDxTrichy

Speakers

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

• Anshu Gupta

  Anshu Gupta is an Ashoka Fellow and the founder director of Goonj, a primarily volunteer run organization based in New Delhi that provides clothes and other basic amenities to millions across India by turning one person's waste into a resource for another. By any definition of the word, the service concept of Goonj is revolutionary. By transforming simple ideas into nation-wide movements, Goonj has been redefining traditional notions of service. Anshu Gupta is creating a nation wide movement for channelizing vital resources lying in excess in urban and middle-class households to far flung rural areas in India, thus addressing some of the very basic needs of millions of poor people. Goonj was established in 1998 when Anshu left his job as a manager of corporate communications in a large Indian company and travel India in order to understand the needs of the people of his country. From collecting clothes from his own house, relatives and friends and distributing them on the roads in the chilly winter nights of Delhi, his dream has come a long way

• Balaji Sampath

  Balaji is revolutionizing the way science is taught in India by introducing "Science Dialogues" into middle and high schools. Balaji's methods are helping children change their perception of science as a difficult subject only for the very intelligent-a belief which has implications for their success completing school and consequently, their careers. Founded on the concept of "learning by doing," Balaji's curriculum is focused on helping students internalize concepts, an alternative to the traditional technique of rote memorization without adequate comprehension. The curriculum is currently implemented in schools by a team of volunteer demonstrators, most of them high-school dropouts. It brings the material to life through dialogues and lessons drawn from daily life, using simple tools kits and specially designed reading material incorporating stories, illustrations and experiments, often in fun cartoon forms. By overhauling the framework of traditional teaching techniques, Balaji is attempting to form a whole new generation of thinkers who can apply well-internalized, progressive principles to all aspects of life and become catalysts in the advancement and development of the nation