TEDx SUU

In the Fall of 2007, the Southern Utah University Honors program launched a new interdisciplinary course that used the TED conference as its text and the model for its assignments. In the course called Discourse in the Disciplines, students would seminar over TED talks, then prepare and deliver their own eight minute talk on a topic of their choosing. These pre-TEDx conferences have been called PAM conferences, which stands for Passion, Academics, & Media and named after TED's little sister.

The PAM talks are videotaped with multiple cameras, then edited by honors students into a final form, using the asethetics of the TED talk as their model. The videos to the right are trailers of the entire class efforts during the past two years.

This Fall the SUU Honors TED course is an official TEDx event, and following the PAM conference, SUU will be hosting a conference with TED webcasts, the best five students talks of PAM 2009, performances from SUU music ensembles, and a guest alumna speaker, Valerie Mechling in a single one-night event. Details on PAM and the TEDx event will be posted soon.

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TED has created a program called TEDx, which is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. Our event is called TEDx SUU, where x = independently organized TED event. At our event, TEDTalks video and live speakers will combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events, including ours, are self-organized.