TEDxUNYP is an event that brings together bright minds to give talks that are idea-focused, and on a wide range of subjects, to foster learning, inspiration and wonder - and provoke conversations that matter.

2021 will bring an exciting new venue, 13 amazing live speakers with talks from AI and VR to psychology and dance with a very special musical guest as well. There will be a catered lunch, interactive events and great TEDxUNYP goodies!

UNYP Arena
Kovanecká 27
Prague, Praha 9, 19000
Czech Republic

Alessandro Bedetti

Actor, Influencer

Like most generation Z, Alessandro took to the internet and social media to cope with the lockdowns of 2020 and 2021. He was able to turn the lockdowns into a career jumpstart, having filmed more than 100 TikTok videos a month for more than a year now, he very quickly amassed a following from Italy and all over the world. His charismatic and sincere approach, matched by his piercing blue eyes set TikTok aflame, drawing the attention of his current clients, agents and bookers as well as so many adoring fans as he filmed his way through trend after trend and even created his own original content. At 18 years old, 1.4 million TikTok followers, the sky is the limit for Alessandro. In 2021 he has already featured in the Italian TV Mini Drama ‘Nudes’ as the loyal best friend, and is currently filming his first feature film, where he will play the starring role of a pro-gamer. Alessandro will continue next year his studies at an Italian acting academy.

Anna Nguyenova

Operations Executive for Startups, Entrepreneur & Actress

Anna is an entrepreneur, actress, and a startup advisor. Her expertise is in early stage startup scaling and operations. She has built two startups - once as a founder of Comic Con in Vietnam where she grew her team to 80 employees and once as a VP of Operations of a LA based video company where she built a team from 7 to 100+ people. She is currently leading growth at a London based data startup. As an actress she has filmed over 100 episodes for Czech television. She studied Method Acting at the Lee Strasberg Institute in Hollywood and holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Southern California, Los Angeles. She speaks on everything startup growth related and occasionally writes for US Forbes.

Artur Sychov

Founder & CEO, Somnium Space

Artur is Founder and CEO of Somnium Space. He has been navigating virtual worlds for more than two decades starting with Ultima Online in 1999, then Second Life and many more. Artur strongly believes in the ultimate future of Virtual Reality worlds with open and decentralized economy based on blockchain, amazing creation tools where imagination is the only limit. Artur has worked as an investment trader for many years before creating his first startup and becoming a serial entrepreneur. He is husband and a father of two wonderful children.

Edel Sanders, Ph.D.

Dean of Psychology, University of New York in Prague

Edel Sanders is a researcher, lecturer and the Dean of Psychology at the University of New York in Prague (UNYP). Additionally, she lectures in pedagogy and psychology at Charles University. After earning her bachelor's degree, from Columbia University, she documented the impact of musical learning on inner city children's self-esteem and academic development through research with Columbia's Arts Education Research Center while completing two master's degrees there. Post-Columbia, Edel went on to pursue her PhD in Education and Cognitive Psychology at the University of Cambridge. While there, she joined the Neuroscience Lab and the INSTRUCT educational psychology research group. She later supported field research with the Comparative Cognition lab at Cambridge University that investigated individual traits and social learning in the natural environment of wild jackdaws. Edel is also an award-winning composer and opera singer who enjoys sharing her art in beautiful Prague and beyond.

Elmira Lyapina, PhD

Legal Advisor

Elmira Lyapina, LL.M., Ph.D. acquired her doctorate in public international law from the Charles University in Prague and her LL.M. from the University of Greenwich at the University of New York in Prague. She is an independent adviser on legal matters for businesses. Within her job, she provides legal consultations for international companies and individuals in the field of business law, and also in the field of human rights. Her personal experience as an immigrant and representative of a national minority has provided context for several of her academic articles. Elmira is a guest lecturer at several universities, and does pro bono work on migrant rights. Elmira is a co-founder and chairperson of the KITAP NGO, which represents Tatar and Turkic cultures in the Czech Republic. KITAP provides a platform for cultural exchange and cooperation, in addition to social, cultural and business networking for Turkic communities.

Jordon Rooney

CEO, Built Different

Jordon Rooney is the founder and CEO of NFBD and Built Different, a creative agency that focuses on brand transformations in the digital age. A digital innovator and personal branding expert from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Jordon works to amplify the impact of brands from individuals to large companies. He started out speaking in schools, and then moved into creating videos to capitalize on the impact social media can have. Jordon ultimately grew his video platform to over 140K followers and more than 20 million views. This drove the launch of his nonprofit NFBD, which leverages the shift in modern media to prepare youth for the modern economy. Jordon has directed and produced commercials for billion-dollar companies and one of the largest law firms on the East Coast of the United States, winning two MARCOM Creative Awards. He has been featured in Pittsburgh's 20 in their 20's, and won a Google SVP Pitch Competition.

Juwana Jenkins

Entrepreneur, Educator, Entertainer, Energizer: Connecting people, ideas and results

Known for her trademark fiery, feel-good and energetic performances, Juwana Jenkins from Philadelphia (USA) delights and uplifts audiences with her unmistakable soulful lyrics, raw performances and very rich delivery of her own original music, highlighting different shades of the blues, including soul, gospel, and funk. She’s fronted bands with a diverse array of well-respected and award-winning international artists as well as released her latest single “Long Time” and The Blues Keeps You Alive album that garnered the attention of music critics and earned Juwana the title of “Blues Queen”. An award-winning speaker and instructor, Juwana’s mission is to help people identify and harness their individual and collective talents to achieve their personal and professional visions for themselves, their teams and the organizations and communities they serve.

