Beyond Words
October 22, 2022
Kirkwood Performing Arts Center
Falling Forward: How to recover gracefully when you biff it in inclusion | Mason Aid
LGBTQ Advocate
Deferred Storytelling | Vivian Gibson
Author of The Last Children of Mill Creek
NFTs: Not Just a Buzzword | Myrina Renaissance Otey-Myton
NFT Artist & Community Builder
Interview | Percy Green
How "St. Louis Style" Elections Will Change American Democracy
CEO at Show Me Integrity
A New Normal: Embracing the Healthcare Information Age | Dr. Philip Payne
Biomedical Informatician & Data Scientist
The Illusion of Authenticity | Holly Fann
Food Writer and Dining Critic for St. Louis Magazine and Eater
COVID-19 Effects on the Brain and Related Cognitive Functions | Cyrus A. Raji, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor of Radiology and Neurology Washington University in St. Louis
What Next?
December 3, 2021
Ferrara Theater @ America’s Center
WE’RE ALL THINKING IT… WHAT’S NEXT?
Are you looking for fresh ideas? We’re bringing you thought-provoking TEDx talks that see things from a different point of view and inspire new thinking.
IT'S TIME TO EMBRACE INSECTS AS A FOOD SOURCE | Sarah Schlafly
Founder, Mighty Cricket
Culinary ingenuity has contributed to Sarah’s success convincing Americans to expand their minds, and tummies, towards new protein sources.
INVISIBLE LINES: BUILDING AN UNBEATABLE BUSINESS ONE CRAZY IDEA AT A TIME | Jim McKelvey
Serial entrepreneur, Author, Artist | Co-founder Square, CEO Invisibly
Jim will reveal his pattern of ground-breaking, competition-proof entrepreneurship that is rare but repeatable, and helped Square fend off an attack from Amazon.
BE UNREASONABLY GENEROUS | Emily Lohse-Busch
Executive Director, Arch Grants
In her talk, Emily will challenge us to rethink the idea of generosity for successful business growth. Can we scale the gratitude model?
BUILDINGS THAT REGENERATE | Colin Rohfling
Director of Sustainable Development at HDR Inc
Can the way we build help regenerate our ecology, our health, and our society?
CHANGING OUR CULTURE BY WATCHING OUR WASTE | Josh Allen
Founder, Companion Baking
Everything about Josh’s baking company changed when they started measuring and managing their trash
PAPER CUTTING ART EXPLORES PHYSICS & PHILOSOPHY | Sukanya Mani
Interdisciplinary Artist
Sukanya will mesmerize us with the story of her art, and how a formal education based in science gives her a unique ability to experiment.
What Now?
December 3, 2021
Ferrara Theater @ America’s Center
Meet our speakers. The thought-leaders answering the question “what now?”
These women took the stage in December 2021 and shared their compelling work, stories, and ideas worth spreading
OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY FOR THE HOMELESS | QUINN TYMINSKI
Instructor, Wash U School of Medicine, Occupational Therapy
Occupational therapy (OT) is a healthcare service designed to help individuals increase independent living skills and improve wellbeing. OT alone cannot solve the homelessness crisis but you cannot solve the homelessness crisis without OT.
FROM NFL TO EMPOWERING WOMEN | Adrian Bracy
President, Adrian Bracy & Associates
What can one learn from working in the NFL that helps us empower young women?
AN INTERVIEW WITH MAXINE CLARK | Maxine Clark
Founder, Build-A-Bear Workshop | CEO, Clark-Fox Family Foundation
This interview will cover a range of topics including women in leadership and her work in St. Louis to accelerate women-led businesses and initiatives.
THE FIERY POWER OF WE | Charli Cooksey
Founder and CEO, WEPOWER
Changing our world starts with a fire – rage, pain, passion, very personal experiences with injustice – inside each of us – and then it grows in a powerful movement where we are united by a collective fire to create a future that is just and equitable.
DANCERS & DOGS: ART AS A SOCIAL REMEDY | Kelly Pratt-Kreidich
Photographer/Owner at Pratt + Kreidich Photography
This talk examines the important role digital art plays in breaking through the daily social media chaos we all face, the essential value that joyful creation brings to our collective online experience.
MISSOURI - YOUR MOTHERS ARE DYING | Erin King
Physician & Executive Director, Hope Clinic for Women
The risk of death related to pregnancy is higher in Missouri than 42 other states – more than double the national average. To stop people from dying, the critical role of family planning must be addressed.
