DePaul speakers on the verge of viral fame. Raffles for gift certificates and a downtown hotel stay. Performance art and audience engagement opportunities. All are in store for this year’s TEDxDePaulUniversity on April 12 at the School of Music’s new Holtschneider Performance Center.
If you still need a ticket, you’re in luck. As the one month countdown to TEDxDePaulUniversity begins, organizers are offering a 20 percent discount on tickets for the next 48 hours. Use the code TEDxDPU20 until 5 p.m. on March 16 to receive your discount.
Now in its fourth year, TEDxDePaulUniversity will transform the Holtschneider Performance Center, a world-class facility on the Lincoln Park Campus, into a platform for “ideas worth spreading” as the speakers explore this year’s theme: Fast Forward.
Attending the event gives audience members exposure to thought-provoking ideas and an exclusive, in-person look at the talks. YouTube videos of past DePaul TEDx talks have been viewed more than 1.5 million times due to their timely content and important messages. There’s no telling which speakers will go viral this year.
This year’s speakers, in order of appearance, will be:
- Meredith Ferrill: “What I learned the year I tried to give up plastic”
- Josh Fort: “The powerful potential of bystanders”
- Performance by School of Music students Yuan-Ju Liu and Zachary Kessler
- Amanda MacDonald: “How we move is how we think”
- Emad Mahou: “The cost of democracy: From a Syrian detention cell to a Chicago voting booth”
- Tyree Taylor: “The power of love: A spark for community change”
- Lindsay Fredrickson: “El Sistema: Changing the face of the American orchestra”
- Enid Montague: “How to improve a community’s wellbeing after tragedy”
- Performance by The Fullertones
- Ellis Confer: “Intergenerational teams as a force for change”
- Bushra Amiwala: “Why you can’t afford to wait”
The emcees for the afternoon with be TEDxDePaulUniversity 2018 alumni Karen Bartuch, Brandon Hendrix and Tammy Higgins whose talk "
Funny Business" examined the role of humor in the workplace.
Throughout the afternoon, audience members in attendance will be eligible for raffle items including a two-night stay at the Palmer House Hilton, at 17 E. Monroe St., and other gift certificates worth $50 each. Other audience giveaways will include TEDxDePaulUniversity merchandise and snacks from Roti Modern Mediterranean.
The TEDxDePaulUniversity experience includes plenty of opportunities for audience engagement and fun. Last year’s event featured a balloon sculpture artist who built real-time designs of the speakers and a performance from a DePaul a cappella group. More artistic experiences that engage the mind are lined up for this year including graphic recording artists from Urban Wild and exciting performances by School of Music students and the popular DePaul a cappella group, The Fullertones.
About TEDx, x = independently organized event
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, TED Talks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection. 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.