In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized (subject to certain rules and regulations).

Loeb Playhouse
128 Memorial Mall
West Lafayette, Indiana, 47907
United States

Bryce Carlson

Dr. Bryce Carlson is a researcher, educator and coach with expertise in nutrition, adaptation, endurance, and human evolution. His research has taken him to such places as the jungles of Uganda in study of wild chimpanzees and gorillas, the arid landscapes of Kenya in search of human fossils, and the rural highways of the United States in exploration of the limits and nature of human endurance and adaptation. In parallel with his academic pursuits, Carlson has become a driven runner and successful coach. Over the past 8 years, he has run over 150 marathons and ultramarathons in the United States and Europe at distances up to 250 km. In June 2015, he successfully completed one of the longest races in the world, running over 5,000 km from Los Angeles to Washington D.C. in support of children’s fitness and health. Through these experiences Carlson has developed a unique voice encouraging others to dream big and embrace challenge.

Cheryl Cooky

Cheryl Cooky is an Associate Professor of American Studies and an affiliate faculty of the Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies Program in the School of Interdisciplinary Studies at Purdue University. Recognized by The Feminist Wire as a Feminist We Love, and as a recipient of the Title IX Distinguished Service Award, conferred by Purdue for her research on girls and women’s sport, Cooky has a strong commitment to the public translation of scholarship, leveraging her empirical research towards policy ends. She collaborates with several women’s sports advocacy organizations and has served on the Women’s Sports Foundation’s National Policy Advisory Board. She has appeared on National Public Radio, HuffPost Live, in Fortune Magazine, The Globe & Mail, The New York Times as well as other local, national and international news media outlets.

Chuck Dietzen

A pediatric rehabilitation specialist, Dr. Chuck Dietzen is the Founder and President of Timmy Global Health, an Indianapolis‐‐‐based nonprofit organization founded in 1997 to expand access to healthcare in the developing world, while empowering students and medical professional volunteers to tackle today’s most pressing global health challenges. Growing up in Kokomo, Indiana, 150 foster children came through his family’s home. It then became apparent to his mother that he had a special gift with children and she encouraged him to become a pediatrician. Dr. Chuck's commitment to serve the medically underserved has led him to work in the Soviet Union, Haiti, and India, even working alongside Mother Teresa, He returned to the US with a vision to found Timmy Global Health and encourage future medical professionals to also be future humanitarians.

Dave Kieser

Dave Kieser is the founder and president of Midwest Food Bank (MFB), the number 1 charity on Charity Navigator which started in 2003 when the Kieser family began providing food out of a barn on their family farm. The amount of food distributed has steadily grown over the years as they strive to fight hunger. MFB receives donated food from food manufacturers, distributors, grocers, community and organizational food drives, and from individual donors. Locations in the Midwest, South, and overseas allow them to serve over 900 non-profit organizations while also maintaining a ready posture to come to the aid of those affected by regional or national disasters. Midwest Food Bank functions today as it did at its founding: a faith-based community organization consisting of hundreds of volunteers, generous donors, and corporate partners, all operating to serve those in need.

Emily Fogle

Emily Fogle is in her sixth year of NCAA eligibility with the Purdue Women’s Swim Team. During her sophomore season, Emily garnered All ­American accolades en route to having the 5th fastest 200 Breaststroke time in the nation. However, personal and medical tragedy left Emily having seasons unfinished when adversity struck. After applying for an NCAA hardship waiver and clock extension, Fogle is now back swimming in her final season with the Boilermakers. She plans on obtaining her master’s degree in clinical social work, focusing on direct therapy practice treating individuals with eating disorders. In her free time, Emily enjoys baking, cooking, and serving the Lafayette community through volunteer work.

James Byler

Upon graduation from Purdue University, James Byler was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps. Following Officer training in Quantico, Virginia he was stationed in Camp Pendleton, Southern California where he was given charge of an Infantry platoon in the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine regiment. In 2010 his battalion deployed to Sangin District in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. While conducting combat operations in Sangin district he was struck by an I.E.D. and critically wounded, subsequently losing both of his legs. James spent the next year and a half in recovery at the Walter Reed National Military Medical center located outside of Washington D.C. Upon completing rehabilitation and recovery he attended NYU Stern School of Business where he attained a Masters in Business Administration. He currently works at Barclays in New York City as an Equities Trader.

