TEDx Sydney 2016 was packed with innovative, smart and creative ideas delivered by people brimming with passion and excitement. There was a palpable energy in the Opera House as audiences were introduced to ideas with the power to expand their thinking and change the world.
Although live attendance was restricted to 2,300 people, tens of thousands watched live streams across Australia and around the world. Through the TEDx Sydney app, viewers were able to tag inspirational moments, capturing favourite ideas to share with their social networks or revisit later. The most-tagged moments were those from talks about humanity and life, sharing messages of hope and spurring people to action.
These were the four moments that resonated most with viewers across the world:
Tara Winkler
“The cold hard truth is: the more money that floods in, in support of these institutions, the more institutions open, and the more children are removed from their families to fill their beds.”
Tara Winkler’s talk about setting up the Cambodian Children’s Trust (CCT) struck a chord with viewers, becoming the most tagged moment from the entire event. Winkler discovered the sad truth about orphanages in Cambodia that actually place children at risk, separating families and contributing to the cycle of poverty. She set up the CCT to implement a family-based care model, bringing families together and providing Cambodian children with care and support. The moments tagged from her talk were ones full of hope, inspiring viewers to get involved and think carefully about the choices they make as tourists or volunteers. “These problems are reversible and preventable. When we know better, we can do better.”
Peta Murchison
"We try to be honest with Toby, to prepare him for the day when his big sister won’t be with us any more physically.”
Peta Murchison, a mother dedicated to raising awareness for Batten Disease, gave a heartbreaking talk about the effects of the illness on her family and the need for greater investment into research. This moment, when Peta described how the disease has impacted the lives of her family, captivated the audience. Just like Tara Winkler’s talk, Peta Murchison’s talk was driven by hope and a sense of purpose. Her daughter’s illness has forced her to live in the present, rather than focus on the future. Her drive to raise awareness and contribute to research inspired viewers worldwide. “The human capacity for hope is so strong, that even when you’re told that there’s no hope, somehow, you still manage to find it.”
Ken Hillman
“It’s like a conveyor belt.”
Ken Hillman’s talk about dying and old age was confronting and powerful, with this moment in particular resonating with viewers. As people get older, they’re often thrown onto the conveyor belt of hospital care, into an ambulance, taken to the emergency department, placed in a hospital ward and finally the ICU. Ken’s strong belief that we need to change this approach towards elderly care was developed from both his years as Professor of Intensive Care at UNSW and his experience of watching his mother go in and out of hospital at the end of her life. His ideas about eliminating the confusion that exists around chronic illness in elderly people, and his conviction that people should be allowed to pass away comfortably at home, obviously rang true for many viewers across the world.
Remo Giuffré
“Are we an event that just happens to generate a lot of interesting content, or are we a source of interesting content and continual engagement with a community that just happens to organise an event?”
Remo Giuffré describes himself as a thinker and strategist. He’s also the founder of TEDx Sydney and an innovative entrepreneur in his own right. His passion for spreading ideas and creative thinking through the TEDx event was contagious among the audience, becoming one of the most tagged moments of the day. Accompanied by a slide that simply asked “Why Not?”, Remo described the ambition and drive of the TEDx creators to take risks, push the line and not be afraid to make mistakes.
If you were unable to make it this year, you can still view all the talks from the day on the TEDx website.