RYAN ZHU

Polyglossos
Founder

Ryan Zhu is from China and has lived in three countries for extended periods of time. He has been studying in the USA for four years in schools with international students. He can speak English and Mandarin Chinese fluently, is learning Latin for the 4th year in a row, and has experience in French and Ancient Greek. He believes that a language is the gateway to understanding the culture of others to make cooperation with (foreigners) more effective for more people.

Growing up, the most important story that he has learned is that the words that one speaks are for others, and not oneself. This lesson allowed him to learn how to communicate effectively and clearly.​​ From this lesson, he also learned how important good communication is and how it can help him solve his problems. These few words that his father taught him will be impactful to him in the future. 

Currently in high school, he is part of the Latin Club, and serves as editor and photographer for his school newspaper. He is also a member of the school’s tennis team. He is the founder of πολύγλωσσος (Polyglossos), an initiative that invites youth to co-create and maintain a platform for peer-to-peer interactions about languages. People who have some experience or native speakers can have the chance to teach others in that language and showcase its respective culture. This way the whole world can come together to make this project better over time 

Looking ahead, he hopes to make a change in the world that we live in for the better. He wants to use the ability of speaking multiple languages to help him with the other work that he will do in his career and beyond, as he believes this skill is lifelong and will always come in useful at some point in his life.