Theme: Reflect. Resist. Restart.

TEDxBabsonCollege invites speakers from a myriad of professions and walks of life to come together and teach the valuable lesson of how to embody resilience. We would like to investigate and explore the various paradigms of failure stories from personal to professional life and from across the worlds of Science, Technology, Art, Healthcare, Sports, Culture and Sustainability to understand how to rise from the ashes like a phoenix.
"It's your reaction to adversity, not adversity itself that determines how your life's story will develop." - Nelson Mandela
TEDxBabsonCollege aims to further the understanding of the need for a backup plan for when things go south, a proverbial exit strategy from our own best laid out plans. When is the right time to restructure? When is the right time to move from plan A to B? And most importantly, how do we introspect on our plans about life, work and love to react in a manner that proves instrumental in shaping who we aspire to be. As we all get ready to take the next leap in our life, we hope to contribute towards the groundwork required to surf these changing tides.
As TED propagates, the ideas behind the stories will be key!

Babson College - Winn Auditorium
231 Forest Street
Olin Hall, Ground Floor
Wellesley Hills, Massachusetts, 02457
United States

Ashley Zahabian

Motivational Speaker

Ashley Zahabian, just 23, is a highly sought out lecturer on the topic of emotional intelligence. She has lectured at universities and businesses in several counties, gave a precious TEDx talk at StanleyPark, and even founded her course on emotional intelligence produced and sponsored by Harvard University. Today, she continues to dive deep into the science and art of emotions to help people obtain objectivity and better outcomes.

Heidi Neck

Babson College Professor

Dr. Heidi Neck, Ph.D., is a Babson College Professor and the Jeffry A. Timmons Professor of Entrepreneurial Studies. She teaches entrepreneurship at the MBA and executive levels. Heidi is the lead author of Teaching Entrepreneurship: A Practice-Based Approach. Heidi is Faculty Director of Babson’s Symposia for Entrepreneurship Educators (SEE)—programs designed to further develop faculty from around the world in the art and craft of teaching entrepreneurship and building entrepreneurship programs.

John Lockwood

MBA Student

John’s love of travel and the outdoors has led him to explore some of the most remote areas of the world, including the Indian Himalayas, the Chilean Patagonia, and New Zealand’s Te Araroa Trail.

Jordan Huang

Founder of Uni-Ed

Dr. Jordan is a visiting professor at Central China Normal University and sits on the Board of Shanghai Overseas Returnees Association. Dr. Jordan is the Founder of Uni-Ed, a cross-border educational consulting firm aiming to provide one-stop-shop education solutions to Chinese students and families and k12 schools. Uni-Ed offers college counseling guidance, follow up service in the US and post-graduation employment guidance.

Kira Corning

Sophomore Student

Kira Corning is a 16 year old girl who is a sophomore at Dover Sherborn High school. Kira is interested and involved in her local theatre program at her high school and helps out with another schools drama troupe working with young children. Her hobbies also includes forensic science and cosmetology. She is thrilled to be able to give her very first TedX speech and is very thankful for the opportunity to have a voice to speak about something that is so close to her.

Pat McAuley

Serial Entrepreneur, Author and Startup Consultant

Pat McAuley is a Boston-based serial entrepreneur, author, speaker, and startup consultant for ethical/plant-based companies. He has started and successfully run companies in the tech space and food and beverage industries and has extensive experience building brands from scratch. After a plant-based diet changed his life, Pat shifted his focus to building and supporting businesses in the plant-based space. He is now an outspoken advocate of the health and environmental benefits of plant-based living. Pat is the host of the popular Eat Green Make Green Podcast and is currently working on opening one of the nation’s first fully plant-based beer halls, Rewild.

Raj Shamani

Founder of Shamani Industries

Dubbed ‘lazy’ and ‘useless,’ as a young boy back in India. Raj comes out amidst the people who have no great shakes in their lives and are totally unclear about where this life is taking them. His thirst for knowledge, travel, learning and success kept him going. At 21, Raj is breaking barriers and has given speeches in more than 18 countries. Raj was one of the youngest Indians to speak at the United Nations in Vienna. Raj is also the founder of fastest growing Laundry Care FMCG company in Central India.

Walid Halty

Co-founder of Dvinci Energy Ltd.

Mr. Walid Halty is the co-founder of Dvinci Energy Ltd. Dvinci Energy, Inc. is the world's leading tech firm in renewables. Backed by over $7.2 Billion in funding, with over 40 years of experience in the solar industry, a global reach blended with a community-centric framework, and a cutting-edge business model, Dvinci is one of the fastest growing companies in history.

Zhaodan (Jordan) Huang

Zhaodan (Jordan) Huang is a visiting professor at the Central China Normal University and sits on the Board of Shanghai Overseas Returnees Association. Jordan is the founder of Uni-Ed, a cross-border educational consulting firm aiming to provide one-stop-shop education solutions to the Chinese students and families and K12 schools. Uni-Ed offers college counseling guidance, follow-up service in the US and post-graduation employment guidance.