Archive for category: TEDxDelft 2013

Liebje, Rogier en Patricia together are Bureau Fonk, strategic change consultancy. They belong to the lucky few that truly combine personal interests and core values with the way they approach their work. For example by having their meetings when going for a stroll, incorporating their passion for food in their meetings with clients (by even cooking the food they serve themselves!) or mixing theatre into sessions with management teams. Bureau Fonk works with many different partners: “from lean Business  Intelligence to arty stuff, we combine it to make a perfect fit for our clients”.

They are dedicated teachers as well, they educate high-potential business administration students. Their clientele is very diverse, one of them being TU Delft. Therefore they are very excited that their know-how also found a way to TEDxDelft in providing one of the workshops. And so are we. So what will Bureau Fonk bring TEDxDelft? Read more

Take a big leap out of your comfort zone. The VIPbus workshop is going to work together with movisie to give you the opportunity to jump. Food for the future is healthy and sustainable. However some of these healthy and sustainable concepts can be very challenging to implement simply because we are not familiar with them.

TEDxDelft is a source of innovation and a meeting place for pioneers. ‘Het spoor van vernieuwing’ is on the lookout for like-minded individuals that are willing to form the basis of a society that is prosperous and blossoms from the inside out. And this is not only talk, they will make sure you won’t just sit down and listen but do something with your dreams.

Not only will you yourself be a few steps closer to realizing your own dreams, you can also contribute to a more beautiful, more sustainable and smarter society. The VIPbus facilitates innovative interaction between society and government.

People with a dream that want to make the step to actually do something with it, are invited to tin can their dreams with a daring expiry date.

If you’ve been following the blog over the past few weeks, you know we’ve been announcing all of the speakers for TEDxDelft 2013. Here’s our full line-up. You can also get the full line-up as well as schedules and more on the mobile version of the site: http://m.twoppy.com/tedxdelft/

Host
Sipke Jan Bousema

Speakers
Rutger de Graaf
Anne Walraven
Ben Bronsema
Matthew Rogers
Carin Boersma
Damaris Matthijsen
Japie Stoppelenburg
John Cohn
Jamal Mechbal
Maarten Frens
Gerwin Smit
Marije Nie
Scott Cunningham

Interviewees
Boylan Slat
Tim Ziman

Entertainers
Tangarine
Krasha Musica
Maartje en Kine

Despite the beautiful weather, a number of dedicated people spent their entire day inside a window-less workshop, working hard to build tram cars for the upcoming race next week, during the TEDxDelft event. Four teams will participate, competing on making the fastest tram car.

Rolf Hut who came up with the idea was, besides building his own tram car, helping the teams and was making sure safety was considered. Rob Speekenbrink, founder of TEDxDelft, was also paying a visit to the construction site: “Since the tram tracks are not going to be used for traffic for quite a while, why not put them to good use?”

The trams cars must be driven with a gear which is already in place on the base. Other than that, the options are more or less limit-less, and the strategies of the teams do indeed vary. One team has chosen a straight forward hand-driven solution using a big wooden wheel, while another went all in and bought a second hand motorcycle. The coordinator, Alwin Snel, is himself part of a team, hoping that using a bicycle will do the trick. Last but not least, Rolf is planning to use massive truck batteries and a start-motor from a car. Which one would you bet on?

In order to accomplish the task, BetaFactory, an initiative from De Haagse Hogeschool and Kennisalliantie Zuid Holland, has been kind enough to offer space and tools. Gamma in Delft helped out by donating parts, and HTM made everything possible by providing the bases.

If you are curious, make sure to come to the University campus, Friday Oct. 4, in front of the Aula. There will be two races at the day of the TEDxDelft event, the semi-final starting at 10:00 am and the final during the lunch break. See you there!

Can you tell us something about yourself?

I am Renate Klaassen  an Educational Advisor at the Centre of Expertise on Education at Delft University of Technology.  The best aspects part  of this work is to find new and innovative ways of working and to create a learning space in the minds of the people involved, such that they can benefit from the changes we jointly discover.  Empathic listening, and story telling are two of the tools i frequently use in my work. But also as a mom of three beautiful daughters and a lovely husband that keep me of the street the rest of the week ;-)). Read more

Can you tell us something about yourself?
My name is Marike Weltje-Poldervaart. I am an educational advisor at the Centre for Expertise in Education OC Focus at the TU Delft.
Being a cultural anthropologist, the university is a great place to work: interesting “study” surroundings in more that one sense of the word!

What’s your job at TEDxDelft?
I am a performer coach for TedX Delft 2013.

What’s your favorite TED(x)talk?
There are many inspiring TedX talks. Since education is my passion, I very much agree with the talk by Ken Robinson about how schools kill creativity.
Another talk I find inspiring is the one by Angela Lee Duckworth about the key to succes: Grit!
And one of my favourites is the talk by Arthur Benjamin: teach statistics before calculus. Read more

Can you tell us something about yourself?
I’m just a guy working at the Museum Het Prinsenhof in Delft. I’m not the creative mastermind there, but try and give other people the opportunity to excel and make presentations that will mean something to the people visiting the museum.

What’s your job at TEDxDelft?
I got involved with TEDxDelft in 2011, when I was asked to keep an eye at the TEDx finances. I’ve been doing that ever since as treasurer of the board.

What’s your favorite TED(x)talk?
Difficult to say. I’ve seen quite a few memorable ones during our first two editions in Delft. I’ll pick a few from those events.

