TEDxBozeman, Montana’s first and longest-running TEDx event, is pleased to announce its 2016 featured presenters and performers.
Having received a record 72 applications this year, the TEDxBozeman team reviewed submissions with the challenge of selecting only 15 presenters. As the event has grown in notoriety, ever more individuals have applied for the opportunity to take the stage in this unique platform. The goal of curating a lineup of individuals with fresh perspectives on varied topics is never easy to achieve. However, organizers aim to highlight presenters as diverse as the audience which they address. While TED mandates various rules and regulations that every locally-organized TEDx must follow, the TEDxBozeman team made the additional commitment to showcase only individuals with a connection to Montana. A few such speakers include Thomas Jensen, whose contributions are changing the field of cancer research by allowing for high-resolution analysis of biopsy samples, and Andrew Nakas, a young entrepreneur and developer working on the cutting edge of virtual reality. Wildlife researcher Kira Cassidy will examine societal views of aging through the lens of group-living species, while choreographer Cathy Werner will bring aerial dancers to the TEDxBozeman stage. Having selected the 2016 presenters, the all-volunteer team will now coach them in the weeks leading up to the April 9th event. Months of preparation culminates in a day of thoughtfully articulated, passionately delivered presentations meant to inform, inspire, and challenge audiences. This convergence of time, effort, and viewpoints helped inspire the 2016 TEDxBozeman theme of “Confluence.” Full biographies and the complete lineup of presenters can be seen at tedxbozeman.com along with general information about this year’s upcoming event. TEDxBozeman 2016 will be held Saturday, April 9th at The Commons.
Tickets will go on sale 6 weeks prior to the event. Stay tuned to TEDxBozeman’s website and social media channels for additional announcements, or contact Executive Coordinator Brooke Leugers at info@tedxbozeman.com. In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x=independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized. TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. Started as a four-day conference in California 26 years ago, TED has grown to support those world-changing ideas with multiple initiatives. At TED, the world’s leading thinkers and doers are asked to give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes. Talks are then made available, free, at TED.com. TED speakers have included Bill Gates, Jane Goodall, Elizabeth Gilbert, Sir Richard Branson, Benoit Mandelbrot, Philippe Starck, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Isabel Allende and former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Two major TED events are held each year: The TED Conference takes place every spring in Long Beach, California (along with a parallel conference, TEDActive, in Palm Springs), and TEDGlobal is held each summer in Edinburgh, Scotland. TED’s media initiatives include TED.com, where new TEDTalks are posted daily; the new TED Conversations, enabling broad conversations among TED fans; and the Open Translation Project, which provides subtitles and interactive transcripts as well as the ability for any TEDTalk to be translated by volunteers worldwide.
TED has established the annual TED Prize, where exceptional individuals with a wish to change the world are given the opportunity to put their wishes into action; TEDx, which offers individuals or groups a way to host local, self-organized events around the world; and the TED Fellows program, helping world-changing innovators from around the globe to become part of the TED community and, with its help, amplify the impact of their remarkable projects and activities.
For information about TED’s upcoming conferences, visit ted.com/registration/. Follow TED on Twitter or on Facebook. More information about the local event can be found at tedxbozeman.com, TEDxBozeman Facebook, and TEDxBozeman Twitter, or contact info@tedxbozeman.com. •