Mathias Durand

Director of Learning & Development, Socialbakers

Mathias is a public speaker for Procrastination.com and the Director of Learning and Development for Socialbakers. After many years in coaching international sales, Mathias believes that human interactions are the key skills to learn in order to improve we live and work all together. He has delivered many conferences all around the world, helped to promote Peter Ludwig's best-selling book "The End of Procrastination," and trained companies and entrepreneurs on soft skills. Focusing his skills on effective communication, emotional intelligence, and the psychology of persuasion, Mathias has developed a three-step methodology to help people apply empathy as a powerful communication tool for better relationship, leadership and sales. His core values are generosity, humility, and tolerance.

Mike Bugembe

Founder and Author

Mike Bugembe is a best-selling author, international speaker and A.I. evangelist, on a mission to address all aspects of A.I.'s diversity gap. He has worked with organizations across a range of industries as a consultant, trainer and executive adviser. Mike has a passion for all things A.I., but what excites him most is how A.I. can be used to solve the many social problems that we face today. Mike is best-known for the work he has done on using A.I. to improve generosity and charitable giving, developing algorithms that have raised millions for charitable causes. Mike's work has quickly gained him recognition as one of the UK's top digital leaders; he has won several awards and been named as one of the most influential people in data-driven business.

Mladina Folk Dance Ensemble

Dance Ensemble

The Pilsen folk ensemble Mladina was founded in 1954 as the Škoda Plzeň Song and Dance Ensemble. The ensemble has been operating under the current name, by which the ensemble refers to the Pilsen tradition - good beer - since 1994. The focus of its repertoire lies in the area of southwestern Bohemia. The ensemble collaborates with leading music authors and choreographers (Jaroslav Krček, Josef Krček, Josef Fiala, Jaroslava Smolová, Libuše Hynková, Miloš Vršecký) and at the same time creates their own choreography and musical arrangements.

Petr Andrýsek

Founder and Chief Shark, Socialsharks

Petr Andrýsek is the founder and Chief Shark of Socialsharks, the leading social media agency in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Socialsharks is active in eight countries, with a team of 50+ sharks and offices in Prague, Tbilisi and Berlin. In his decade of social media experience, Petr has worked with more than 500 clients and over 1000 brands. Petr's passion is building companies and businesses. In 2017, he switched his focus to esports, and invested in several esports startups. Petr intends to leverage his marketing expertise and passion for gaming to grow the industry, promoting awesome projects like MADMONQ as the next generation of brands that will make industries such as esports sustainable. Petr is an experienced corporate trainer and public speaker, training over 200 top managers and giving over 30 talks and speeches every year.

Radomil Štumpa

Founder, UNIVERSAL SPORTSMAN

Since his childhood in the Soviet Union, Radomil has devoted his life to acquiring new and unique experiences. He has visited over 120 countries, and pursued careers ranging from top-class sportsman and successful break dance crew member, through army prosecutor, judge and attorney, to director of one of the largest US financial companies. After an 18-month paternity leave break to spend time with his three sons, Radomil was unexpectedly fired, forcing him to rethink his life priorities. He decided to focus on creating his own business and on recreational activities. In 2019, Radomil returned to the corporate world by taking on a Brand Activation job with Česká spořitelna, the largest bank in the Czech Republic. Radomil has written two books, Vilismus and New Boss, and is the founder of the unique UNIVERSAL SPORTSMAN championship, which covers over 100 sports and identifies the best all-round male, female and youth athletes in the world.

Sanjiv Suri

Founding President & CEO, Zatisi Group

Sanjiv Suri worked in the hotel industry for 12 years, but never felt entirely comfortable in a large corporate structure. He never planned a career as a restaurateur, but when he first came to Prague in the early 1990s, he realized that the culinary world was still uncharted territory. Growing up in India, Sanjiv became aware of how much poverty exists in the world. Although his parents earned a modest income, they gave 10% of their earnings to the poor regularly. Sanjiv follows their philanthropic example, and uses his own success to aid some of the less fortunate, by donating up to 50% of his company's profits to various charities every year. The aid organizations to which he contributes include Good Angel (which supports the families of disabled people in the Czech Republic), Akshaya Patra (which provides warm, nutritious food to schools and children across India) and Village Enterprise (which provides funds and training to start small businesses in Africa).

Senta Cermaková

Director of Innovation at Deloitte Czech Republic

Senta Cermakova is a Director of Innovation at Deloitte Czech Republic. Her main role involves the development of the firm's strategic projects in the area of new technologies and innovation, and she is also involved in the acceleration and support of start-ups to facilitate their development and growth, both on the domestic market and abroad. Senta teaches Critical Thinking in Business Futurology as part of the CEMS International Master program at the University of Economics in Prague, and engages in social innovations in education and mentoring. She leads several mentoring and internship programs: SheXO, which empowers women in C-suite positions; KidsXO, which educates talented kids in the technologies of the future; 3XO, which brings together seniors with a business background; and a leading internship program at Deloitte Czech Republic. At Deloitte, she won the Central Europe Regional Impact Award twice, once for the startup program and once for transforming the company.