Written by: Oorvi Abhaya Sitanggang
Edited by: Rachel Emmanuella Marlinang
Kicking off the new year, the TEDxAPU student circle has made for a memorable day for APU students by hosting their first TEDx talk event in 5 years, since 2019. The Millennium Hall's stage shone red, again illuminating APU with the spirit of TED. Casting light upon the audience’s vision with what seems to be a beam of shining stars and galaxies, the team successfully conveyed their theme: “Constellations: Ad Astra” where every speaker is a star weaving an interconnected web.
Starting with a vibrant performance by Araumachiyo, an APU Japanese traditional dance circle, the audience was immediately captivated by their boisterous voices and movements. The dancers weaved energetically through the stage, dancing to the tune of flute, drum, and bell played by their musicians in the backdrop. Simultaneously, the performance tells a rather humorous "Snow White-inspired story about a beautiful girl with suitors who was poisoned by a jealous fellow girl, only to be revived by her handsome suitor in the end. They did an excellent job of gearing up the audience's excitement for the event, as they encouraged audience members to engage with the performance, hooting "Rasera! Rasera! Rase, rase, rasera!"
Mariko Hashimoto: “It’s the Stories and Emotions that Will Move the Future”
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With morale set high for the rest of the event, the first speaker, Mariko Hashimoto, took to the stage. Her story began as she revealed one of the struggles and hardships, as well as the empowerment she received as a former receptionist with field experience of over 10 years who turned into the CEO of her own company, RECEPTIONIST, Inc. As a woman and a mother, she shines a light on what it means to be female in the Japanese workforce and the stereotypes that hinder them from rising to top executive positions.
These stereotypes against women, she ruminates, are the reason she was working as a receptionist in the first place, as it is a “woman’s job.” Hashimoto did not let this discourage her, however, as she says “I am currently in this position” referencing her executive status,” because I was a woman.” It is only the experiences that you have and what you do with them that can shape your life, and factors such as gender should not be limitations, is what she encompasses in her talk. It is through this extensive experience that she was able to procure the idea for her app, which takes advantage of cloud and AI technology to consolidate receptionist services all in one platform, which increases the opportunity for individuals to focus on the tasks only humans can perform.
Hashimoto’s story serves as a beacon of inspiration, emphasizing that individual experiences and emotions possess the transformative energy needed to drive positive change and shape a more inclusive and empowered future.
Sherly Budiman: “Identity and Diversity: This is My Story. What’s Yours?”
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The next speaker was Sherly Budiman, a 4th year APM student. A wholesome anecdote turned life lesson, Budiman muses on the time some friends and herself, as international students at UWC Dilijan in Armenia, decided to hold an “instant noodle party.” Budiman and a Nigerian friend of hers decided to bring Indomie to represent their countries. Unbeknownst to both of them, Indomie is sold in both countries. Budiman, who is Indonesian, where Indomie originates from, was shocked to find that different versions of Indomie exist and are popular in other countries.
On the other hand, her Nigerian friend had always thought Indomie was Nigerian! Although perhaps it was merely a simple misunderstanding being uncovered, Budiman was highly inspired by this and realized the importance of individual and diverse stories, significantly influenced by our cultural and educational upbringings. This so-called “personal bubble” we live in, is very minuscule, in comparison to how vast the world is. And, everyone has their own, unique story to tell, including Budiman herself.
Qonita, an audience member also from Indonesia and a 4th year APS student, shared her support for Budiman’s talk as she gushed, “Hearing her perspective as someone who may be different from others was insightful, as an Indonesian.” Aceh, known for its implementation of Sharia (Islamic) law, is not known for its minorities, with 99% of the population being Muslim, but they do exist. As a Chinese-Indonesian living there, Budiman is one of them. “It makes me believe in myself,” Qonita reflects, “-that I have a personal story that I can bring to inspire others - maybe through TEDx in the future, and maybe through other forms as well!”
Minoru Asada: "Creating Artificial Mind: The Big Challenge of Cognitive Developmental Robotics"
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Minoru Asada, a professor from Osaka University, refreshes the audience by pursuing the topic of robotics and artificial intelligence, which are highly contentious and novel to the general public these days. Asada shows his passion and zest for the field, sharing his findings on current human speech-imitating robots. He combines linguistic knowledge of humans’ capability of speech production and language acquisition and applies these efforts to his robotics and artificial intelligence projects. Diving into interesting subjects such as the uniquely human ability of having empathy, and self-consciousness, which are exceedingly difficult to mimic in robotic systems.
Asada’s narrative unfolds not just as a presentation of groundbreaking research but also as a testament that passion is the driving force to pushing the frontiers of technological innovation.
Mayuki Hiramatsu: "Raising the Bar! My Journey from Pop Singer to Lawyer"
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Mayuki Hiramatsu, a former singer turned lawyer, has not chosen the most conventional path in life. Her story illustrates the unexpected trajectories life can take us. It reaffirms the belief that one can persistently pursue their dreams, evolving into the best version of oneself whenever the opportunity arises, illustrating that there is no inherently wrong path in one’s journey.
