TEDxBirmingham speakers to challenge attendees to embrace ‘possibility’
What could you accomplish if you shed self-limiting beliefs and dared to see opportunities everywhere?
That challenge will be posed to attendees at TEDxBirmingham 2017, an all-day conference hosted by nonprofit group TEDxBirmingham, at UAB’s Alys Stephens Center March 25.
The event’s theme is “possibility,” and the 12 speakers — all with strong local ties — have challenged the status quo and looked for new and better ways to have an impact on Birmingham, according to the group’s website.
Speakers include UAB surgeon Dr. Jayme Locke, director of America’s longest kidney-transplant chain.
“Her idea could revolutionize how live organ transplants happen,” said conference co-organizer Matthew Hamilton.
Dunya Habash, a recent Birmingham-Southern College graduate and daughter of Syrian immigrants, filmed a documentary at a refugee camp in Jordan.
“With so much discussion about immigrants and refugees, I’m looking forward to hearing an idea from someone who can bear witness firsthand,” Hamilton said.
Other speakers include Anne Wright, executive director of Firehouse Shelter; Dr. Michael Saag, pioneering AIDS researcher; and social entrepreneur Lara Avsar.
Organizers chose the “possibility” theme after picking the speakers, Hamilton said.
“We wanted to highlight the optimism inherent in this group,” he said.
However, inspiration is not the only goal of TEDxBirmingham 2017, because many motivational speeches highlight the work of one person or a small group and leave the audience without a lot of clarity on how that applies to their life, Hamilton said.
“We focus on the ideas and coach the speakers to make them accessible to a broad audience, so each person can interpret and integrate those ideas into their own lives,” he said.
TEDxBirmingham is affiliated with the nonprofit TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design).
For a list of speakers, go to tedxbirmingham.org.
The number of tickets is limited, but the event will be streamed live on TEDxBirmingham’s website.