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Inspiring Women: From Teenagers to Trailblazers

Inspiring Women: From Teenagers to Trailblazers

By: Rushton Hurley and the Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley
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 Powerful stories and insights from women of all ages—teenagers to trailblazers—shared at the Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley. Tune in for inspiration and real-world advice from remarkable role models. Podcast and Zoom Host: Rushton Hurley Podcast Producer: Elton SherwinRushton Hurley and the Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley
Episodes
  • 5. Azure Grimes, Libraries Without Borders

    5. Azure Grimes, Libraries Without Borders
    Jul 14 2025

    Libraries in: Refugee Camps, Storm Shelters, Laundromats, Trailer Parks and more...

    Bibliothèques Sans Frontières (Libraries Without Borders, or LWB) is an international non-profit that strengthens the capacity of people in vulnerable situations by facilitating access to education, information, and cultural resources.

    In more than 50 countries, Libraries Without Borders creates innovative cultural and learning spaces that allow those affected by crisis to learn, to play, to strengthen their communities, and to construct their futures.

    Speaker: Azure Grimes

    For more Info:

    https://www.librarieswithoutborders.org/

    https://www.librarieswithoutborders.us/


    ⁠⁠More about the Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley⁠⁠

    • Website: ⁠⁠Rotary.cool⁠
    • Meetings’ ⁠⁠Video Archive⁠⁠
    • YouTubeChannel⁠⁠
    • How to become a member in ⁠⁠this online Rotary eClub⁠⁠

    ⁠⁠More about Rotary International:⁠⁠

    • Website: ⁠⁠www.Rotary.org⁠⁠
    • Find a ⁠⁠local Rotary club⁠⁠
    • Find an ⁠⁠online Rotary Club⁠⁠

    Podcast and Zoom Host: ⁠⁠Rushton Hurley⁠⁠

    Podcast Producer: ⁠⁠Elton Sherwin⁠⁠

    Audio edited and enhanced with: ⁠⁠Descript Studio Sound ⁠⁠

    #PositiveChange #Inspiration #Rotary
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    25 mins
  • 4. Dr. Sarika Khanwilkar, Protecting Rainforests

    4. Dr. Sarika Khanwilkar, Protecting Rainforests
    Jul 14 2025
    Using AI, the Rainforest Connection (RFCx) is a science- and technology-driven nonprofit detecting and preventing deforestation and supporting biodiversity and ecosystem monitoring in 119 countries. Founded in 2014, RFCx accomplishes this work by combining the power of acoustics, AI, an international team of field workers, scientists, engineers, and data scientists, and on-the-ground collaborators. By utilizing acoustic data and AI, they can gather data on the presence, distribution, and behavior of a wide range of species, from birds and mammals to insects and frogs, as well as patterns of threats. This information can then be used to inform conservation and management decisions, including identifying key biodiversity areas, establishing protected areas, evaluating wildlife management initiatives, and developing conservation strategies tailored to different species.RFCx focuses on real-time threat detection of illegal activities, such as logging and poaching, using acoustic technology. To decrease illegal activity and protect threatened ecosystems, they developed recorders called Guardians, which are placed in the canopy and run in real time. The Guardians automatically detect the sounds of chainsaws or gunshots and send alerts to rangers or communities via the Guardian Mobile and Web App, who can then immediately take action to stop illicit activities. The threat detection pipeline developed by RFCx has been adopted and successfully deployed across 25 countries. To monitor biodiversity, RFCx aids partners end-to-end and/or in specific areas with their biodiversity monitoring projects using acoustics and AI with planning, executing, and understanding results. They produce long-term solutions to biodiversity monitoring by creating regional Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) that automate species detections of hundreds of species from sound recordings; they have classified almost 1,500 species around the world for automatic detection from 16 CNNs their team has developed. This allows on-the-ground collaborators to detect species and monitor their behavior long-term for the purpose of enabling data-driven conservation decisions and actions. Their team also conducts ecoacoustic analyses, combining species-specific and soundscape results from acoustic analysis with climatic and environmental variables to model ecological processes.Our speaker, Dr. Sarika Khanwilkar, has dedicated her career to conserving endangered species and improving planetary health through data-driven action. Before joining Rainforest Connection (RFCx), a conservation technology startup and nonprofit, she got her PhD in Ecology from Columbia University and was a Fulbright scholar. Dr. Khanwilkar has conducted research on the illegal wildlife trade, forest-based livelihoods, and forest health. She also is a founder of a nonprofit dedicated to tiger conservation and co-founder of one of India’s first research projects using sound to assess biodiversity. Most of her free time is spent in the forests of central India looking for tigers and admiring trees. At RFCx, she is Head of Partnerships and actively involved in using scalable technologies for high-impact conservation work across the globe. To learn more, go to:https://www.rfcx.org https://www.arbimon.org ⁠⁠More about the Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley⁠⁠ Website: ⁠⁠Rotary.cool⁠ Meetings’ ⁠⁠Video Archive⁠⁠ YouTubeChannel⁠⁠ How to become a member in ⁠⁠this online Rotary eClub⁠⁠⁠⁠More about Rotary International:⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠www.Rotary.org⁠⁠ Find a ⁠⁠local Rotary club⁠⁠ Find an ⁠⁠online Rotary Club⁠⁠ Podcast and Zoom Host: ⁠⁠Rushton Hurley⁠⁠Podcast Producer: ⁠⁠Elton Sherwin⁠⁠Audio edited and enhanced with: ⁠⁠Descript Studio Sound ⁠⁠ #PositiveChange #Inspiration #Rotary
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    32 mins
  • 3. Leanne Fan, Detecting and Treating Mid-ear Infections

