TEDxCanberra is Canberra’s ideas festival, operating under license from the charitable foundation TED. Our annual Flagship conference brings together people across Canberra and the Capital Region to celebrate up-and-coming change-makers, innovators, and artists from the city and elsewhere in Australia.
This year’s event theme is BEYOND. What does it mean to ‘go beyond’? How can we shake up the status quo, and push the limits to our imagination, intelligence, courage, and capability? What do we need to do as we go higher, faster stronger that we do so together?
Since 2010, TEDxCanberra has brought together thousands of Canberrans to celebrate great ideas on science, technology, arts, culture and the humanities. In 2023, we will build on this history by inviting speakers and performers to explore how we might grow and go beyond to change the world.
Join us on Saturday 7 October for a day of ‘ideas worth spreading’ where we present a series of brilliant ideas and the people behind them.
Event registration includes access to all sessions, networking opportunities, and complimentary lunch and refreshments during breaks.
Speakers
Speakers may not be confirmed. Check event website for more information.
Cris Clucas
Cris Clucas is a musician, artist, Mum, sci-fi fan and prize winner in the 2022 Adaptive City innovation Challenge speaking to Cohousing as a solution for isolation and loneliness in our communities. In her 18 year career at ANU, Cris has specialised in the creation of community building projects, including the Faces of the Australian National University Facebook page which won ‘Best Use of Social Media at ANU.’ Cris is a Burner - a common term to identify people’s kinship with Burning Man culture and community. Being a Burner is more than attending an event, it is a connected way of being in the world.Fred Smith
Fred Smith is an Australian national treasure. Diplomat, philosopher, poet and raconteur, his songs reverberate with the prophetic voice of humanity.” (Peter Wilkins, Canberra Critics Circle). Fred is the subject of an Australian Story documentary about his work in Afghanistan and the South Pacific. His albums capture the experiences of the latest generation of Australians at war. His book, The Dust of Uruzgan was described by Channel 10 Political Editor Hugh Riminton as “as convincing a picture as we will ever have of the tragedy, hope, oddness and courage of Australia’s Uruzgan enterprise…an astonishingly vibrant piece of reportage from the heart of our longest war.Jono Lineen
Dr Jono Lineen is a curator at the National Museum of Australia and a bestselling author. For 20 years he travelled the world working as a forester, World Cup ski racer, humanitarian relief worker in war zones across Sierra Leone, Liberia and Kashmir, a baker, a journalist, commercial fisherman, mountain guide, anthropological researcher, geologist’s assistant and his most important job as a full-time dad. Jono was the first person to traverse the Western Himalayas alone, walking 2700km from Pakistan to Nepal. He has been involved in some of Australia’s most interesting social history exhibitions, Lag, Meta, Aus: Home in the Torres Strait, Home Front: Australia in the First World War, Great Southern Land and Defining Moments in Australian History. His books include River Trilogy, Into the Heart of the Himalayas, Perfect Motion and Searching for Breath. His current research investigates humanity’s multi-million-year-old relationship between storytelling, creativity and walking.Kieran Pender
Kieran Pender is an Australian writer, lawyer and academic. He is a senior lawyer at the Human Rights Law Centre, leading its work on whistleblower protections. He is also an honorary lecturer at the ANU College of Law, where he teaches constitutional law. Kieran is an award-winning journalist, contributing to The Guardian, The Saturday Paper and The New York Times. He was the ACT Law Society's Young Lawyer of the Year in 2021.Lucy Skelton
At the age of 21, Lucy Skelton is best known as the Labor candidate for Kew in the 2022 Victorian state election. Currently studying International Relations & Public Policy at the ANU, Lucy is deeply interested in social advocacy and youth engagement in politics. In her (very little) spare time, Lucy enjoys knitting and trying to keep the plants in her room alive.Matthew Breen
Matthew Breen started Running for Resilience (R4R) in 2019 with the goal of saving one life from suicide, as many times as possible. Since joining forces with the Dock on the Kingston Foreshore and former Wallaby Ben Alexander in the early days, R4R began running each Wednesday night and catching up for a chat afterward, regularly attracting 200 runners to each run. R4R has grown into a community of more than 2,000 Canberrans who believe that community and exercise underpin a mentally healthy landscape, and with this growth, R4R now believes that saving as many lives from suicide as possible is making Canberra Suicide-Free by 2033.Phoenix Collective
Formed in 2018 by violinist Dan Russell, Phoenix Collective has become a fixture on the Australian musical landscape, with performances for international events company Fever plus their own multi-city concert series. Recent highlights have included performances at the 2022 National Folk Festival with Archie Roach and Katie Noonan, and their debut at the Melbourne Recital Centre with Tibetan musician Tenzin Choegyal. PCQ also provides a concert series for the vulnerable at Wayside Chapel, with the assistance of Judith Neilson AM. Upcoming events include national touring as part of Musica Viva’s Music in Schools program in 2024. IG and Facebook: @PhoenixcollectiveRuth O'Brien
Ruth O’Brien is a singer-songwriter from Canberra, ACT/Ngunnawal Country. Her girlish yet powerful voice combined with her metaphorical, storytelling, songwriting-style effortlessly draws the attention of people of all ages. Influenced by the sounds of jazz, soul, pop, folk and classical music, Ruth’s intention as a vocal artist is to create a sense of vulnerability and intimacy in her performances, hopefully leaving people feeling connected to and affected by the experience.Wallabindi
Wallabindi (Monica Moore) is a proud Wardandi Noongar and Burmese woman, a devoted mum of two, a singer, songwriter, visual artist, speaker/MC, writer and educator. While she has called Canberra home for more than 20 years, she is originally from Perth, with many other family connections along the Western Australian coast. As the daughter of a Stolen Generations survivor and descendant of several generations of stolen family members, Wallabindi is passionate about keeping her culture alive and strong. It’s her deeply held conviction that sharing truth, culture and lived experience gives rise to powerful healing and transformation.Wallabindi and Friends
Wallabindi (Monica Moore) is a proud Wardandi Noongar and Burmese woman, a devoted mum of two, a singer, songwriter, visual artist, speaker/MC, writer and educator. While she has called Canberra home for more than 20 years, she is originally from Perth, with many other family connections along the Western Australian coast. As the daughter of a Stolen Generations survivor and descendant of several generations of stolen family members, Wallabindi is passionate about keeping her culture alive and strong. It’s her deeply held conviction that sharing truth, culture and lived experience gives rise to powerful healing and transformation.Yenn Purkis
Yenn Purkis is an autistic and non-binary advocate and presenter. Yenn is the author of 13 published books, all about elements of autism. Yenn has many awards for their work including the 2016 ACT Volunteer of the Year Award and the 2019 ACT Chief Minister’s Inclusion Award. Yenn is passionate about making a difference for neurodivergent and Queer folks. Their goal is to change the world. Yenn loves giving talks. They have presented all over the world - often via Zoom! Yenn gave a talk on autism and resilience for TEDx Canberra in 2013 so this is their second time on the TEDx stage. Yenn has a Masters degree in Fine Art. They also have a large public profile particularly in the autistic and transgender communities. Yenn lives in a house full of art and books in Gungahlin with their little tortoiseshell kitty, Sunflower.Organizing team
