This global COVID pandemic is an absolute mood-spoiler for 2020. Yet, there’s so many things I am to be grateful for – my good health, my family’s good health, and my job! I mean, honestly, in a climate like this, I feel very blessed that I can still keep my job which I love very much.
However, I’m not protected from what’s going on locally and globally, which made me feel anxious and despair. It took a toll on my mental health well-being, and it was difficult to feel glee about anything. As I was about to slip into one of my bad days, I received news from Vivian that my TEDx Singapore Women talk went live online! It felt timely and watching myself had reminded me of my potential positive outlook to issues. It was the booster I need to kick start my engines again!
This talk is quite a milestone for me, as it is my first major public appearance post-birth of Ada. I felt excited to be back on the stage, yet I also felt very conscious of myself. Can I still memorise my script?! (cue mom brain here – haha!)
This talk is also different, unlike any others I’ve done so far. I am not only speaking as a scientist, I am speaking as a young mother. My roles have changed (if not, increased!), but it has somewhat changed my perceptions on the way I approach conservation issues today. It is now about leaving a positive environmental legacy for my little one. A world that she can thrive and enjoy – fresh air and clean waters.
If you can spare me 12 minutes of your day/life, check out my talk on marine life thriving in Singapore, and the legacies left behind by my predecessors and my peers contributing towards marine conservation.
[Fun fact] I learnt that our scanning devices will not allow the scanning of currency notes! 🙂 I promise that it wasn’t for forgery…!
[Gratitude] Thank you, TEDx Singapore, TEDx Singapore Women family, including Vivian Lim, Divya Parmar, Jim See, Gillian Rogers, Lester Chin, Vivek Manoharan, Nazhath Faheema, Melanie Cook, Melissa Kwee, Dave Lim, and many others! 😀
Mei Lin Neo 