Jill Suitor

Dr. J. Jill Suitor's researches the effects of status transitions on interpersonal relations, particularly between parents and adult children and among adult siblings. Since 2001, she has led the Within Family Differences Study (WFDS), a panel investigating of the patterns and consequences of parental favoritism and disfavoritism in more than 550 multigenerational families. Findings of the study have been featured in more than 70 media outlets including the New York Times, Washington Post, Boston Globe, Telegraph, Daily Mail, Huffington Post, NPR, AARP, MSN, Futurity, and Slate.

Jim Miller

Jim Miller is the vice president of operations at Google. In this role, he has responsibility for global operations, planning, supply chain, and new product introduction for Google’s IT infrastructure and Google Fiber. Additionally, he has responsibility for Google Energy and Corporate & Social Responsibility. Prior to joining Google in 2010, Miller worked with leading companies in electronics, networking, clean tech, communications technology, manufacturing, and consumer services. His expertise in supply chain, both management and consulting, was honed at Amazon.com, Cisco, First Solar, Sanmina­SCI Corporation, IBM Corporation, Intel, and Sierra Crest Consulting.

Juan Wachs

Juan Wachs is an associate professor of Industrial Engineering at Purdue University and is the head of the Intelligent Systems and Assistive Technologies Lab, the main center of research in the field of robotics applied to healthcare. They currently have multiple robotic platforms as sensors used to explore new ways to interact and program robots for natural and intuitive medical applications.

Kap Te'o Tafiti

Known by all visitors to the Polynesian Cultural Center(PCC) in Laie, Hawaii as Kap, he brings the cultures of Polynesia to life through numerous activities. Kap, born and raised in Samoa, Savaii and Upolu, holds B.A. in Art 3D from BYU­Hawaii is the Senior Ambassador for the Polynesian Cultural Center. He is a world class edutainer, who has educated and entertained Church and Government Leaders, Celebrities, and millions of people annually, in the last 20 years. He has travelled the world representing and promoting Polynesia through Cultural Demonstrations such as fire dancing, fire making, weaving, and coconut husking.

Kristen Bellisario

Kristin is a classically-trained musician with specialized training in new music pedagogy and analysis. Environmental sounds impact how she connects with the world and create music, so the study of soundscapes and its relationship to diverse ecosystems is a natural fit for her doctoral work. Working with our diverse ecosystem recordings, she uses computational musicology approaches to quantify environmental changes. In addition, her background includes multimedia development and so, she assists in scientific communication efforts and design of educational interactive devices.

Maryam Ghadiri

Maryam Ghadiri is originally from Iran and came to Purdue University to pursue her PhD. Her main passion in life is nature, education and art. She tries to combine her passion with her current work at the Center for Global Soundscapes at Purdue University. For her PhD, she designs multi­modal curricula for middle school and the visually impaired youth to teach the ecological concepts of soundscape ecology through different hands on activities and field work. For her, environmental education is not just teaching science, it is mainly about creating amazing learning experiences to motivate young students and make them value nature as well as science. As a visual artist, she always incorporates art in scientific activities and believes that art and science can be interconnected as they inspire both scientists and artists.

Mikel Berger

Mikel likes software. In 2004, he partnered with one of his former professors to start DelMar Software Development, LLC to provide software development services to startup companies. In 2012, Mikel took over as president of Lafayettech and the major initiative was launching MatchBOX Coworking Studio because he remembered his days of working in his spare bedroom and coffee shops. He had to stop working from his spare bedroom because it was overtaken by his two kids.

Taimane Gardner

Taimane translates to "diamond" in Samoan and perfectly reflects the different facets of her nature. Whether delicately finger­picking through Bach or radically ripping through Led Zeppelin, Taimane has the ability to morph genres – from classical to rock to flamenco – and stretch her instrument far beyond the familiar melodies of Hawai`i, where she grew up. In addition to performing her own distinctive versions of well-­known pieces, Taimane weaves in original compositions that are as far ranging as her musical tastes. With the fierceness of a rocker, and the grace of a dancer, Taimane lights up rooms wherever she goes, sparkling like the diamond that she is.

Ted Ullrich

Theodore Ullrich is the Founding Partner of Tomorrow Lab®, an internationally recognized product design and engineering studio based in New York City. Tomorrow Lab develops and manufactures smart hardware products for their clients, and was recognized on the cover of Entrepreneur Magazine in 2014 as Top Tech Innovators. Ted regularly speaks on the role of design studios as invention centers and the application of science and design to entrepreneurial ventures to create new technology products that solve big problems.