The power of not looking away | Chezik Tsunoda | TEDxBellevueWomen

Video Description

Grieving mother turned passionate advocate, Chezik Tsunoda, shares her powerful story of loss, purpose, and passion. She makes an urgent plea to everyone: don't look away. In the wake of the devastating loss of her 3-year-son, Chezik shares her experience of breaking cycles to prevent tragedies and forging pathways to solutions and healing. Filmmaker Chezik Tsunoda emerged as an impassioned water safety advocate after her 3-year-old son Yori’s tragic drowning in 2018. Having experienced the drowning epidemic’s deadly consequences firsthand, Tsunoda channeled her knowledge into founding No More Under, a nonprofit dedicated to saving lives through increasing equitable access to swimming lessons and tools. She directed Drowning in Silence, a documentary that chronicles her quest for answers and healing. In recognition of her efforts to close systemic water safety gaps and create a world where no child drowns, Tsunoda has won several awards relating to her work around equity in aquatics. She worked to pass House Bill 1750 in Washington State, also known as Yori’s Law, and continues to advocate for more access, awareness, tools, and training. Along with her water safety work, Tsunoda heads Visually Inspired Productions, which creates social impact films that help shift the narratives of systematically excluded communities. 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