On December 2, an audience gathered in PHS’ Black Box Theater for the first-ever TedXWitherspoonSt Youth event. Hosted by Elizabeth Tian ’24 and Oliver Huang ’24, the event showcased talks delivered by high school students, college students, and professionals surrounding a central theme: “Change in a Changing World.”

“This theme was created to tackle issues present within society, questions [for] the future, and how we can better tomorrow through our actions today,” said Tian. “The world around us is constantly changing, and it's hard to navigate and define the challenges of change and how to react to them.”

During the night, the speakers detailed the intersections between personal, local, and global change through niche anecdotes. Iniya Karimanal ’26 discussed how to effectively utilize anger to create change, drawing inspiration from her own experiences. As an avid animal lover, Karimanal created a nonprofit sticker business donating to animal shelters, channeling her anger regarding the common euthanization of animals that are not adopted in shelters.

“I think it’s important to take a more holistic view on anger. A lot of us think of anger, and we think immediately of it being negative and destructive,” said Karimanal. “We can do a better job of extracting positive energy from our anger.”

Growing up with childhood apraxia of speech, Elina Csapo ’24, another speaker and senior at the Hun School, also talked about how anger can be a useful vessel in creating global change and improvement. In her presentation, Csapo shared how she expressed her frustration in struggling to find a supportive community for kids with hidden disabilities by creating Young Able Voices. Establishing the organization when she was 17, she aims for it to be a safe place for kids with hidden disabilities to connect and find support.

“Having community is something that is very special,” said Csapo. “I hope people take away from my presentation that everyone has a bright future, and to not judge a person by their quirks or their differences.”

With positive feedback from a majority of the audience, many attendees enjoyed the central theme of change that tied all nine presentations together.

“I really liked how everything was about change and finding positivity in weakness,” said attendee Simryn Patel ’26. “I feel like more people should be introduced to this opportunity.”

The event was not only an insightful experience for audience members, but also a rewarding opportunity for the speakers.

“I [was] able to meet really cool people,” said speaker Priya Brunnermeier ’25, another presenter at the event. “I liked the research ahead of it and [felt] satisfied after knowing that [I was] able to overcome [my] initial fear in the moment.”

Behind the night were months of planning by Tian, Huang, and PHS math teacher Brent Ferguson. Starting in February, they had to navigate the process of obtaining a TEDx license, finding speakers with unique topics, getting sponsors, and contacting photographers and videographers.

“[The] speakers wrote their talks independently, but we provided them with speech coaches and resources to aid them with their talks,” Tian said. “One of our biggest goals with this event was to inspire others to think about change and their futures, whether it be how they react to personal issues or broader issues like climate change or policy.”

Following the success of the event, Tian emphasized its ultimate goal of bringing out underrepresented voices and untold stories, spurring conversations that can create change in the world.

“I loved listening to my speakers present their talks. It felt so rewarding to see them confidently speak their stories on stage to a focused, engaged audience,” said Tian. “It felt like all of their and our hard work paid off.”