Theme: Eyes on the Stars. Feet on the Ground.

TEDxIndianaUniversity is a conference to be held at Indiana University Bloomington on November 13th that brings together innovative thinkers from across the university and larger community to explore ideas for our collective future. The 2015 event will be the first TEDx event at Indiana University, and will hopefully lead to a recurring annual event following our initial startup. The TEDxIndianaUniversity officers obtained licensing from TED as well as Indiana University, and have garnered support across campus from a variety of schools and departments.

Indiana University Auditorium
1211 E 7th St
Bloomington, Indiana, 47405
United States

Alyssa Monks

Artist

Alyssa Monks earned her B.A. from Boston College and she studied painting at Lorenzo de' Medici in Florence. She went on to complete her M.F.A at the New York Academy of Art, Graduate School of Figurative Art in 2001. She teaches and lectures at universities and institutions nation wide, and is an adjunct professor at the New York Academy of Art. "My intention is to transfer the intimacy and vulnerability of my human experience into a painted surface. I like mine to be as intimate as possible, each brush stroke like a fossil, recording every gesture and decision." Monks's paintings have been the subject of numerous solo and group exhibitions including "Intimacy" at the Kunst Museum in Ahlen, Germany and "Reconfiguring the Body in American Art, 1820-2009" at the National Academy Museum of Fine Arts, New York. Her work is represented in public and private collections, including the Savannah College of Arts, the Somerset Art Association and the collections of Howard Tullman.

Ben Brabson

Professor Emeritus

Ben Brabson graduated from Carleton College in 1960 in Physics. He then studied at MIT where he received a PhD in physics focusing his thesis on High Energy Physics in 1966. Since 1968 Ben has been a physics professor at Indiana University researching high energy physics from 1968 to 1996 and then researching climate change from 1996 till the present.

Beth Meyerson

Assistant Professor of Health Policy & Management, Co-Director of Rural Center for AIDS/STD Prevention

Beth Meyerson has been involved with public health policy and systems for the past 20 years with focus on sexual health (STIs, HIV and, more recently, cervical cancer). She joined the faculty of the Indiana University School of Public Health-Bloomington in 2011. Dr. Meyerson serves as Co-Director of the Rural Center for AIDS/STD Prevention (RCAP), as well as Policy Director for Cervical Cancer-Free Coalition. Dr. Meyerson's work is focused on public health systems and policy. Her policy studies focus on public health policy behaviors such as state investments in sexual health, policy behaviors of local health departments and state STD programs, and planned policy behaviors expressed in state comprehensive cancer plans. Dr. Meyerson was among 5 Indiana University honorees named Outstanding Junior Faculty in 2013, she received the Trustees Teaching Award from the IU School of Public Health-Bloomington in 2015.

Ceasar McDowell

Professor of the Practice at MIT

Ceasar McDowell has a deep and abiding passion for figuring out how people who are systematically marginalized by society have the opportunity to voice their lived experiences to the world. He brings this passion to the Interaction Institute for Social Change. IISC has a unique lens for collaboration that prioritizes power, equity and inclusion; networks as the unit of action for social change; and love as a force for social transformation. IISC is addressing the challenges presented by the increasing demographic complexity of cities across the world. Ceasar founded MIT’s Co-Lab, where he developed the “critical moments reflection” method to help communities build knowledge from their practice. He co-founded the global civic engagement organization, Engage The Power. At MIT, Ceasar teaches on civic and community engagement and the use of social media to enhance both.

Emily Calandrelli

Producer and Host of Xploration Outer Space

Emily Calandrelli is a producer and the host of FOX's Xploration Outer Space, a nationally syndicated educational program about the space industry. She is also a writer for TechCrunch where she covers technology topics with a focus on commercial space companies. Emily graduated from MIT with a Masters in Aeronautics and Astronautics and second Masters in Technology and Policy. While at MIT, Emily was awarded the Rene H. Miller Award for the best piece of Systems Engineering work in the AeroAstro department. She received her bachelors in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from West Virginia University. As an undergraduate, Emily received the Truman Scholarship, Goldwater Scholarship, and placed on USA Today's All-USA Academic First Team. Emily enjoys writing, speaking, and posting on her social media (@TheSpaceGal) on the topics of science literacy, space exploration, and equality in STEM fields.

Henry Hertzfeld

Research Professor of Space Policy and International Affairs

Dr. Hertzfeld is an expert in the economic, legal, and policy issues of space and advanced technological development. Dr. Hertzfeld holds a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania, an M.A. from Washington University, and a Ph.D. degree in economics from Temple University. He also holds a J.D. degree from The George Washington University and is a member of the Bar in Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia. Dr. Hertzfeld joined the Space Policy Institute in 1992. His research projects have included studies on the privatization of the Space Shuttle, the economic benefits of NASA R&D expenditures, and the socioeconomic impacts of earth observation technologies. Dr. Hertzfeld has served as a Senior Economist and Policy Analyst at both NASA and the National Science Foundation, and has been a consultant to many U.S. and international organizations. He teaches a course in Space Law and a course in microeconomics through the Economics Department at G.W.

Jeff Nelsen

Professor of Music (Horn)

Jeff Nelsen is professor of horn at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and founder of Fearless Performance LLC, a company that focuses on training musicians and others to consistently perform their best. One of the Canadian pig-farm-raised magician horn players in the world, he has thrilled audiences and mentored students for over 20 years. Probably best known for the eight years he spent touring and recording with Canadian Brass, Nelsen has also performed concerti and chamber music on six continents, and in the horn sections of dozens of orchestras, including the New York and Los Angeles Philharmonics, and the Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Montreal, and St. Louis symphonies. Since giving his celebrated 2011 TEDx Talk about Fearless Performance, he has been training fellow TED Talk presenters, teachers, athletes, and business people in giving their own Fearless Performances. A huge Broadway musical fan, Nelsen played the premiere run of two Broadway shows that were nom

Steve Fleischli

Director and Senior Attorney, Water Program at the National Resources Defense Council

Steve Fleischli is a graduate of UCLA School of Law and holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Colorado, Boulder. He has served as President of Waterkeeper Alliance, an international environmental organization supporting local watershed programs in nearly 200 communities across six continents. Since November 2012, Steve Fleischli has led NRDC's national Water Program with a strategic objective to secure safe and sufficient water for people and ecosystems. Steve also served as Executive Director of Waterkeeper Alliance and as the Santa Monica Baykeeper in Los Angeles. He is also the author of two novels: My Sweet Butterfly and Complicit. Steve Fleischli is a Senior Attorney and Director of the Water Program at the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Sylvia McNair

Senior Lecturer in Music (Voice)

Two-time Grammy Award-winner Sylvia McNair is equally at home on the stages of Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall and in the intimate environs of the Rainbow Room and the Algonquin's legendary Oak Room, performing both classical and cabaret, opera and Broadway musicals. Her more than 70 recordings range from Mozart arias with Sir Neville Marriner and the Academy of St.-Martin-in-the-Fields to CDs with Andre Previn of music by Jerome Kern and Harold Arlen. Her career highlights include performances for Pope John Paul II at the Vatican and for Hillary Clinton, as well as a recital at the U.S. Supreme Court by special invitation from Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. A native of Mansfield, OH, she has received honorary doctorates from Westminster College (1997) and Indiana University (1998). In 1999, she received the Governor's Award for Outstanding Achievement in Arts and Entertainment from Ohio Governor Bob Taft.