Mike Williams (Youngsville, NC)- teacher & social studies department chair Warren New Tech HS

“Who You?”
Ancestral Research As A Means Of Shaping Identity

View Mike Williams’s TEDxLizardCreek talk here.

The colloquially titled “Who You?” talk will briefly delve into Mike’s personal, academic and historical quest to open an ancestral door closed by his grandfather’s recurrent statement of “Y ou don’t want to know about that. ” The statement, while spoken from a place of segregated pain and fatherly protection, shaped Mike’s sense of identity and started him on his current journey to understand his rural, African­American family roots by examining oral histories, searching contemporary databases, and pursuing national/international research opportunities. “Who You?”, while grammatically incorrect, represents an internal and external query that unabashedly cuts to the core of self­identity and conversely highlights the importance of preserving oral histories and capturing multi­generational ancestral voices.

John Campbell (Raleigh, NC & Lake Gaston)- Chairman of the Board, WasteZero; 2006 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year

Cutting the Trash in Half in America’s Cities and Towns: An Achievable Goal Right Now

View John Campbell’s TEDxLizardCreek talk here.

America is drowning in garbage, even after 40 years of investment in recycling and related infrastructure. We generate about 900 lbs. of trash per person just in our homes each year, and we spend hundreds of billions of dollars simply to move it around. Even without taking the environmental impact of all this trash into account, our wasteful ways force us to underinvest in other vital areas. The solution lies not in more trucks, or additional infrastructure, or new technologies, but instead in the breathtakingly simple idea of changing the way people pay. Campbell will frame the issue in a clear and compelling way and reveal astounding success stories from cities large and small, rich and poor.

Patricia Tirrell (Durham, NC)- Certified Professional Dog Trainer-Knowledge Assessed, Certified Research Administrator

Learning to See With the Heart

View Patricia Tirrell’s TEDxLizardCreek talk here.

It is special that two different species, humans and dogs, are able to live together in harmony. In order for the relationship between species to work there are rules that need to be followed – much the same as when we visit another culture. Working with animals I have learned about the unseen aspects to building a relationship. Relationships need trust in order to thrive. It is interesting to share the stories of a blind dog and his joy – these are very compelling stories. He never gives up. He has a way of engaging others so that it isn’t just his success but everyone’s success. He is special, but the wisdom and lessons he has are meant to be shared for everyone. When you trust and believe in yourself; when you leave doubt behind; when you engage others in your dream; you will discover that anything is possible.

Barger Jeutter (Waynesboro, VA & Lake Gaston)- owner of Solution Consulting – coaching for executives, life, leadership, teams

The Power of Choice

View Barger Jeutter’s TEDxLizardCreek talk here.

We have the opportunity to shape the unseen – the ability to create what we want to see in our future, by using the Power of Choice. The future is “unseen” – however, by making intentional decisions to see it and to shape it, there is clarity. You see yourself there, you have made it visible and you hold the power, the unlimited power, to plan and drive a course that allows you to control the things you can control – using the Power of Choice. Shape the unseen by seeing your future, making a plan, showing who you are, sharing what you have and living a life of intention – not default.

Kathleen Nadeau (Silver Spring, MD)- psychologist, Director of the Chesapeake ADHD Center, author

View Kathleen Nadeau’s TEDxLizardCreek talk here.

Shaping the Unseen – focusing on that which others cannot see – our hopes, dreams, fears, ambition, I will be talking about my journey as a professional in developing a very different understanding of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, while, at the same time, I gradually gained a realization that I have ADHD as well. My presentation will focus on developing a very different understanding of ADHD, currently viewed as a “disability,” hoping to encourage the audience to develop a very different understanding of those with ADHD including their very real gifts that have already contributed so much to our American culture – gifts including creativity and entrepreneurial talents – gifts which today remain trepidation, joy unseen, but which I hope to help bring into the light.

Logan Aldridge (Raleigh, NC)- one-armed competitive wakeboarder & CrossFit athlete, motivational speaker

The Power of Choice: the ability to control your own destiny through attitude

View Logan Aldridge’s TEDxLizardCreek talk here.

Everything that we do in life falls back on the two simple things that control every facet of who we are in the short term, or in trying to shape the unseen for the long term. The simplicity and power of attitude and expectations will dictate your successes and failures of the unseen and unknown future. Life is decided not on what impacts you but rather how you affect changes on the things that can impact you.

John C. Mather (Hyattsville, MD)- astrophysicist, cosmologist and 2006 Nobel Prize in Physics laureate

View John C. Mather’s TEDxLizardCreek talk here.

How we got here, and how far we can go: How the Big Bang led to life on Earth, how instability, chaos, competition, and combat produced civilization over thousands of generations of human history. What extremely long time means for our future: anticipating the next great changes on Earth, how we could travel in person to the planets, and how our robotic partners could take us to the stars, a bumpy but exciting ride!

Gaurav Satija (Hyattsville, MD)- economist, professional dancer

Re-imagining Your Path

View Gaurav Satija’s TEDxLizardCreek talk here.

Living a modern life, we are quickly losing touch with our inner selves. As we pursue material goals, we leave behind the aesthetics which invigorate us. Born and raised in India, I was on a similar path and was studying Engineering at a very prestigious school. Afterwards, I moved to the U.S. seeking graduate studies and better job opportunities. However, I felt an invisible discontent with my goals and achievements. My work was intellectually challenging, I had many friends, an active social life and good fitness levels, but all did not seem rosy. And I could not figure out the cause of this dissatisfaction. Perhaps I was just being moody, I thought to myself. I gave myself a pat on the back and got on with life, as they say. One day, on a complete whim, I went salsa dancing with a friend. I felt good; good enough to come back.

Peter Maeck (Durham, NC)- writer, photographer, speaker

View Peter Maeck’s TEDxLizardCreek talk here.

“Cradle And All: From Womb to Tomb – And Back Again”: Peter Maeck’s previous TEDxLizardCreek Talk, “Remembrance Of Things Present,” described his journey with his father while he had Alzheimer’s Disease. Peter’s present Talk, “Cradle And All: From Womb to Tomb – And Back Again,” treats personal and public separations such as through divorce, death, and disillusion, and suggests how we may channel our departed loved ones’ creativity to achieve in our own lives Thomas Aquinas’s three criteria for beauty: Wholeness, Harmony, and Radiance. Thus life’s beauties, enshrouded for a time by sorrow, can once more be clearly and brightly seen.

Holland Blumer (Charlotte, NC)-  teenage entrepreneur, President of Clothes for Change, founder Teenternships, co-founder of Girls for Tomorrow nonprofit

Simone Johnston (Phoenix, AZ)- teenage entrepreneur, COO PurchaseMate, co-founder of Girls for Tomorrow nonprofit

Why young girls need to strive to be weird: a glance inside of modern day high school 

View Holland Blumer and Simone Johnston’s TEDxLizardCreek talk here.

Not enough girls are going to STEM careers. This divide becomes apparent in high school. The boys populate the programming and engineering classes and master the subjects while girls are discouraged from the same opportunity by their peers. My nonprofit has found that changing a high school girl’s perspective on a social norm in this vulnerable time in her life is close to impossible. Yet this issue can be solved before it even comes to the surface. The most effective way to get women in STEM is to have schools require the classes starting at the young age of 11-12 (6th grade) and up through high school. The talk will focus on how this change will help not only the student but also the school, and how to execute on this mission.

For more information, email tedxlizardcreek@gmail.com.