Student speakers focus on the power of language in SED talks event at public library

May 2, 2023 — by Sarah Zhou

The Saratoga Library hosted various local speakers who discussed their experiences with creative writing forms.

The speaker series concentrated on advocacy and its applications within different literary forms.

Over 50 students from different schools in the Bay Area and Saratoga residents gathered in the community room of the Saratoga Library on April 22 for the bi-annual speakers series SED Talks, hosted by the Saratoga Library Teen Advisory Board and Saratoga Youth Commission. SED Talks — which mimics the style of TEDx talks — invites local community leaders to speak about their experiences based on a rotating theme; past themes have included sustainable energy, environmental awareness and mental health.

This year, the topic was Words for Impact. SED talks hosted speakers such as Saratoga mayor Kookie Fitzsimmons, retired West Valley College English professor Susan Glass, Sierra Club advocate Susan Hinton, as well as junior Sanjoli Gupta and senior Christina Chang, both members of The Falcon staff. The event focused on exploring how various mediums of the English language such as creative writing, poetry and journalism can be used to spark change.

Sophomore Manlin Zhang, who helped plan and organize SED talks as part of the Teen Advisory Board, hoped the event would raise awareness for local and international issues.

“Our events explore different perspectives — professional, student and advocate — so that everyone leaves SED Talks with enough information to form their own opinion [about the impact of writing],” Zhang said. “I think everyone left with a real sense of curiosity [on the topics discussed]; [hearing from local speakers] is an entirely Saratogan experience you can’t get anywhere else.”

The event’s two student speakers — Gupta and Chang — both focused on their experiences reporting and editing for The Falcon as well as Chang’s time on Soundings magazine and Gupta’s work writing stories for national contests such as National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) and blog posts. 

Additionally, Glass — who is blind — spoke about her experiences telling her own story and within literature studies. She read  some of her own poetry, which incorporated imitated bird chirping.

Hinton also added the perspective of a visual artist using photography as a form of advocacy and storytelling. Growing up during the Vietnam War, Hinton participated in advocacy against war efforts, and more recently has advocated for foster youth and homeless people who were facing displacement as a result of various construction projects. Hinton, who also works for nature conservation, presented photography from a project about Saratoga Creek.

Gupta decided to speak at the event because she believes that it is important to share why she loves language and help spread this love with the community. Compared to previous public speaking events Gupta participated in for clubs such as Model UN, Gupta found presenting at SED Talks to be more personal and engaging.

“I didn’t feel like I was giving an intense speech, but rather talking to the people in front of me,” Gupta said. “I also really liked the Q&A panel because I could ask other speakers questions about their interests, and how they became involved in writing.”

During her own talk, Gupta discussed the impact that moving from Sunnyvale to India and in the fifth and eighth grades had on her relationship with language, and other experiences that shaped her passion for reading and writing.

“I love [words] because they have the power to captivate everyone — even children in preschool,” Gupta said. “I talked about how journalism and other forms of writing can be a means for changing a community and help create a community of people who are working towards the same goal.”

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