The TEDxGeneva Rethinking Power call for speakers closed with almost 100 applications! It has definitely gathered more interest than previous editions, leaving TEDxGeneva awesome team of volunteers with the difficult task of selecting up to twelve “ideas worth spreading” that best reflect the theme “Rethinking Power” and the values of TEDxGeneva.
With an open stage, TEDxGeneva welcomes proposals from anyone who would like to share their ideas. Successful ideas tend to be innovative and supported by evidence; we welcome different perspectives and walks of life – here’s a clue for you! – and they should allow our audience to open their horizons. These are recurrent topics in Rethinking Power, as expected, but they well illustrate what we aim for with a TEDxGeneva: to be as inclusive and as representative as possible. “Beyond inclusiveness and representation in topics, we also try to find a balance in speakers representation… but we have no quotas. Our priority are ideas,” explains Caroline.
The considerable consequence is that the Curation Team – Javier, Jean-Philippe, Caroline, and Théo – must curate all these ideas into a captivating program for November 3rd. They had the fundamental help and support of all resident volunteers. The four of them make up the speaker selection committee, which includes Thanasis as coordinator of the Audience Committee and who provides a good insight into what the audience might want to listen.
“The speaker selection process always has moments of heated discussion, but these debates are always filled with excitement and enthusiasm. How could we not be happy when we find 12 great ideas worth sharing that have the potential to inspire people!” says Javier. He adds: “It is not easy going from a record 97 speaker applications to 12, but we are very excited for the Rethinking Power line-up! Now the real work begins!”
And we could not be more excited to introduce our speakers in the near future!
Stay in touch for our report from the speakers’ kick-off meeting!