Wildlife Conservationist Jean-Gaël “JG” Collomb

We are thrilled to have JG Collomb, a prominent wildlife conservationist as a featured speaker at this year’s 2018 EB TEDxYouth event.

Jean-Gaël “JG” Collomb, Ph.D. has always been passionate about animals, and so are his two children, Chloé in Grade 3 and Luca in Kindergarten. Originally from Paris, France, JG started his career working in Lopé National Park in Gabon at an ecological research station focused on chimps, gorillas, mandrills, and other wildlife.

Over the past 20 years, he has been involved with non-profit organizations addressing issues at the interface between wildlife conservation and development. At the World Resources Institute, he developed the Central African branch of Global Forest Watch, an non-governmental organization network-pairing field based information with remote sensing data to monitor logging companies.

He returned to Gabon with the Wildlife Conservation Society to help the development of national parks and ecotourism. He now serves as the Executive Director of the Wildlife Conservation Network, an organization that invests in the best ideas to save endangered wildlife, providing long-term, in-depth support to local conservation organizations through its Partners’ Network, as well as shorter term project support through its Crisis and Recovery Funds aimed at saving wildlife across a species’ range.

JG has a Ph.D. in interdisciplinary ecology from the University of Florida with a concentration in tropical conservation and development, and studied the effects of tourism on people’s well being around protected areas in northeastern Namibia.

 

Eli Marienthal, EB alumni class of 2000

Eli Marienthal runs Back to Earth, a wilderness guiding and outdoor education organization based in Oakland, California. This organization works with young people to develop practices of personal development and self care through a culture of peacemaking and thanksgiving.

Eli is a lifelong learner and educator. He is trained through The Tracking Project in Corrales, New Mexico, a non-profit led by John Stokes devoted to peacemaking, nature awareness and cross cultural respect. He is a NOLS alumnus and a certified Wilderness First Responder.

Eli is also a poet, dancer, songwriter and spoken-word performer. He was a first generation Youth Speaks poet, and was (maybe still is) the youngest member of a winning Brave New Voices National Slam Team, as well as the youngest to win the Bay Area Slam. He continues to perform original work, sharing with audiences his distinctive voice of gratitude.

 

Student Speakers

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Charlotte Carmany

Can one person make a difference in this world? Charlotte suggests that Sci-Fi authors have been inspiring inventors for generations to bring their ideas to life.

 

Clarissa Mure

Clarissa believes that art is a language that everyone should be encouraged to use for self expression. Don’t let your perceived lack of creativity keep you from using the language of art.

 

Alexandra Kozlova

Through some amazing technology improvements, cataract surgery is now an affordable option to help cure blindness. Alexandra asks everyone to try and help spread the word that this option is available and you don’t have to live in the dark.

 

Gaspard Choquet

How do we keep the “awe” of amazement throughout our lives? Gaspard suggests we intentionally try and keep our ability to be amazed by letting our inner child shine.

 

Sasha Privat

As we learn more about the implications of ocean plastic pollution, Sasha gives us an update on some of the latest efforts and suggests possible solutions we can all help with.

 

Stella Pfeifer

“How can it be that in 2018 we still don’t have an equal rights amendment in the United States?,” Stella shares what it will take to get this amendment passed and encourages her fellow students (both boys and girls) to take action.

 

Leyla Akcaoglu

Colombia is vibrant and diverse country with a strong heritage of innovation and yet most people only think about Colombia through media stereotypes. Leyla shares all the things that amaze her about Columbia.

 

Erin Kirby

While social media is all around us and has many benefits, do the latest headlines concerning privacy and the affects on the brain warrant its use? Erin suggests we focus on the positive benefits and be more conscious about our actions.

 

Margot Saulnier

Margot challenges us to all think differently about our approach to being “in style” as she explains the current state of textile waste in the world and offers some personal solutions.

 

Alec Loustau

“Every night we have the opportunity to look at the night sky but how much do we know about space, stars, and the future of astronomy?” Alec shares some of the amazing advances in telescope technology and what this could mean for the future.