Binghamton University students have seen Bitcoin developers, award-winning writers and feminist bloggers speak at TEDx Binghamton. But this year, one of BU’s own will take the stage and try to open the minds of his or her peers.
Technology, Entertainment, Design talks — better known as TED talks — are a global series of conferences based on the slogan “Ideas Worth Spreading.” TED talks are independent events given license by TED to help spread their mission.
Traditionally, TEDxBinghamton has invited speakers to the University to share their ideas, but this year will usher in change.
Starting Monday, the BU student-run TEDx organization will host a competition to select one undergraduate student to speak on a topic of his or her choosing.
According to Stephanie Izquieta, a senior majoring in philosophy, politics and law and one of the directors of the organization, the requirements are still being discussed, but will include a personal statement explaining the student’s interest in speaking.
“We want someone, anyone, to come and say ‘this is my passion, and this is what I really want to pursue, and I want to share this with not just us in the Binghamton community but with the TEDx community,’” Izquieta said.
According to Izquieta, applications will be available through TEDxBinghamton’s social media page and the BU Listserv.
Fellow director Gina Kim, a senior majoring in integrative neuroscience, said all are welcome.
“We want to make this an open pool where everyone has an equal opportunity,” Kim said. “Who am I to say that a talk about advancements in stem cell bio is better than the questions of what the next art movement is?”
According to Izquieta, the candidates will be narrowed down by the quality and originality of their topic as well as by how they fit with the rest of the day’s speakers.
“If you are chosen, one of the requirements is to go practice at the Speaking Lab,” Izquieta said. “If you are going to be a student speaker representing Binghamton University, we want you to do a great job and [be prepared to] throw all the support we can at you.”
Although previous organizers considered having a student speaker, it was until this past summer when Izquieta worked with another TEDx organizer at New York University that the idea became a reality.
“We couldn’t do it last year, but this year I was thinking about it over the summer and I actually got in contact with one of the organizers over at TEDxNYU and they actually have something called ‘The Pitch,’” Izquieta said. “We traded ideas, reiterating TED’s mission of ‘ideas worth spreading.’”
A student speaker is not the only change to this year’s conference. According to Kim, two speakers will share the stage for one of the talks, something that has not happened before at a TEDxBinghamton event.
Izquieta, who has worked with the group for three years, said she encourages everyone to step out of their comfort zone and apply to be a speaker and come to the TEDxBinghamton event in March.
“The cool thing is it humanizes these ideas in a way where it’s accessible to people,” Izquieta said. “If we can get one student after leaving our conference to go Google anything they’ve heard, we accomplished something.”