Bold & Brilliant Women
December 5, 2019
Ferrara Theater @ America’s Center
Meet the bold & brilliant women reshaping St. Louis
These women took the stage in December 2019 and shared their compelling work, stories, and ideas worth spreading
Children’s savings accounts | Tishaura Jones
Treasurer, City of Saint Louis
@tishaura
Hon. Tishaura O. Jones is the first woman to hold the office of Treasurer in St. Louis and the founder of a citywide children’s savings program. Learn how making small investments in savings accounts today can lead to bright, secure futures for your kids.
Art in urban places | Meridith McKinley
Founder and Partner, Via Partnership, LLP
@mcmckinley
Meridith McKinley brings her wealth of experience in curating and producing public art programs to TEDx, where she will discuss the power and potential of art to unite communities and change perspectives.
Empowering authentic confidence | Leilani Carver-Madalon
Assoc. Prof. of Strategic Comm. & Leadership, Maryville University
@leilanicarver
Leilani Carver-Madalon, Ph.D., is an explorer who seeks to challenge women to create their own adventures of learning and connection. Find out how you can fire up your power, tap into what makes you uniquely you and find authentic confidence.
Science the heck out of climate change | Sophia E. Hayes
Professor of Chemistry, Washington University
@sophiahayes
Sophia E. Hayes, Ph.D., is eager to share her passion for combating climate change with us. A chemistry professor at Washington University, she’ll share how we can start taking steps today to control greenhouse gases, clean up emissions and be bold agents of change.
Kids need diverse literacy | Rebecca Clark
Author, Witty Kids
@Theonertc
Rebecca Clark created Witty Kids to encourage diverse literacy and teach children to be creative. Hear her speak about the importance of channeling our imaginations at an early age and believing in endless possibilities.
Divorce teaches spiritual lessons | Susan Maginn
Minister, Navy Chaplain Corps
@RevMaginn
Susan Maginn is the first female chaplain to serve an all-male training battalion at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego. Listen as she shares how divorce can teach us a lot about the spiritual gifts of integrity, acceptance, forgiveness, generosity and renewal.
Musical Performance | Rubi
Musicians and storytellers
@we_are_rubi
Musical Performance | Tonina
Singer/songwriter, bassist, music journalist and poet
@iamtonina
Emcee | Heidi Glaus
News Personality, Co-host of The Guy Phillips Show 550 KTRS
@Heidi_Glaus
Crash Course
September 12, 2019
The Pageant
Five alarm American democracy | Wally Siewert
With a Ph.D. in political philosophy and ethics and over a decade of experience in civic and political engagement, Dr. Siewert is uniquely equipped to apply the clarifying frameworks of political and moral theory to real world political controversy. Listen as he challenges the audience’s moral framework and the state of American Democracy.
Designing for impact | Sarah Aman
Sarah is an exhibit and graphic designer with a passion for sustainable action and environmental conservation. At PGAV Destinations, she not only works with clients to design meaningful visitor experiences, she also founded and leads the company's first official Green Team. By combining her love for nature and her skills in design, Sarah seeks to inspire positive action in the face of overwhelming environmental issues.
The artist learns to roar | Yvonne Osei
Yvonne Osei is a German-born Ghanaian conceptual artist, curator and art educator. Her work explores the topics of beauty and colorism, the politics of clothing, and how global trade and colonialism impact post-colonial West African & Western cultures. Join her journey as she uses her creative voice to redefine cultural identities, national origin, and self.
Interview | Percy Green
Percy Green II, a seasoned activist and former Chairman of ACTION, has long fought for racial equality in this city and beyond. Green’s impressive resume of activism includes scaling the Gateway Arch in 1964 to protest racial discrimination on a federally funded project and winning a landmark U.S. Supreme Court lawsuit that helped define discrimination law after being laid off by McDonnell Douglas. Hear him talk about a lifetime of social work and shattering the status quo.
Earth needs negativity | Jean Ponzi
Jean Ponzi is a strong local voice for Earth. Her eco-logical work blends teaching, storytelling, and bursting into song. Her show Earthworms, on KDHX has welcomed thousands of listeners for over 30 years. As a Plant Ally, “Green Jean” offers her fellow humans a perspective that those things we label as negative might just be the most beautiful of all.
Performance | Jeremiah Johnson Band
Jeremiah Johnson is an American blues singer, guitarist and songwriter. Johnson performs with Benet Schaeffer (drums), Frank Bauer (sax & backing vocals), and Tom Maloney (bass/slide guitar), Tony Anthonis (bass). Their music blends elements of St. Louis blues, Southern rock, and country.
Performance | Jack Grelle
Jack Grelle is an idealistic songwriter from St. Louis, Missouri. Combining the styles of folk, traditional country, honky tonk, and rock and roll, Grelle is able to capture the themes and tones of our country’s past and present struggles and triumphs.
