Join LSSU for a night of conversations, debate and 'isms'

NEWS RELEASE
LAKE SUPERIOR STATE UNIVERSITY
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TEDxLSSU will take place on April 5, 2019, at the Lake Superior State University Library from 7 p.m – 9 p.m. and is free and open to the public. The independently organized event, licensed by TED, will feature local and non-local voices under the theme of “-isms."  

Launched in 2009, TEDx is a program of locally organized events that bring the community together to share a TED-like experience. Some of the best talks from TEDx events have gone on to be featured on TED.com and garnered millions of views from audiences across the globe. 

Now in its fourth year, the theme for this year’s TEDxLSSU was inspired by our campus read, where we found ourselves engaged in conversation and debate around systems, philosophies, ideologies and theories that could be described with one word that inevitably ended in “ism.” The possibilities seemed endless, and as we received an abundance of fascinating proposals, we found this to be truer than we had anticipated. 

“The really difficult task for our committee was only getting to choose six speakers from the many excellent proposals we received,” said Teresa Yelverton-Johnson, one of the TEDxLSSU organizers.       

Speakers at TEDxLSSU 2019 include: 

• Ryan Byrne & Danial O’Brien – “Localism”: Building a collaborative and creative community; Ryan and Danial are film-makers that hail from our sister city, Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.
• Blake Erickson – “Exceptionalism”: Exceptionalism and its role in achieving goals; Blake is currently a senior at LSSU studying criminal justice and preparing for law school this fall.
• Dr. Justin Goldston – “Chainism”: How will YOU contribute to Web 3.0: The blockchain effect; Justin is a leading expert on blockchain technology and its inclusion in business enterprises.
• Betsy Huggett – “Defense Mechanism”: Fight, flight or freeze: Your body’s defense mechanisms; Betsy is the executive director for Diane Peppler Resource Center, Inc., which serves the victims of domestic abuse and sexual assault.
• Megan Kinney – “Social Entrepreneurism”: Soo-cial Entrepreneurism: How microenterprise can spur innovation and growth in Sault Ste. Marie; Megan is a librarian with years of experience supporting community growth and engagement.
• Dr. Todd Zakrajsek – “Positivism”: Defining yourself: You are what you see; An alum of LSSC (Class of ’85), Todd is an Associate Professor in the Department of Family Medicine at UNC - Chapel Hill, providing resources for faculty related to teaching/learning, leadership and scholarly activity.

TEDxLSSU sponsors include:

Marc VanDoren. Realtor at Smith & Company Real Estate specializing in  Residential & Commercial Real Estate Sales and Brownfield Redevelopment Consulting

The Chippewa County Historical Society, Celebrating our 100th year. We strive to promote an appreciation of the local history of Chippewa County and the City of Sault St. Marie, Michigan.

John Anderson, Realtor / Associate Broker at RE/MAX NorthStar Realty specializing in EUP commercial properties and residential waterfront.

MEIJER Store, Sault Sainte Marie, MI
Proud to be your one stop family owned Michigan based superstore in Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan, offering families great food, great brands and great big smiles since 1934

For more information about TEDxLSSU, including event details, speaker bios and talk synopses, please visit https://lakerblogs.lssu.edu/tedxlssu/

About TEDx, x = independently organized event

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TED Talks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized. (Subject to certain rules and regulations.)

About TED

TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading, usually in the form of short, powerful talks (18 minutes or fewer) delivered by today's leading thinkers and doers. Many of these talks are given at TED's annual conference in Vancouver, British Columbia, and made available, free, on TED.com. TED speakers have included Bill Gates, Jane Goodall, Elizabeth Gilbert, Sir Richard Branson, Nandan Nilekani, Philippe Starck, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Sal Khan and Daniel Kahneman.

TED's open and free initiatives for spreading ideas include TED.com, where new TED Talk videos are posted daily; the TED Translators Program, which provides subtitles and interactive transcripts as well as translations from thousands of volunteers worldwide; the educational initiative TED-Ed; the annual million-dollar TED Prize, which funds exceptional individuals with a "wish," or idea, to create change in the world; TEDx, which provides licenses to thousands of individuals and groups who host local, self-organized TED-style events around the world; and the TED Fellows program, which selects innovators from around the globe to amplify the impact of their remarkable projects and activities.

Follow TED on Twitter at http://twitter.com/TEDTalks, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/TED or Instagram at https://instagram.com/ted.

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