Starting out as a teen idol in the Japanese entertainment industry, Hiramatsu took to the spotlight as a professional singer. She also sang the theme song for the anime, “Cutie Honey.” However, at 20 years old, she changed the trajectory of her life by deciding to go to university. She admits she was not serious in these years, choosing to play around with friends and boyfriends, and in the following years, from entering graduate school to becoming an office worker in Tokyo, while resuming her music career. However, a sudden realization came into her life that she was not challenging herself enough.
After being inspired by a documentary of lawyers trying to save a death row inmate convicted of the 1961 Nabari wine-poisoning murders, she decided to go to Nagoya University Law School at the age of 33. In law school, Hiramatsu was intimidated by the qualifications and ages of her cohorts, who were often years younger than her and took their academics very seriously. The bar exam was no easy feat, either. Hiramatsu testified that even the number 1 student in her school failed the exam 3 times, which was the limit of tries you could take for the bar in 2013 Japan.
Hiramatsu was moved by the many voiceless and misunderstood people in the eyes of the law, and she took this as her motivation to keep persisting in law, to which she finally succeeded, as she passed the bar exam on her third try. Now, she owns her law firm, Hiramatsu Law Office, based in Oita. Her story is a testament to persistence and self-motivation, that no matter your age and your background - you have the right to pursue your dreams and do better for the world.
Show Nemoto: "The Risk of Not Being Yourself"
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When Show Nemoto, an influencer, life coach, and social media motivator, confidently strode onto the stage, a wave of expectance swept through the room. One can tell he is used to being in the public eye, trained to project his voice and capture the attention of anyone in the room. Nemoto was not always like this. He narrates a story when he was in Amsterdam, trying out their saunas for the first time. His friend had cheekily told him that men and women did not use towels inside saunas - and he believed it. As he prepared his heart, and gathered the courage to show up completely naked at the door, he found that to his dismay, everyone had been using towels, and were not, in fact, naked. The audience laughed heartily at this reveal.
Nevertheless, “I found the courage to show up as who I am and be okay with it,” Nemoto reminisces, despite the situation being embarrassing to himself, which frames the theme of the rest of his talk: to live as your best, authentic self. As a young’un, Nemoto had had his tribulations. He was bullied, which led him to become closed off and hesitant to express himself in fear of being judged. However, the risk of inaction, which Nemoto illustrates is “not using our potential, and not living our lives to the fullest,” is much greater than the risk of action, which despite all the shame and failures you may face, has its pay-off in the end. His transformation began when he started posting on social media. It was not all rainbows and unicorns, as he did face judgment at first, but his choice and tenacity to push through has led him to become a recognized influencer and life coach, with over 2.4 million followers across different platforms. Nemoto particularly emphasizes the importance of yin-yang inside us, to embrace both joy and hardships and appreciate their coexistence, to achieve a harmonious balance in our lives, and to foster personal growth.
Yooko Sakurai: "Reclaim your Inner Strength and Live Powerfully"
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As the last speaker for TEDxAPU 2024, Yooko Sakurai delivered a poignant monologue, that resonated deeply with the audience. Sharing her experiences as a self-conscious person, unsure of her place in the world, her story tells of the struggles of self-expression and the fear of being judged, self-introspection, and finally, self-acceptance. As an artist and poet, she heart-wrenchingly and beautifully conveyed the profound power of reclaiming one's authenticity.
“If I expose myself completely, the world will grow cold,” Sakurai’s past self had believed, hiding the parts of herself that wanted to leap out, by acting “normal” according to society’s standards. It was through the death of her family cat, Nezu, that she realized that her quest to become “normal” was only harming herself in the long run, as she pretended to be mentally sound for work the following day, worrying that people would take the death of her cat lightly. It turns out, they did not. This became a catalyst for her self-discovery, visiting Berlin in her 30s, to help with cat and dog initiatives, where she finally felt the freedom to not live in the eyes of others, which was the starting point for her new path. Commencing her artistic work in the summer of 2021, she found that the way to express herself was through the medium of art, conveying her emotions through the flow of her hands on a canvas.
Through her experiences, Sakurai teaches us the detrimental impact of hiding behind a facade of perceived normalcy, and that true freedom and empowerment lie in embracing one's authentic self. In her story, we find inspiration to break free from the fear of judgment, reclaim our inner strength, and embark on a powerful, authentic life journey, which was an excellent concluding message for TEDxAPU 2024.
To wrap up the event, an accelerating performance was carried out by APU’s Japanese traditional drum circle, “Wadaiko Raku.” Tasked with capturing the essence of Beppu into sound, “Wadaiko Raku'' was a show of intense beats and tempo changes, while the musicians poured impressive focus into their instruments. Such an invigorating performance surely woke the audience up again and ended TEDxAPU 2024 with a bang.