Being passionate about intercultural issues, Minghui Gao is doing research on intercultural communication in the media, multicultural education and international business. She is currently a Ph.D. researcher at the University of Helsinki and the University of Turku. With her academic research on interculturality and identity, Minghui is going to share her personal experience of living with stereotypes.
Why do you want to give this speech?
The brand of TED and TEDx really means something to me. I used to watch other people giving speeches at such events and I thought how nice it is to share your ideas and thoughts with the rest of the world. So when I saw the audition call, I didn’t even hesitate. I felt so surprised to get this chance myself.
This has also something to do with my studies of intercultural communication and its part in combating stereotypes. I also felt it important to share my daily experiences with facing stereotypes. So you can say it’s a combination of academic knowledge and personal experience.
Who should hear your speech?
Anyone who buys a ticket! (laugh) But really, those who have experienced the same – living abroad as a foreigner – and may find something in common with each other. Hopefully, this opens door to new thoughts for those who have never had to think about intercultural communications or how stereotypes affect us in everyday life.
People may be labelled with positive or negative stereotypes, even subconsciously, yet both are still stereotypes. Hopefully, we can all laugh about this.
Why did you want to speak at TEDxTurku?
The TED concept is incredible. It is very respected and valued as a method of sharing ideas and people actively search for inspiration on different topics from TED talks.
