TED Conferences were launched nearly 40 years ago, in February 1984. The non-profit has branched out into several projects and events.
Missouri Southern in Joplin will hold their first TEDx event tomorrow. KRPS’s Fred Fletcher-Fierro has more.
Public radio listeners are likely familiar with TED’s slogan, "Ideas Worth Spreading."
The program launched in 2012 on 75 stations; today, that listenership has grown to 565 stations.
TEDx events are like TED conferences shrunk down.
They are fully planned and coordinated independently, on a community-by-community basis.
The content and design of each TEDx event are unique and developed independently, but all of them have features in common.
The theme of MSSU's TEDx is "Connectedness."
Southern's Director of Student Engagement and Global Leaders, Ryan Orcutt, says they received submissions from all over the world.
"We actually had 57 submissions from across the world; primarily, we did want to focus on our area as far as the individuals that are participating."
Thursday's event is sold out, but the university is holding a streaming watch party at no cost inside Corley Auditorium.
That event is open to the public Thursday from 1 until 5 p.m. Ryan says another TEDx conference is in the works for MSSU, perhaps as early as next year.
For 89 9 KRPS News, I’m Fred Fletcher-Fierro
