Elijah Wood, Michelle Huntington (centre) and Kristy Wallace are three of the eight speakers who will present at TEDx Griffith. Photo: Supplied.
A global public-speaking event to be held at Marian Catholic College on Thursday (29 August) has sold out.
TEDx is a conference program that operates under the slogan ”Ideas worth spreading”. It’s usually held in big cities such as Sydney and Melbourne, but Griffith will host its inaugural event after local businesswomen Sara Pixley and Jacinda Violi secured a licence to present it in the Riverina town.
“The theme of TEDx Griffith is ‘A place to call home: connection and community’,” Ms Pixley said.
“I’m absolutely thrilled that we’ve assembled a line-up of eight amazing speakers who all have a connection to this region and that we’ve had such strong support from the community to showcase our talent on the big stage.”
Speakers include soil and plant expert Gary Dal Broi, agricultural sales manager Rodney Dunn and Marian student Shirine Nehme, all of whom live in Griffith. The remaining presenters are Indigenous lawyer and weaver Jayne Christian, former Virgin airline captain Michelle Huntington, filmmaker Elijah Ingram, healthcare specialist Syam Mohan and high school teacher Kristy Wallace – all of whom either live or previously lived in a Riverina town.
There will also be musical entertainment performed on the night by artists Laylah Baines, Hannah Lonergan and Belle Madden, as well as a welcome to Country by Marrambidya Dance Group, the first Indigenous dance collective in the Riverina. Local caterer Eleni’s Kouzina will provide refreshments.
Singer Belle Madden, who won the People’s Choice Award at a recent Griffith Grass Roots festival, will perform at TEDx Griffith. Photo: Ginette Guidolin Photography.
“The aim was to showcase both local talent and business, and we’ve used local businesses wherever possible to help us set up the event,” Ms Pixley said.
“Griffith City Council and businesses Cater and Blumer, Quest Griffith, Candid Marketing, Individual Hair Care, and Griffith Women in Business have provided excellent support.”
TEDx is a not-for-profit venture. Event organisers, speakers and musical performers are not paid for their participation or preparation work.
Curator Oumi Karenga-Hewitt also provided her performance, communications, and mentoring experience to prepare speakers for the big stage.
Tickets have been on sale for the past month and the allocation was exhausted by last weekend. Ms Pixley said those unable to secure their place in the crowd could still engage with the ideas.
“We have created an app, TEDx Griffith, which anyone can download,” she said
”We will share the talks when they are uploaded to the official TED YouTube channel in the coming month.”
The first TEDx event in the Riverina was held in Wagga in 2023. Ms Pixley hopes the momentum continues.
“Organising the TEDx Griffith has been incredibly rewarding and we encourage other regional towns to do the same to showcase their talent,” she said.
Loading ...
