Following a successful live streaming of Technology, Entertainment, Design Full Spectrum, the TEDxMU organizing team is bringing 11 speakers from around the world to MU on Saturday, April 14. The first of its kind, the upcoming TEDxMU event seeks to recreate the energy of the original TED conferences while making it more accessible to the local community by subtracting expenses and exclusivity from the equation.
After helping organize two TEDx events in Dubai and Jeddah, graduate student Aamer Trambu said he felt a responsibility to bring the event with him to MU. He said the experience of attending a TED event holds huge value for anyone interested in bettering themselves or their community.
“We’re trying to reach out to people who are innovative, opinion leaders and at the top of their game when it comes to research and entrepreneurship,” Trambu said. “We want people who are trying to break the mold in whatever they’re trying to do, regardless of their background, and we want them to walk in with an attitude of knowing they have the potential to change.”
With a team of six MU students, Trambu is working to make the TEDxMU conference an annual event on campus. He hopes the extra effort it took to put on this year’s event pays off in the future.
“We want to make sure we have an event that is well-organized and well-branded so it has a strong foundation that allows it to be replicated year after year,” Trambu said. “That’s an important point for us. We want this event to succeed, not only this year but in the long term, also. We’d like to see it become a part of the annual event calendar for Mizzou.”
The organization of the event is student-led, and Trambu said he thinks the excitement of the event and dedication of the team behind it will lead to the establishment of a TEDxMU tradition. Trambu spoke highly of his team, which consists mostly of business and journalism students.
“I’m glad we have them on board,” he said. “We believe that the more people that are involved, the better the event will be.”
Trambu said after receiving more than 60 speaker applications, his team chose 11 speakers. They made an effort to build a varied lineup, with speakers from different interest areas and parts of the world. The list of speakers includes Kenyan media innovator Wilfred Kiboro, astronaut Linda Godwin and Newsy founder Jim Spencer.
Because TEDxMU is independently organized, the coordinators have some freedom to get creative with different aspects of the event. Lead organizer and gradate student Curtis Roller said he and others, including Joy Mayer of the School of Journalism, are working to develop unique ways to engage the audience beyond the speeches.
“We’re working on finding something that appeals to all the different ways people react to the speeches,” Roller said. “We want to include both visual and writing aspects to help facilitate the conversations (the speeches) can start.”
The event will take place at Reynolds Journalism Institute’s Fred W. Smith Forum. Although tickets to see the speakers in person have already sold out, the TEDxMU team is working with other venues to make sure everyone interested will have an opportunity to participate.
“We’re working to make every engagement site just as meaningful and full of impact for those participating as it will be for those at the main location,” Roller said.
Other locations that will host free viewings of the event include the Columbia City Council Chambers and The Shack.
