By Drew Alberse
TED — which stands for technology, entertainment and design — is an organization that describes itself as “a nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks.”
At William Peace University, Dawn Dillon, Director of the First-Year Experience, hosts TED Talk Tuesdays in Flowe 110 at 3:30 p.m. The event involves watching a TED talk as a group followed by a 20-minute discussion. Attendance is taken for those who come for class credit.
TED Talk Tuesdays is being promoted as an opportunity for students, faculty and staff to come together to start a conversation about an idea presented by an inspirational leader.
According to the TED Talk website, “TED began in 1984 as a conference where Technology, Entertainment and Design converged, and today covers almost all topics — from science to business to global issues — in more than 100 languages. TED’s mission is to spread ideas.”
Those interested can attend the following presentations:
Feb. 16 – Zak Ebrahim: I am the son of a terrorist. Here’s how I chose Peace. If you’re raised on dogma and hate, can you choose a different path? Zak Ebrahim was just seven years old when his father helped plan the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. His story is shocking, powerful and, ultimately, inspiring.
Feb. 25 – Maysoon Zayid: I got 99 problems … palsy is just one. “I have cerebral palsy. I shake all the time,” Maysoon Zayid announces at the beginning of this exhilarating, hilarious talk. (Really, it’s hilarious.) “I’m like Shakira meets Muhammad Ali.” With grace and wit, the Arab-American comedian takes us on a whistle-stop tour of her adventures as an actress, stand-up comic, philanthropist and advocate …
March 15 – Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action. Simon Sinek has a simple but powerful model for inspirational leadership — starting with a golden circle and the question “Why?” His examples include Apple, Martin Luther King, and the Wright brothers …
March 29 – Emily Pilloton: Teaching design for change. Designer Emily Pilloton moved to rural Bertie County, in North Carolina, to engage in a bold experiment of design-led community transformation. She’s teaching a design-build class called Studio H that engages high schoolers’ minds and bodies while bringing smart design and new opportunities to the poorest county in the state.
April 5 – Dan Gilbert: The surprising science of happiness. Dan Gilbert challenges the idea that we’ll be miserable if we don’t get what we want. Our “psychological immune system” lets us feel truly happy even when things don’t go as planned.