TEDxSMU 2010 now accepting applications to attend

DALLAS (SMU) – Applications to attend the second annual TEDxSMU, the high-tech think-fest organized around “ideas worth spreading,” are being accepted through July 30.

Since space is limited for the all-day event — scheduled for October 16 at the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre — those wishing to attend must apply at www.TEDxSMU.org .

After a widely acclaimed inaugural event last fall, TEDxSMU 2010 will focus on human survival issues under the theme “Starting Now.”

The event for adults will follow TEDxKids@SMU, a half-day conference on October 15 for 350 selected middle school students. TEDxKids@SMU will feature dynamic and passionate presentations across a range of topics from many of the same speakers who headline the adult event.

For the first time, an art commissioning has been added to TEDxSMU. Organizers have issued a call for proposals and are encouraging local artists, architects and designers of all types to submit their ideas for a performance, installation or interactive-based project that will foster creativity and imaginative dialogue for TEDxSMU and TEDxKids@SMU. A three-member panel will evaluate all proposals and consists of Jose Bowen, dean of the Meadows School of the Arts at SMU; renowned architect Max Levy; and Christina Rees, curator of The Art Galleries at TCU. Proposals are due by July 9, and more information may be found at www.tedxsmu.org/art-commission/.

A limited number of individual and corporate sponsorships for the TEDxSMU events are still available through Sharon Lyle at 214-768-1558 or slyle@lyle.smu.edu.

Major sponsors who have already committed to support this year’s TEDxSMU and TEDxKids @SMU events include:

• Season Sponsor: Candice and Bobby Haas
• TEDxSMU Title Sponsor: Hunt Consolidated, Inc.
• Additional Sponsor Commitments: Neiman Marcus; the SMU Bobby B. Lyle School of Engineering; Texas Instruments; Alibré / the J. Paul Grayson Foundation; Bracewell & Giuliani; Insider Marketing; Neospire Managed Hosting; and the National Math & Science Initiative.

About TEDxSMU

Bringing together ideas and interesting people from around the world and around the corner, TEDxSMU and TEDxKids @SMU are single-day conferences in Dallas, Texas. Now in its second year, TEDxSMU is jointly produced by Southern Methodist University and the Idea Fund of the Communities Foundation of Texas. Both 2010 events – TEDxKids @SMU on October 15 and TEDxSMU on October 16 – will take place at the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre at the AT&T Performing Arts Center. TEDxKids @SMU (the first TEDx event designed for students) hosts 350 middle school students for a free four-hour conference, in exchange for completing four hours of community service. The 575 TEDxSMU attendees must apply and be selected in order to participate in the full-day conference.

About TED

TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design. TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. Started as a four-day conference in California 25 years ago, TED has grown to support those world-changing ideas with multiple initiatives. The annual TED Conference invites the world’s leading thinkers and doers to speak for 18 minutes. Their talks are then made available, free, at TED.com. TED speakers have included Bill Gates, Al Gore, Jane Goodall, Elizabeth Gilbert, Sir Richard Branson, Nandan Nilekani, Philippe Starck, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Isabel Allende and former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

The annual TED Conference takes place in Long Beach, California, with simulcast in Palm Springs; TEDGlobal is held each year in Oxford, UK. TED’s media initiatives include TED.com, where new TEDTalks are posted daily, and the Open Translation Project, which provides subtitles and interactive transcripts as well as the ability for any TEDTalk to be translated by volunteers worldwide. TED has established the annual TED Prize, where exceptional individuals with a wish to change the world are given the opportunity to put their wishes into action; TEDx, which offers individuals or groups a way to host local, self-organized events around the world, and the TEDFellows program, helping world-changing innovators from around the globe to become part of the TED community and, with its help, amplify the impact of their remarkable projects and activities.

TEDGlobal 2010, “And Now the Good News,” will be held July 13-16, 2010, in Oxford, UK. TED2011, “The Rediscovery of Wonder,” will be held February 28 – March 4, 2011, in Long Beach, California, with the TEDActive simulcast in Palm Springs, California. For details on all upcoming conferences and events, visit www.TED.com.

About TEDx

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.

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*This independent TEDx event is operated under license from TED.