TED Community » Asha de Vos

More About Me

I'm passionate about

Life and living, marine life - particularly blue whales, protecting the ocean and its wealth, family and friends, learning, travel and education! Most importantly, I am fuelled by curiosity.

An idea worth spreading

Everything on this earth is so closely intertwined that when we drive a species to extinction, we are spelling our own demise.

Talk to me about

Whales and conservation....and anything else you might be passionate about. I am always open to learning new things!

People don't know that I'm good at

Not talking (when underwater :) ), yoga, crochet

My TED Story

A former classmate of my brother's, Sanjana Hattotuwa, wrote to me one day requesting an interview. I was happy to oblige knowing how important awareness is to protecting the blue whales that I work with. On his email signature, I noticed that he had been a TEDfellow. Having followed TEDtalks for many years and really enjoying the diversity and passion in all the speakers I did a quick search on what and how to become a TEDfellow. I had a week to apply and I knew it was a long shot but I went for it anyways. Here I am, preparing for my first TED and hoping that I represent my blue whales as best as they deserve!

Comments

• TEDCred score: +55.10 TEDCred reflects your contribution to the TED community.

• +4

  A comment on Conversation: Will making rockstars out of women in science get more girls interested in science/technology/engineering/math (i.e. STEM) fields?

  Apr 12 2013: As a woman in science from a developing country I think role models come in many forms. I think it is important for us not to focus purely on science role models but also consider role models who haven't got those 'paper qualifications'. Mothers in fact are some of the biggest influences on all our lives. I have always admired scientists of both genders but never idolised. I got the strength to be anything I wanted to be from my mum. She allowed and encouraged me to be curious and live my dreams. I think kids need access to role models who are inspirational and have challenged society and moved mountains to become what they are today. They need role models in the people they meet everyday who believe in them. There are plenty of these unsung heroes in our parts of the world. It doesn't matter what field they are in because at the end of the day, kids just have to feel confident that they can do it. If you feel confident and inspired then you will pursue whatever field is of interest to you whether or not it is in the STEM fields.
  
  I know the whole rockstar analogy has been discussed before but I just like to also comment that the image of a rockstar is not necessarily a positive image. Maybe my thoughts on rockstars are biased by what i see in the media but they peak and crash, take drugs and party. Is that really what we want kids to associate their dreams with? and yes, just a few of them ever get any limelight. I think the people who influence kids should be people that are human. Someone accessible, someone anyone can connect with.
  
  If we consider female role models in science - how many scientists actually take time out to do outreach work? To BE accessible? A role model should be someone who has achieved great things but is yet able to make time to inspire. Not just a face on a poster.
  
  I suppose it goes back to the beginning of what I said - role models should not just be those achieving great things, they should be everyday people who are real.

• A comment on Conversation: Why do you care about blue whales?

  Nov 29 2012: Thank you for your comments on my question. I agree, whales are intriguing because they are elusive, because they are a fundamental part of a complex web of life, because we have so much to learn about them that would inform us about our own lives. I think this applies to most creatures out there but some capture the imagination a little bit more than others....

• A reply on Conversation: Why do you care about blue whales?

  Nov 29 2012: Absolutely agree with you on this. I am really interested in animals and their behaviours but I strongly believe that if you don't understand their environment and how that impinges on the creature then there is no hope. I think that conservation has started to shift from pure 'save the animal' to the more holistic ecosystems and livelihoods approach, which I think is imperative in this world we live in. Everything is totally tied together in a single, very large web and we have to treat it as such. The former approach is way too simplistic.

• A reply on Conversation: Why do you care about blue whales?

  Nov 29 2012: I tend to agree that there is a level of fascination with the unknown mixed in with the fact that they are so big that perhaps piques our interest. Does that mean however, that the more we learn about these elusive creatures, the less people will be interested in them? will they lose their magic?

• A reply on Conversation: Why do you care about blue whales?

  Nov 16 2012: Thanks Feyisayo for responding! Ok, but there are lots of endangered species out there -- why is it that we don't necessarily care about them the same way we care about a blue whale? Is it because they are so elusive?
• +3

  A reply on Talk: Cesar Harada: A novel idea for cleaning up oil spills

  Jul 6 2012: Cesar may be my friend but more than that he's a hero of mine. He is the most humble and incredible guy you will meet and his personality is probably what draws people to make this work more than anything else. He's definitely not overhyped, he's pure genius and yes out of the box but thats why he's so incredible! :)

• A reply on Conversation: Do extremist tactics push environmentalism forwards or backwards?

  Jun 6 2012: Hey Trevor...valid points and actually, the IWC does allow for aboriginal whaling. Communities that have a culture of whaling are allowed to continue to do so and have quotas. These are usually small scale and very localised. The problem really arises when whaling occurs in other territorial waters and at a factory scale. Again, like I said the reasons why Japan continue whaling are really contentious and complicated and while actions of extremist groups do bring attention to the problem they do little else. They just get alot of people's backs up and perhaps even put a spoke in the hard work of peaceful negotiators just like you pointed out. There must be other ways but we need to think about them and perhaps think way outside the box.

• A comment on Conversation: Do extremist tactics push environmentalism forwards or backwards?

  Jun 4 2012: Interesting topic of debate. Seems like most people don't agree in extremism. I have issues with it too. I have a friend who is part of the International Whaling Commission Scientific Committee and has been for many many years. He says that the extreme actions of groups like Sea Shepherd don't always have positive outcomes. Quite often the stuff they do irritates the Japanese so much that it closes their minds to moving forward through negotiations. The thing is, the issue with the whaling is a more complicated problem and going out there and bombing ships doesn't get rid of the root problems.
  We definitely need a world with a variety of thinkers using various tactics to save what little is left. I just wish there was an alternate way. So perhaps we need a few who step outside the box and are willing to throw themselves out there?
• +1

  A comment on Conversation: What guidelines would you give someone preparing a TEDx talk?

  May 1 2012: Make sure you are talking about something close to your heart - that makes a difference. You can then be freely passionate and inspiring. Don't talk about something that IS NOT your work.....you are more inclined to make blunders.
  
  Make sure you fact check before embarking on a talk. The worst thing you can do is inspire people about an idea that is completely misleading.

• A comment on Talk: Just how small is an atom?

  Apr 30 2012: This is wonderful! Clever use of analogies using familiar objects....looking forward to more!