In 2011, we had three young performers who really stood out and surprised everyone with their unique way of looking at the world and doing something about it: Tim Zaman Bauke Steenhuizen Rolf Hut showing their own take at the world, for three different reasons, but also showing the audience that sharing those perspectives and motivations could inspire in and of itself. I won’t be following their examples and start building rockets, write poetry or redesign sensory equipment, but I sure was inspired set goals and achieve them! Read more

What’s your job at TEDxDelft?
As a passionate performer coach I am lucky to work in the stimulating academic setting of Delft University of Technology. Since the first TEDxDelft in 2011, I have been a member of the TEDxDelft team, responsible for performer coaching. With a dedicated team of coaches we will support TEDxDelft performers to prepare a captivating and convincing presentation. Story telling and theatre techniques, stage direction and English language feedback will enable performers to deliver a performance they will never forget. Read more

In this instalment of the “People behind Tedx Delft” series, we meet Christine Kuiper. She is one of the curators, which means that she is responsible for finding speakers who will “entertain, inspire and challenge” the audience to try great ideas at home.

Christine is working for MOVISIE, the Dutch centre for social support (read more about the liaison MOVISIE en TEDxDelft). There, she helps to promote citizen participation and independence by advising and supporting professional organizations, volunteer organizations and governmental institutions. She focuses specifically on the areas of social innovation and tries to answer these questions: “How can development and implementation of new ideas (products, services and models) meet social needs and create new social relationships or collaborations?” Read more

Bring your books to TEDxDelft and put them in our pop-up library. A pop-up library (or public bookcase) is one or more cabinets which may be freely and anonymously used for the exchange and storage of books without the formalities associated with libraries. When in public places these cabinets are of a robust and weatherproof design which are available at all times. However, cabinets installed in public or commercial buildings may be simple, unmodified book-shelves and may only be available during certain periods.
So: bring one of your favorite books, write something personal in it and put it in our library. Then, of course, take another one out and take it home.

Scott Cunningham jokes that “Big Data” might be his fault. He began his career at telephone service provider AT&T, where he focused on using data to improve customer experiences. Now he wants to use data to predict the future.

Born and raised in Georgia to English parents, Cunningham’s accent reflects his mixed roots. He completed his PhD in England and now lives in Delft with his French wife. His global background has influenced his career, as part of his research now focuses on the creation of social connections.

His most recent publication, Tech Mining, focuses on the prediction of new technologies and that is also the topic of his talk for TEDxDelft. Unsurprisingly, his favorite TED talk also focuses on prediction, A prediction for the future of Iran given by Bruce Bueno de Mesquita.

Photo from PhD thesis

Whoever said that “it’s not easy being green”, must have known what he or she was talking about. Of course, science has made some remarkable progress over the last decade when it comes to clean energy, but how many of those developed clean energy models have actually been integrated within the architecture of our homes and offices? (Power sockets excluded.)

We can hear you think, that stationing a big eco-friendly power plant on your rooftop would perhaps be a little too much, but somewhere in the nearby future you could consider to let nature take over the office building you work in! Read more

“I love a good challenge,” says Molly Quell, the PR and Communications Coordinator for TEDxDelft. A Social Media Consultant and the International Editor of TU Delft’s student magazine, TU Delta, Quell has lived in Delft for 3 years. Her decision to sign up with the event was largely motivated by the idea of taking on a new challenge. “Besides the core team of volunteers – all of whom have different specialisations and cultural backgrounds –I have met hundreds of TU Delft students from different countries. It’s a great platform for acculturation and I’m really enjoying it,” says Quell.

A keen follower of the TED talks, Quell liked the idea of getting a glimpse at how things work on the other side of the stage. “It’s been great! The logistics that go into such an event are unimaginable and the planning has been on for months now.” Read more

TEDxDelft speaker: Carin Boersma

Binaries limit progress and create boundaries where there should be exchange. For Carin Boersma, Program Officer at Oxfam Novib, understanding this is the key to moving forward.

Oxfam Novib is a Dutch developmental organization that works across 94 countries to create a world without poverty. Unlike other organizations, Novib’s strength lies in exchanging ideas and working with local partners in target nations.

Boersma, who has spearheaded the Novib project for the past six years, believes mutual exchange is the key to the future. In her talk at TEDxDelft, she will take a look at the prevalent local attitude towards developing nations and challenge the current model of top down information and economic exchange. Read more

Ideas worth spreading need to be spreadable. That’s the theme for this year’s TEDxDelft event, Do try this at home.

Do Try This At Home will feature the inspiring talks TED and TEDx are famous for but, the talks held this year will have a practical twist. Speakers will discuss concepts that can be implemented in everyday life, encouraging attendees to take these ideas home and add value of their own. TEDxDelft 2013 will feature talks on subjects ranging from how to survive a global catastrophe to how to predict new technologies and build cities on water.

Curious about 3D printers? Wonder what a didgeridoo sounds like? Want to dope your brain with electricity? We are fortunate to have access to cutting edge technologies that our speakers will demonstrate live. Our speakers range from singer/songwriters to one of TU Delft’s oldest PhD students. Buy your ticket now!

It has been hinted that coming year John de  Mol will be producing a program called ‘Utopia’.

In this  program a group of people has to try to build a new society with only little means. The participants will receive some money to buy stuff, but merely have to try to make a living and make things work on their own.

We have news for John de Mol! Come visit TEDxDelft 4 October, because we have got his namesake, we are presenting to you: John Cohn.

John Cohn is not only a professor and IBM Fellow (which happens to be the most senior technical rank in IBM’s 200,000 person technical community) but is also a real trooper when it comes to survival of the fittest. In The Colony, a show that resembles John De Mol’s new show to a great extent, participants have to survive in a simulated post-apocalyptic environment. Read more