As the New York Times recently reported ”Already this year there have been 531 TEDx events. Another nearly 750 are to take place this year and beyond.”
TEDxAmsterdam is only one of many events around the world, and we make an active effort to share our conference day with as many as possible. So on November 30th, people around the Netherlands and beyond will gather in different places to watch the live stream together – more on hosting your own simulcast event here.
At the same time, we enjoy ”listening in” on what’s going on around the world. In early July, a group gathered in Boom Chicago to watch the simulcast of TED Global and a few selected speakers and artists. Later that month, TEDxAmsterdam volunteer Salmaan Sala got a group of people together in The Hague to watch TEDxLahore. His report follows.
Marveled, we witness the creative minds of Pakistan taking the stage in Lahor. Those at the Pakistani Embassy in the Hague, the Netherlands watched and discussed with great enthusiasm the events of TEDxLahore.]
One passes the large gates and takes a step on to Pakistani ground, entering a country with vast depth and diversity. What better place to allow to shine the “collective genius” that Pakistan has to offer than at the Pakistan house in the Hague. The beautiful white mansion surrounded by lush green grass and trees stands strong as a symbol of the integrity and honour the country stands for. The large doorways and kind staff of the embassy welcome us, escorting us to the room where we will view the live stream.
Arriving a little earlier, Aroosa Khan, Faisal Mirza and I were getting the final things setup. The Ambassador, his family and their staff were kind enough to set up the entire room, provide us with a screen and projector, and arrange the chairs for all people wishing to attend. With a little less than two weeks to prepare and invite people, we waited with anticipation to see how the day would proceed.
A few weeks before the event, I stumbled upon a website showing that there was going to be a TEDxLahore taking place in Pakistan on the 31st of July. Wanting to utilise this opportunity, showcasing the talent and shining a spotlight on the positive and remarkable individuals in Pakistan, we decided to organize a live streaming event. We were given the permission and honour of hosting the event in Pakistan house, the official residence of the Pakistani Embassy.
The day started with an introduction to TED, TEDx and TEDxLahore. Many of those attending were not yet completely aware of what it was, and this was for them an introduction to the “World of TED” and how this conceptual somewhat vague vision about “ideas worth spreading” takes place in its most pragmatic form.
After the Ambassador offered some inspiring words, we started the live stream, which involved a wide variety of speakers. To mention a few:
- Mudassir Zia: how he, together with his friends, was trying to set up a system to provide free education.
- Dr Aamir Khan: unraveling the usage of mobile phones for mapping, tracking and curing pneumonia, STD’s and TB in urban areas of Pakistan.
- Dr Zeeshan Usmani introducing a simulation of “Blastwaves” in open and confined spaces, somehow bringing humour into his presentation despite the seriousness and morbidity of the topic.
All the talks have since come online, and can be found at www.tedxlahore.com
In our “Best of TED” session, we chose two talks, namely: Sir Ken Robinson’s classic How school kills creativity, and Simon Sinek’s talk Starting with why. We also had our own TEDx talk by Waseem Sadiq on his product Inbox2, with an underlying message of never giving up when you have a dream.
The day was one of inspiration, discussion and most of all hope. In light of the current situation in Pakistan, this was a moment to celebrate the ingenious dreams and remarkable individuals being given a stage for Ideas worth Doing.
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