Africa has beautiful stories to tell, says Peace Anyiam-Osigwe. At 16 years old, the Nigerian published her own magazine. She later continued bringing a “voice to voiceless issues” as a talk show host and film producer. Founder of the African Movie Academy Awards, Peace now dedicates her time to building cinemas in rural Africa, and […]
Ever since founding the first truly effective ambulance service in India, Shaffi Mather has been hooked on social enterprises. He’s gone on to set up inclusive high-quality schools, support small-scale dairy farming, and is now launching a bribe-fighting business. (Watch his talk from TEDIndia 2009.) Can you give us an overview of each of your […]
This Monday, Sept. 20, TED and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation bring us TEDxChange: a chance to evaluate the UN Millennium Development Goals, the progress that has been made, and the long, yet optimistic road ahead. The Millennium Development Goals include: Eradicating poverty and hunger Achieving universal primary education Promoting gender equality and empowering […]
Blogging about her personal life helped Sanjukta Basu find her voice. Despite Indian social mores restricting women’s self expression, Sanjukta has opened up her heart online, empowering others to do the same. Compelled by the transformations social media created in her own life, Sanjukta develops strategies to make the voiceless’ stories heard. After quitting your […]
To harness the power of digital social networking for India’s poor, Sean Blagsvedt created the job search site Babajob.com. In this interview with TED, Sean talks about the importance of developing technology for social good, the fun of designing building space, and playing alongside his wife in their “avant-garde experimental” band. What work of yours […]
Alwar Balasubramaniam’s sculpture plays with time, shape, shadow, perspective: four tricky sensations that can reveal — or conceal — what’s really out there. At TEDIndia, the artist shows slides of his extraordinary installations. (Recorded at TEDIndia, July 2009 in Mysore, India. Duration: 16:51) [ted id=950] Watch A. Balasubramaniam’s talk on TED.com where you can download […]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Arz1ULELg7w] Via the Gates Foundation’s Foundation Notes blog: On Monday, Sept. 20, TEDxChange will look at the eight Millennium Development Goals set by the UN back in 2000 — and assess how close we are to reaching them by 2015. Melinda Gates made the video above to invite the world to watch online or at […]
His Holiness the Karmapa talks about how he was discovered to be the reincarnation of a revered figure in Tibetan Buddhism. In telling his story, he urges us to work on not just technology and design, but the technology and design of the heart. He is translated onstage by Tyler Dewar. (Recorded at TEDIndia, November […]
This Saturday’s TEDTalks playlist is about animals with a nasty sting or a deadly bite — but as our speakers reveal, these creatures have more to fear from humankind than we have to fear from them. Romulus Whitaker is smitten with snakes, and fearful for their future. He urges us to protect the river systems […]
Water and sanitation are among the most crucial issues facing India today, Sunita Nadhamuni notes in her interview with TED. But while these problems are daunting, Sunita says India’s many innovations in managing water can teach the rest of the world a thing or two. Tell us about your water and sanitation organization. What makes […]
Upwards of 20 million people are suffering from the massive flooding in Pakistan, according to the United Nations — more than the number affected by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, the 2005 Kashmir earthquake, and the 2010 Haiti earthquake combined. Following record-breaking monsoon rains, at least 1,600 people have been killed, an estimated 72,400 homes […]
Siddharth Kara fights bonded labor, forced labor, and human trafficking with what he says are the most effective weapons against them: rigorous scientific research and analysis. Read his interview below to learn why dispassionate study may be the antidote to this inherently emotional issue, and why Siddharth is optimistic about the direction of the anti-slavery […]
From Wall Street to Grameen Bank, the experiences of Durreen Shahnaz’s life are coming together to propel her next project: a stock exchange for socially conscious companies. What are the most important projects you’re involved with? I am creating two companies. My first company is Impact Investment Exchange, which is a trading platform. It’s a […]
Our announcement last week of TEDWomen has touched off some really vibrant conversations online. Some have embraced the idea; others have reservations. At TED, we’ve been reading with interest and weighing in on occasion. After reading a number of blog posts and articles, I thought I’d take a moment to weigh in here, and clarify […]
Above, TED Senior Fellow Jon Gosier talks about SwiftRiver, a new piece of software that helps makes sense of data during a crisis. Photo: TED / James Duncan Davidson The Sunday before TEDGlobal, the TED Fellows held an extraordinary workshop with five Senior Fellows — young thinkers and doers who’ve been asked to continue with […]
Jane Chen has helped develop and market a low-cost device that could save millions of premature babies in the developing world. Read this TED interview to discover Jane’s inspirations, love of music and penchant for making pies. (Watch her talk from TEDIndia 2009.) Tell us about your work. I am the co-founder of a non-profit […]