Theme: Disruption

We invite you to the 9th Annual TEDxNYU Conference: Disruption. This year's theme focuses on the world around us, specifically the various factors that stimulate or promote change, growth, and the influences that affect the direction humanity is heading.

What are some changes that the world will experience? Will such disruption be better for our children? How does one anticipate unstated or future needs? This year our speakers will highlight the changes that they have contributed as well as what to expect in the constantly evolving modern world.

The event will be held in the Richard L. Rosenthal Pavillion on the 10th floor of Kimmel. The event starts at 10:00am on Saturday, April 6th.

Tickets cost $5 with a valid NYU ID and $15 for guests. Tickets can be bought here:

Kimmel Center
60 Washington Sq South
New York, New York, 10012
United States

Emerson Brooking

Resident Fellow at the Digital Forensic Research Lab of the Atlantic Council, Forbes "30 Under 30”

Emerson T. Brooking is a Resident Fellow at the Digital Forensic Research Lab of the Atlantic Council and coauthor of 'LikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media'. Most recently, he was Research Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations—the youngest researcher in a generation to receive such an appointment. He has served as an adviser on information warfare to the National Security Council, Joint Staff, and U.S. intelligence community, and his writing has been published in Foreign Affairs, WIRED, and Rolling Stone, among others. Brooking was recently named to the Forbes “30 Under 30.” He holds a BA in Political Science and Classical Studies from the University of Pennsylvania.

Emily Coates

Dancer, Choreographer, Writer

Emily Coates is a dancer, choreographer, and writer. She has performed internationally with New York City Ballet, Mikhail Baryshnikov’s White Oak Dance Project, Twyla Tharp Dance (2001-2003), and Yvonne Rainer and Group (2005-present). Her choreographic work has been commissioned and presented by Danspace Project, Performa, Baryshnikov Arts Center, Works & Process at the Guggenheim, Ballet Memphis, Wadsworth Atheneum, University of Chicago, and Yale Art Gallery. Awards include the School of American Ballet’s Mae L. Wein Award for Outstanding Promise; the Martha Duffy Memorial Fellowship at the Baryshnikov Arts Center; Yale’s Poorvu Family Award for Interdisciplinary Teaching; the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation grant for Public Understanding of Science, Technology, and Economics; and a 2016 Fellowship at NYU’s Center for Ballet and the Arts. She is associate professor and director of dance studies at Yale University, and co-author with particle physicist Sarah Demers of Physics and Dance.

Hayley Skye Darukhanavala

Recording Artist, Model, Producer, Songwriter

Hayley Skye Darukhanavala is a junior at New York University in CAS, pursuing a BA in Computer Science and a minor in Web Development & Applications on a pre-medical track. She has also studied at the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music at Tisch during her freshman year of college. Outside of school, however, the 20-year old Chicagoan is known as Skye Daru—a recording artist, producer, songwriter, pianist, and professional model signed by Wilhelmina Models. With 15 years of experience, she has had her hands full with many creative pursuits. For the past couple years, Skye has worked alongside producer, "Oh,Hush" and Disney executive Michael Poryes. Her first EP was released at age 13 in 2013 with several singles released in the past two years. All of this accompanied by two Teen Vogue Features in the span of one year. The now six-foot model first entered the fashion industry when she was just six; signing with FORD Models by the time she was a freshman in high school.

Joshua Spodek

PhD MBA

Joshua Spodek, PhD MBA, wrote the #1 bestselling Leadership Step by Step, hosts the award-winning Leadership and the Environment podcast, is a professor at NYU, writes a column for Inc., and blogs daily at joshuaspodek.com. He holds five Ivy League degrees, including a PhD in astrophysics and an MBA from Columbia, where he studied under a Nobel Laureate. He left academia to found a venture to market an invention that showed animated images to subway riders between stations. He teaches and coaches leadership and entrepreneurship at NYU and Columbia Business School. He has spoken at Harvard, Princeton, West Point, MIT, BCG, PwC, S&P, and IBM. Appearing on every major network, the NY Times, Wall Street Journal, and more, he has been called “best and brightest” in Esquire’s Genius issue, “astrophysicist turned new media whiz” by NBC, and “rocket scientist” by Forbes and ABC.

Kelly Zheng

Customer Success Manager, Instagram Influencer

Kelly Zheng is a Customer Success Manager at Celonis where she is dedicated to delivering the process mining software onto her customer’s corporate landscape and ensuring customer success using the technology. Previously she was an experienced consultant at Deloitte where she serviced a wide range of clients from financial services, healthcare, and consumer products mainly in the NYC area. She is also currently the Vice President of Student Affairs for Ascend- Pan Asian Leaders, New York Metro Professional Chapter where she oversees eight student chapters in NYC. Prior to starting her career, she was the President and Chairman of the Penn State Chapter of Ascend for 3 years. For the past 8 years through her involvement with Ascend, Kelly has been a strong advocate of breaking the glass ceiling. She frequently speaks at universities, conventions, corporate events, and professional gatherings, sharing her experiences and advice as a young, Asian woman defying the societal norms.

Megan Poe

Ancient Futurist, a Psychiatrist, Installation Artist, a Psychoanalyst, Musician, Poet, Mother and a Co-dreamer

Dr. Megan Poe, M.D. is an ancient futurist, a psychiatrist, installation artist, a psychoanalyst, musician, poet, Mother and a co-dreamer of a world for all. She loves being in the "invisible arts" and creating habitats and worlds that spark molecular remembrance of who we each are. She created and teaches a class on Love and human connection at NYU combining film, poetry, philosophy, neuroscience. Other recent projects include and the Love Portraits, a live art installation/film featured at BAM and a fair at Art Basel and a series of pieces involving trees and sound to attune us to outer and inner nature. She is also the co-founder of Frequency, a planetarium/dome experiences combining sound, visual art, and interactive presence to tap into inner life.

Sahra Nguyen

Filmmaker, Director, Entrepreneur

Sahra V. Nguyen is passionate about increasing diversity and amplifying stories from the Southeast Asian community. She has created 2 documentary series for NBC Asian America: "Self-Starters," and "Deported." In 2017, Nguyen was selected to join the Google Next Gen Fellowship to explore solutions at the intersection of tech policy and racial justice. In 2018, Nguyen co-founded Listening Party, a podcasting company amplifying voices in audio through talent development and a community podcast studio in Chinatown, New York. In her latest work, Nguyen is the founder of Nguyen Coffee Supply, the first importer, roaster, and distributor of Vietnamese coffee in the US. NCS establishes ethical direct-trade partnerships while championing diversity and representation. Nguyen earned a Bachelor's degree from UCLA with a double major in Asian American Studies and World Arts & Cultures. Instagram: @oneouncegold https://www.facebook.com/sahravang www.sahravang.com www.nguyencoffeesupply.com