This year’s edition of TEDx Berlin, entitled “FOCUS”, was held on September 3rd and encompassed three sessions with invited speakers in different topics covering Digital Life and its challenges. With almost unlimited information available in the world today, the goal of this series of talks was to focus on the bigger picture, on world challenges, while at the same time sharing interesting and unique stories from people who have made a real difference.
The purpose of TEDx events is to have a local gathering with TED-like talks organized independently by members of the community around a broad topic with the inspiration from the original TED talks, with “Ideas worth Sharing”. The objective is to inspire and inform the community.
In this year’s event, hosts Stephan Balzer and Joana Breidenbach introduced a number of speakers in topics around sustainability, human development, energy, and society. The first session, centered on society, focused on democracy, racism, and changes on how society perceives itself. Speakers Christopher Kutarna, Yascha Mounk, Parag Khanna, and Ali Can gave their views on these interesting topics.
For the second session, the focus was changed to sustainability and development. How each individual can contribute and make a difference, how people from different backgrounds and with different ideas can educate and use their knowledge in helping change peoples’ lives, and how not only individuals but also governments and companies need to take responsibility for what is happening around the globe. Speakers Benjamin Weber, Hubertus Drinkuth, Victoria Peter, and Tom Osborn presented different aspects of this important development in current times.
The final session was composed of three very interesting topics, all vital to current human development. Energy, and how humanity can continue in its current path with its growing demand for more; urbanization, and how civilization can continue to expand without destroying the planet; and finally, on a different note, how morality and politics work hand-in-hand in our brains. These very interesting topics were presented by Michael Shellenberger, Julian Breinersdorfer, and Elisabeth Wehling.
The event as a whole was very interesting and enlightening, not only for scientists in fields such as energy and sustainability, but also from a social-sciences perspective. The topics were definitely of interest for a broader audience, and indeed “worth sharing”.