    3. Leanne Fan, Detecting and Treating Mid-ear Infections
    Jul 14 2025

    Leanne Fan is a high schooler from San Diego, CA. In 2022 she was named America's Top Young Scientist by 3M.

    Fan's invention can both detect and treat mid-ear infections, and at a low cost.

    Details: By 2050, 1 in 4 people will have hearing loss to some extent. In children, the majority of this hearing loss is caused by mid-ear infections.

    Loss of hearing that comes from repeated ear infections can also affect one's future and health. For a child, this can affect the ability to learn and develop social skills. Diagnostic and treatment may be too expensive and unavailable in lower income countries, as over 50% of the world’s population doesn’t have access to healthcare.

    Our speaker, Leanne Fan, was inspired by her mother's battles with multiple ear infections to invent the Finsen Headphones, a prototype that detects and treats mid-ear infections using acoustic reflectometry, machine learning, and phototherapy.

    These headphones can both detect and treat mid ear infections, and at a low cost.

    A high schooler from San Diego, Fan was named America's Top Young Scientist by 3M and Discovery Education in 2022 and rang the New York Stock Exchange opening bell. She strives to provide a low cost and non-medicinal ear infection treatment in place of antibiotics for kids to prevent hearing loss, control infections before surgery is needed, and reduce the spread of antibiotic resistance. Fan also encourages science and art in her community and in younger children by promoting her local science fairs and teaching children science at science expos.

    To learn more about Leanne's project in the 3M Young Scientist Challenge, go to: https://wvnexus.org/?p=13513


    ⁠⁠More about the Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley⁠⁠

    • Website: ⁠⁠Rotary.cool⁠
    • Meetings’ ⁠⁠Video Archive⁠⁠
    • YouTubeChannel⁠⁠
    • How to become a member in ⁠⁠this online Rotary eClub⁠⁠

    ⁠⁠More about Rotary International:⁠⁠

    • Website: ⁠⁠www.Rotary.org⁠⁠
    • Find a ⁠⁠local Rotary club⁠⁠
    • Find an ⁠⁠online Rotary Club⁠⁠

    Podcast and Zoom Host: ⁠⁠Rushton Hurley⁠⁠

    Podcast Producer: ⁠⁠Elton Sherwin⁠⁠

    Audio edited and enhanced with: ⁠⁠Descript Studio Sound ⁠⁠

    #PositiveChange #Inspiration #Rotary
    Show More Show Less
    27 mins

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