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Do you have a favourite TED video that made you laugh, cry, or just get fired up about an issue? Is there one that you’ve shared with all your friends?
TED talks have become a staple of modern culture, sharing “ideas worth spreading” around the globe. Today you’ll hear from Jen Flowers and Stefanie Myers, two of the makers of TEDxTinHauWomen, Hong Kong’s new TEDx event – the TED licensed, but independently run local conferences.
TEDxTinHauWomen, named after Hong Kong’s beloved sea goddess, is the city’s first annual TEDx event dedicated to women.
Jen and Stefanie, two dynamic, multi-tasking women, share what goes on behind the scenes and why they’re excited to be bringing an event like this to Hong Kong.
Jen leads the operation team and represented the group at TED Fest, a global gathering of TEDx license holders. She traded stories with fellow organisers about what worked well and what went horribly wrong. As Jen says, with a live show something always goes wrong. Luckily, the audience often doesn’t notice as they are so focused on the speakers.
Help speakers give their best talk.
As head of curation, it’s Stefanie’s job to find local speakers and teach them the powerful story-telling skills that are the hallmark of TED talks. Coaching and preparation can only get speakers so far – they still need a great story.
Jen observes that the women focus gives them a niche, a greater chance of finding hidden gems, stories that might not otherwise get told. They were tight-lipped on who the speakers will be, but they did say that they were impressed to find speakers that represent many different sides of Hong Kong.
Jen and Stefanie were part of the founding group of TEDxShanghaiWomen, growing the event from 100 to 900 people in just six years.
To get it started, they had to build up a community, one that brought together businesswomen, entrepreneurs, moms and students to share ideas, to inspire and to support one another.
They are keen to create a similar community here in Hong Kong. This year’s theme is “Bridges – Two Become One”, so they sought speakers who shared stories of connection, of many becoming one. They look for more than just inspiration from a speaker.
Will this talk lead to some action that will make a difference, particularly on women?
Having been involved with producing TEDx events for seven years, Jen and Stefanie have experienced quite a few moments that impacted them strongly. Simply hearing thanks from audience members and volunteers for an event that made their lives a little bit better and speakers that were vulnerable, relatable and truly connected with the audience. That’s what keeps Jen and Stef motivated to keep putting in the effort, on top of their “real” jobs.
They are confident of some more impactful moments at their first event in Hong Kong.
“This is about community.”
There are also still opportunities to partner, to volunteer, to support and just to generally get involved. You can get in touch with them at info@tedxtinhauwomen.com or via Facebook.
#impACT
- Attend TEDxTinHauWomen if you’re here in Hong Kong, or seek out similar events near you. Connect with other open-minded, idea-sharing, inspirational individuals.
- Empower the women around you – reach out to the women in your life and find out how you can help them reach their goals.
- Teach the next generation about values, diversity, equality, and they will make the world a better place.
Get in touch and follow TEDxTinHauWomen on their website, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.
Find more inspiring interviews here
If you enjoyed this interview, you will also like hearing from Jessica Brown about the Making of The Economist’s World Ocean Summit. Listen here.
