Written by NSB Account Executive Adrienne Muscat
Photo by Alex Law
TED = Technology, Education and Design. For those not already in the know, TED is a “small non-profit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading” which translates into a forum for bright ideas delivered by some of today’s brightest intellectuals. Over the course of a day or several days, a line up of speakers ranging from all areas of expertise, will have a mere 20 minutes each to deliver on a topic. A TED event will have a live webcast available to a global audience and recorded talks are available on the TED website. The ‘x’ in TEDx stands for independently run TED event.
You might think that twenty minutes isn’t enough time to really make any sort of impact but if you are a part of the cult like following known as TED then you are fully aware that 20 minutes has the ability to revolutionize the way you think, bring you to tears, make you laugh out loud and ultimately help you rediscover the brilliance of an idea. Most TED followers have favourite videos and are eager share them and to converse about the brilliance of this speaker or the emotional effect of that speaker. My own personal favourite… and I am a recent follower of TED, is Barry Schwartz on the Paradox of Choice.
When the NSB was approached by TEDx Vancouver we jumped at the chance to participate and show our support for their vision. We collaborated with Cyrus Daniel Irani on speaker ideas and were thrilled when 3 NSB speakers were chosen to participate: Marc Stoiber, founder of Change Advertising, Cheryl Cran “Gen X / Zoomer cusper” and Greenpeace Founder Patrick Moore.
Marc Stoiber, Cheryl Cran & Patrick Moore photos by Kris Krüg
The talks were separated by conversation breaks where random discussions sparked up between different pockets of the audience, on all subjects, in all areas. For instance, I had a conversation about the possibility of extraterrestrials in the bathroom and at lunch I was involved in a discussion about a face off between Al Gore and Patrick Moore. I happen to believe in life outside of our atmosphere and I am 100% on team Patrick!
Most people, including myself, left emotionally exhausted at the end of day but that energy renews itself within me every time I talk about TEDx or go online and watch another TED talk.
That is the extent of the powerful effect of great speakers. The lasting result they have on an audience emotionally, intellectually and socially which can inspire, motivate, and further promote the spread of great ideas. This is the true magic.
It was an honour participating in TEDx Vancouver and we look forward to TEDx Vancouver 2010 where already we are creating in our minds the next line up of speakers. I encourage you to comment with your favourite TED talk because in the spirit of TED, great ideas are worth sharing.
Tags: Barry Schwartz, Change Advertising, Cheryl Cran, Gen X, Greenpeace, Greenpeace founder, Marc Stoiber, National Speakers Bureau, NSB, Paradox of Choice, Patrick Moore, TED, TEDx, TEDx Vancouver, TEDx Vancouver 2010
