How Third Culture Kids Hold the Key to Inclusive Leadership | Emilia Lun | TEDxEspoo Youth
Emillia Lun was a Youth Speaker at TEDxEspoo Youth 2025!In this TEDx Talk, Emilia Lun reflects on the experience of being a third-culture kid - someone who has grown up with influences from multiple cultures and countries. Her Talk starts with a simple question: “Where are you from?” But Emilia explains how for a third-culture kid, answering that is not so simple. She explains how her own story doesn't fit neatly into one place. She was raised in one country, has parents from another, went to school in a completely different setting, and even put “home” in a fort - metaphorically speaking.
The Talk dives into what it feels like to grow up in the “in-between” - where you are expected to know how to manage different languages, customs, and expectations. She shares how it is a struggle to fit in and constantly shift between different cultures. She explains as they grew older, she came to realize that the “in-between” space is not a void - it is a place of connection. Being a third-culture kid means you are a bridge, someone who can understand multiple perspectives and bring people together across differences.
Emilia also shares a story from her time at a boarding school in the Swiss Alps, where she saw a new student feeling invisible and unsure of where to sit at lunch. This moment became a reminder to her how third-culture kids are often more aware of these quiet moments, able to notice when others are left out.
At the end of Emilia’s Talk she says: “The future of leadership, real leadership, isn't loud. It's listening. It's bridging. And it's belonging. And I believe that the most powerful changemakers don't all just come from one place. They come from between them.”For anyone who has ever felt like they don't quite fit in, this talk is a reminder that being “in-between” is not a weakness - it is a strength. Whether you identify as a third-culture kid or not, this Talk offers a new perspective on connection.#TEDxEspooYouth #TEDxTalk #TEDxEspooYouth2025 Emilia Lun is a high school student, raised between Germany, Italy, the U.S., and Switzerland, she’s learned to navigate identity, language, and belonging from a young age. After spending a life-changing exchange year at Beau Soleil, a Swiss boarding school and climbing Mount Kilimanjaro at 15, Emilia saw that real leadership isn’t about fitting in. It’s about building bridges. In her talk, she shares why growing up between cultures isn’t a gap. It's a gift. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx
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