TEDx Oronoco Bay Park Announces Lineup of Speakers

Alexandria will host a locally organized TEDx event Oct. 5; tickets go on sale Sept. 6.

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If you are a fan of TED talks, you won't want to miss Alexandria's very own TEDx Oronoco Bay Park, an independently organized TED event Oct. 5 in Alexandria.

The event will feature a number of speakers on a wide variety of original topics. Speakers are slated to begin their presentations at 2 p.m.; the event will end with a reception that starts at 5 p.m.

TEDx was created in the spirit of TED’s mission: “ideas worth spreading.” The program is designed to give communities, organizations and individuals the opportunity to stimulate dialogue through TED-like experiences at the local level.

At TEDx events, a combination of live presenters and TEDTalks videos — sparks deep conversation and connections. TEDx events are fully planned and coordinated independently, on a community-by-community basis and lack any commercial, religious or political agenda.

Organizer Lauren O'Brien noted that "the TED mission is pretty simple: Spread ideas. The pure act of spreading ideas creates conversation; and, through these conversations, ideas, beliefs, and assumptions can be thoughtfully challenged and further developed. And when we’re able to create a space for this kind of idea sharing, we can change attitudes, lives, and – ultimately – the world."

"And that is what inspired me to bring this forum to the community I love: the idea that we can, together, change the world," she said.

"Our first year, my goal is to bring a slate of inspiring, diversified ideas to our TEDx stage for a sold-out audience of the Alexandria community and our friends and family," she said. "I want to engage with partners and volunteers in the community who support the TED mission and who equally share my desire to actively create the community within which we want to live."

"Not only are we looking for a fantastic inaugural year, but we hope to make this program an annual event! Organizations and volunteers are eager to align themselves with this program and the larger TED brand," she said, "and as we move forward and grow larger as a program, I’m looking forward to having even more organizations and leaders involved as we look to inspire our community!"

The event includes support from community partners.

"The agents of the Compass Alexandria Office are excited to partner with the Oronoco Bay TEDx event," said Sue Goodhart, executive vice president of Compass, a real estate company. "TED talks focus on technology, entertainment, and design which aligns with the Compass focus on technology and design to elevate the real estate experience. We are looking forward to an outstanding weekend of thought leadership!"

“We’re excited to be on the ground floor of bringing a TEDx talk to Alexandria, the Bank’s hometown," said Terry Cole, Burke & Herbert Bank executive vice president. "As a community bank that has succeeded for 167 years, we know the value of sharing ideas and leveraging technology which is what TEDx is all about.”

The event takes place at the Mary Gates Learning Center, United Way Worldwide, 701 N. Fairfax St., Alexandria. Tickets go on sale Sept. 6. 

Here's a sneak peek of the speaker lineup and the topic of their remarks:

  • Hillary Stires: "Why Basic Cancer Research Scientists and Patient Advocates Should Work Together"
  • Nancy Lorentz: "Are You Trippin'? Parkour for Older Adults"
  • Matthew Stensrud: "Power Without Words"
  • Julie Kilcur: "We Need Heroes Again"
  • Yolonda Smith: "Behind the Big Numbers: The Story We're Not Telling About the Impact of Cybercrime"
  • Michael Kramp: "The Future of Masculinity"
  • Adam Rocap: "Mission Possible: How a Bold Goal Can Unlock Seemingly Impossible Social Change"
  • Catharine Young: "Actively Redefining the Concept of Intelligence"
  • Adrienne Fikes: "Your 16 Greats Challenge"
  • John Chapman: "Local Black History Matters"

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