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The College’s TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) Club is hosting a day of networking and dialogue around the theme “Why not? Involve, Love, Evolve.” The conference, TEDxLAF, takes place 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. today (March 5) in Kirby Hall of Civil Rights and is the culmination of TED Week running Feb. 28-March 4.
The conference’s speakers will talk on topics ranging from innovations in education to social roles to technology and the arts. Confirmed speakers include Berrisford Boothe ’83, artist and associate professor of art at Lehigh University; Rich Eckhardt, musician and guitar maker; Bryan Fox ’10; Manuel Fresneda, co-owner of Cafe Terra in Easton; Jane Golden, executive director and founder of the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program; Bryan Hendrickson ’10, collaborative creator of Trenton Atelier arts program; Kathleen Nasti, founder and director of the Lehigh Valley Dance Exchange; Helen Martin, violinist and music teacher; and Troy Renard, owner of the Cosmic Cup Coffee Company in Easton. Attendees will also have an opportunity to network at an on-site lunch event, which will be covered live on a webcast.
The TEDxLAF team is comprised of students of various majors, interests, and backgrounds.
“TEDxLAF promises to be a long-term platform for collaboration, innovation, and intellectual engagement never experienced at Lafayette,” says organizer Martin Melendro ’11 (Bogota, Colombia), an engineering studies major. “The event will help us rediscover our mission to enlighten individuals, and will offer any member of the Lafayette community an opportunity to share their passion and ideas with the Lehigh Valley community and the world.”
TED Week has enabled collaboration among administration, academic departments, student organizations, and individuals in the local community. Activities have been sponsored by Student Government, the Lafayette Intercultural Networking Council, Information Technology Services, the engineering division, the art department, the Arts Community of Easton, and numerous other student organizations. The week also featured a day-long livecast of the national TED conference, TED2011: The Rediscovery of Wonder.
TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to “Ideas Worth Spreading.” Started as a four-day conference in California 25 years ago, TED has grown into multiple initiatives including the annual TED conference; the establishment of the annual TED Prize and the TEDFellows program; and TEDx, which offers individuals or groups a way to host local, self-organized events around the world, such as TEDxLAF.