Can You Name a Famous Juggler? | Thom Wall
Thom Wall is a juggler and variety entertainer based in Saint Louis, Missouri. Wall is known for his avant-garde performance style and is one of the last gentleman jugglers performing in the world today.
Healthcare Head-on
May 16, 2019
St. Louis College of Pharmacy
Social determinants of health | Dr. Michal Grinstein-Weiss
Dr. Michal Grinstein-Weiss serves as the Associate Dean for Policy Initiatives at the Brown School and the Director of Washington University’s Social Policy Institute. An expert in policies that promote social and economic mobility, she will explore how addressing social determinants can impact communities and improve health outcomes.
Bullets & blessings | Laurie Punch, MD
Dr. Laurie Punch is an associate professor of surgery at Washington University in Saint Louis School of Medicine and local champion for the national Stop the Bleed campaign that empowers the public with life saving trauma first aid education and equipment. With a focus on violence as a public health epidemic, Dr. Punch will discuss barriers and opportunities in reducing bullet injuries. Learn how you can make an impact.
Disability advocacy and accommodations | Sean Gold
Sean Gold is a sophomore at St. Louis Community College–Florissant Valley. Although his Tracheostomy Breathing Tube has left him unable to speak, it won’t stop him from telling his story.
Our food is a mirror | Reshaunda Thornton RD, LD
Reshaunda Thornton RD, LD is a dietitian, author, and founder of BetterVessel. She’s also a firm believer in the relationship between a person’s food choices and their perceived self-worth. Hear her challenge conventional mindsets about nutrition and share her strategy for sustainable self-care.
Cutting-edge therapies for children with autism | John Mantovani, MD
Dr. John Mantovani is a child neurologist, founding Medical Director of Mercy Kids Autism Center and Clinical Associate Professor at Washington University. A nationally recognized Autism expert, he will speak about early recognition and effective therapy for this condition that affects roughly 1 in 59 children head-on.
Reforming America’s drug policy with new insights | Chad Sabora
Chad Sabora is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Missouri Network for Opiate Reform and Recovery (MO Network), a former prosecutor, and a recovering addict. Find out his vision for shattering system sameness through drug policy reform that reduces harm by looking at what we now know about substance abuse.
Urban planning & its connection to health | Grace Kyung
Grace Kyung is a project manager at Urban Strategies, Inc., an organization committed to comprehensive neighborhood revitalization that ensures children & families are stable and thriving. An advocate for racial equity in healthcare, she will discuss how proactive planning can promote just communities and lead to better health outcomes for all.
Think Well: Healthcare Out Loud
April 12, 2018
Sheldon Performing Arts Center
Operation: Adrenal Gland | Doug Lindsay
Doug Lindsay got himself out of bed. His hospital bed. After 11 years. Frustrated by a mysterious illness, Doug decided to take matters into his own hands. He was told a cure was impossible. How far could he go and what were the risks of trying?
Food is Medicine | Jeremy Goss
Jeremy Goss, MD is the cofounder of St. Louis MetroMarket and founder of the Link Market, two deliciously colorful, nonprofit markets. He’s an advocate for low-income communities on issues related to food justice, hunger and health — and he’s got some ideas for your taste buds.
The Ties that Bind: One Health | Sharon Deem
Sharon Deem, DVM, PhD is an elephant aficionado with major wildlife veterinary and epidemiology chops — chops as in 100+ articles, 25 book chapters and research in 30+ countries. Even if you’ve yet to dip into her prolific zoological explorations, you can catch her world-renowned ideas that bind human, animal and environmental health.
How We Can Improve the Healthcare UX | Dave Minifie
Dave Minifie, Chief Experience Officer at Centene Corporation, brings an “engagement and experience” perspective into healthcare. Dave spent more than a dozen years at Procter & Gamble learning the art and science of brand building. These days, he uses his tried-and- true leadership and marketing skills to set strategy and drive growth at Centene.
Neurosurgery: It's the Journey, Not the Destination | Philippe Mercier
Philippe Mercier, MD, PhD is a pediatric neurosurgeon at the St. Louis University School of Medicine. He uses his big, brilliant mind to save the brains of those with epilepsy, cancer, trauma and other neurological issues. Dr. Mercier is at the forefront of medical advancement and is eager to share his approach to deep brain lesion treatment.
How Mindfulness Transforms Us | Jo Pang
Jo Pang is on a mission of mindfulness. As an expert at Slalom Consulting, Jo transforms organizations with an integrative, human-centered approach. As a teacher, he helps people consciously cultivate the seeds of compassion, wisdom and happiness. As a person, he shares thoughts on self-awareness, self-acceptance and finding contentment in finding ourselves.