Meet a young Belizean who wants to build robots in the future. He is 19-year-old Ravesh Sukhnandan, a graduate of Edward P. Yorke High School in Belize City.
“From I was a young child, I liked making things and understanding how things worked. Like many of my (male) peers, I grew up watching anime, including the ever-popular Dragon Ball Z. My favorite TV show, however, involved the ‘Gundam’ franchise, which, as you may guess, involved giants fighting robots. This sparked a fascination with how they worked, how they were made, how they operated. This continued my fascination with technology and machines,” stated Ravesh.
Whereas Ravesh said that such advanced technology is very much the realm of developed countries, he sees how it may find application “in the oil, citrus and fishing industries, with regards to replacing some of the more hazardous jobs with automated systems—but this would result in more individuals losing jobs, which is certainly not a good tradeoff.”
Ravesh Sukhnandan is the Belize Open Scholarship winner for 2011. He majored in physics and mathematics at St. John’s College Junior College (SJCJC). In the Caribbean Advanced Placement Exam (CAPE) he earned 5 Grade I passes and 1 Grade II.
His parents inform us that he is currently enrolled at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where he is majoring in mechanical engineering. Later, he will specialize in robotics engineering. To attain that specialization, though, he would have to access training in different fields, because there is no degree in robotics, said Ravesh, adding that he is open to pursuing multiple degrees to attain the specialization.
Speaking of university life, he said, “There are long hours spent studying, but I refuse to call it ‘hard work,’ because this implies that I do not love what I am doing. I believe that if you love what you are doing, you may not enjoy every moment right away, but eventually you will come to appreciate the journey and the effort put in, because if you shortchange yourself by not giving your passion, your all, you will find yourself meandering down life’s road and not realizing your potential.”
Ravesh is the only child of Nazarene High School principal, Samuel Sukhnandan, and Continental Airlines supervisor, Karen Sukhnandan.
The young man said that one of the factors in him achieving his milestone was the tremendous support he had from both parents.
“This support was not academic in nature, however, as they were not checking to see if I was studying or helping me do my homework…” said Ravesh. “Instead, they were always open to allay any concerns or fears that I may have had, as well as providing the necessary financial support and an atmosphere of positive encouragement.”
The faculty and staff of his former school, SJCJC, said Ravesh, also played a vital role. He specifically mentions his physics teacher, Darlene Peters, and his math teachers, Amir Juarez and Irma Briceño.
“I must say, though, that while they did a tremendous job, they were building on a foundation set at the high school level,” said Ravesh. “With this in mind, I must also thank the staff at E.P. Yorke High School (which I attended) for providing me the tools to pursue a tertiary level education.”
Ravesh furthermore acknowledges that “…nothing can be done without the Almighty, but with a caveat: one cannot be so totally bounded to religious dogma such that it comes at the expense of sacrificing our quest for knowledge. A fine balance must be struck.”
We asked Ravesh: “As a young man living in Belize City, what were your greatest challenges in attaining this accomplishment?”
He replied: “Honestly, I was shielded from many of the harsh realities that the inner city youth in Belize City face on a daily basis, because of where I went to school, etc. With this in mind, perhaps the greatest challenge was to resist that normal tendency to follow your peers. Instead, I formed an identity that was largely independent of the opinion and actions of others, and this enabled me to stay focused at critical junctures during the school year.”
Ravesh admitted that he did assign very high importance to “out of the classroom” endeavors– something he says he somewhat regrets.
“Sure I love to surf the internet, or read the editorials in the various newspapers (especially Amandala), but in terms of reading dozens of physics and mathematics books, no there was not much of that.”
Looking back now, he says, “In some ways, that is a minor regret, as I believe that if I had done so, I could have probably deepened my understanding and increased my knowledge; but to a certain extent, reading too much results in lazy habits of thinking, as you start depending too much on others’ work, while neglecting to use your own intuition and ingenuity.”
We asked Ravesh about his personal strategies for success.
“I dislike the word ‘strategy’,” he answered, “because it gives the impression that education is some kind of path or game in which the sole, ultimate goal is something material in nature. Instead, I have some viewpoints that others may find helpful:
“Some people say live life with ‘no regrets’. That is a great attitude in principle, but in execution it is often flawed. Oftentimes, individuals refuse to look at the past and learn from what went wrong. If I believe I got a single question or problem wrong, I would agonize over it for days, maybe weeks. Sure it may lead to an extended period of unhappiness, but that is far better than the alternative, where you are satisfied with whatever you have achieved.
“When you start ‘settling’, in terms of your personal goals and passions, you end up not accomplishing much. You have to be honest with yourself, look at what went wrong, where you can improve, and don’t listen to others who are easily satisfied with mediocrity.
“This is exceptionally difficult to do, and I don’t follow this myself all the time. But that is the aim, to try and be honest and truthful with yourself, as this is the only way you can improve.”
Ravesh shared with us his most treasured values: “I think that tolerance is very important. I also admire dedication and creativity. Beyond these, however, I must say that I’ve never met anyone who could be considered evil or lacking a conscience. This has led me to believe that all of us, whatever our minute imperfections, are – at our very core – good people.”
He also compares procrastination to “a highly infectious disease that afflicts all youths.”
“I was not immune,” he admitted.
Ravesh’s dad speaks very highly of him as a well-behaved and a much disciplined person.
In offering words of counsel to other young people on how to relate to their parents and other persons in authority, he said that “like everyone else, I really dislike being told what to do and having my free will compromised, but you have to be introspective enough to know what rules are potentially beneficial to your personal growth.”
Ravesh said, “I would just want to say that I largely don’t believe in the concept of talent, and that if you truly apply yourself, you can achieve anything. It depends on your philosophy and the effort you put in.”
He makes this point because people have said things to him like, “If only I mi smart like you” or “If I mi just blessed with your brain.”
“I believe we are all born with similar capabilities, but we all have different interests and passions,” he said. “My advice to young Belizeans is, don’t seek a job with status or prestige, but pursue what you love, what you have an interest in. If a young man has a passion for carpentry and woodwork, don’t try to turn him into a banker or engineer. If a young lady wants to be a dancer, don’t try to turn her into a secretary. I think if you are young, and you don’t have any responsibilities, like children or a family to take care off, you have a duty to your fellow countryman to pursue your dream and try to achieve great things.”