About TEDxRVA
TEDxRVA made it’s debut in Richmond in 2013. Organizers literally built the stage at the Haxall Point Power Plant, and began with the apropos theme of create.
In 2014, TEDxRVA hosted its second event, thinking about things differently and challenging preconceptions with the reflective theme, Re-. What better place to re-imagine than the November Theatre in Jackson Ward?
In 2015, TEDxRVA came back with a unique approach and the theme, UNCOMMON, at the historic Carpenter Theatre at Dominion Arts Center. With greater accessibility and seating from years past, and increased engagement within the greater Richmond community, TEDxRVA explored and celebrated the uncommon in the RVA community and beyond.
ARTFUL was the theme for 2016, ARTFUL is a way of perceiving, a way of doing, an effect. Being artful means we are led by passion, we contribute value, and we bring about a healthier, more fulfilled society.
We continued the conversation in 2017, discussing Change. Change is an ever present part of life. From the shifting seasons to the greying of our hairs, change is a force that shapes our stories and futures.
Whether on a global scale, at the community level, or in our personal lives, change will either happen because of us, or in spite of us. So what does it take, and what does it look like, to lean into meaningful transformation? To become a change-maker rather than a witness? And where do we begin?
Outside of the annual TEDxRVA event, we also organized other TEDx events in the community throughout the year.
TEDxRVASalon
Salons invited community members into art galleries, libraries, restaurants, and a variety of other unique meeting locations to watch previously recorded TED Talks from around the world. Each Salon focused on a single topic and included a group discussion facilitated by local experts. With much smaller audiences gathering in more intimate spaces, Salons created environments where attendees were able to get to know one another and exchange ideas.
TEDxYouth@RVA
This event is organized by a team of high school students who learn about Richmond to understand who and what makes it great, who has ideas worth spreading, and who is committed to serving the young people of the city. At the event, speakers chosen by the students organizers present TED Talks on a variety of topics.
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. Started as a four-day conference in California 30 years ago, TED has grown to support its mission with multiple initiatives. The two annual TED Conferences invite the world’s leading thinkers and doers to speak for 18 minutes or less. Many of these talks are then made available, free, at 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.
The annual TED Conference takes place each spring in Vancouver, British Columbia. TED’s media initiatives include TED.com, where new TED Talks are posted daily; the Open Translation Project, which provides subtitles and interactive transcripts as well as translations from volunteers worldwide; the educational initiative TED-Ed. TED has established the annual TED Prize, where exceptional individuals with a wish to change the world get help translating their wishes into action; TEDx, which supports individuals or groups in hosting local, self- organized TED-style events around the world, and the TED Fellows program, helping world-changing innovators from around the globe to amplify the impact of their remarkable projects and activities.
Follow TED on Twitter at http://twitter.com/TEDTalks, or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/TED.