University of Guam alumnus John “Meta” Sarmiento recently spoke at a TEDx event organized in Denver, Colorado. Sarmiento earned a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature in 2012 and a Master of Arts in Teaching in 2015 from UOG.

A writer of Asian-American, Pacific-Islander descent, Sarmiento won the Spoken Word for the World competition in 2015 and is a three-time TeamBackPack cypher audition semi-finalist. That same year, Sarmiento was chosen by the Global Call for Climate Action group to perform in front of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

He recently earned a spot on SlamNUBA's National Poetry Team. Sarmiento often writes about cultural identity, love, loss, and healing.

He currently lives in Denver, Colorado and is researching PhD programs.