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 (subject to certain rules and regulations).

University Place
Manchester Oxford Road
Manchester, Manchester, M13 9PL
United Kingdom

Alice Sparks

Founder of Invisible Manchester

Alice Sparks, a recent graduate from The University of Manchester, will be delivering an insightful talk about seeing things differently - an agenda pushed by the social enterprise, Invisible Manchester, of which she is the Founding Director. This unique model trains people who have experienced homelessness to become walking tour guides of their Manchester. The reviews cite the tours as eye-opening and uplifting, this is a testament to how her work has positively impacted people’s knowledge of Manchester and understanding of homelessness by hearing the voices of those most marginalised. As a result of her work, Alice has been invited to attend and speak at a range of international and local conferences, including the Social Enterprise World Forum, The National Social Value Conference, The World Youth Forum and The Global Solutions Summit. Her future is committed to pursuing social and creative enterprise as an innovative solution to tackle society’s biggest injustices.

Cara Looij

Freelance Creative Facilitator and Director of Insane Manchester

Cara Looij graduated from the University of Manchester in the summer of 2018 with a degree in Drama and English literature. Since then, she has been working as a freelance facilitator of creative workshops in various contexts but mostly working with young people who are considered to be vulnerable in many ways. In her final year, Cara and some fellow students started a mental health initiative called INSANE. The initiative aims to open dialogues and provide a platform for creative expression around the topic of mental health. Her TEDx talk will be using creativity as a communicative tool for expression of mental health struggles in light of the work that she has been doing since graduating through insane and in her wider freelance practice.

Georgie Oldfield

Physiotherapist and Founder of SIRPA

Georgie Oldfield MCSP is a leading physiotherapist and the UK Specialist in a pioneering approach to chronic pain recovery, publishing her book, ‘Chronic Pain: your key to recovery’ in 2014. Georgie is a clinician and through her company, SIRPA, she developed the first training programme in her field, enabling health professionals worldwide learn how to integrate this approach and the concept on which it is based within their own work. Georgie is passionate about raising awareness of this concept and approach and to date has organised and hosted the first two conferences in this field outside the United States, both of which were held at the Royal Society of Medicine in London. She has also appeared on Sky TV and ITV’s ‘Tonight’ programme about back pain.

Joy France

International Battle Rapper

Joy France is a multi award / slam winning writer, poet and creative who is proud to be a magnet for the gloriously weird. After a lifetime of shyness, in her 50s she found confidence via spoken word poetry and now performs across the country. When she approached her 60th birthday she decided to do 60 new things which led her to have many “out of her comfort zone” adventures and discover that amazing things happen when you step out of your bubble. She has had several artistic residencies (currently Creative-in-Residence at Manchester’s iconic Afflecks (Palace) and Poet-in-Residence with United Against Injustice). A short documentary following one of her creative adventures was recently shown at the National Documentary Film Festival and premiered in London with a longer version due to be completed later this year.

Julio Villa-García

Linguist at the University Of Manchester

Julio Villa-García (Avilés, Spain) is a professional linguist working in the Department of Linguistics and English Language at the University of Manchester. Julio was trained as a language teacher and as a linguist. He holds degrees in English language, Spanish linguistics and theoretical linguistics from the University of Oviedo, the University of Kent, the University of Essex and the University of Connecticut. His research focuses on the internal structure of sentences -syntax- and its acquisition in monolingual and bilingual contexts. He has lectured and worked as an English-Spanish translator in the USA and the UK. He is fascinated by the similarities displayed by the world’s languages and is devoted to unearthing the intricate mechanisms underlying language. He is also deeply committed to the promotion and preservation of linguistic diversity, a goal to which his TEDx talk on why bilingualism is such a natural phenomenon aims to contribute.

Lee Wakeham

Business Manager for HMPasties

Lee Wakeham is an ex-offender who is passionate about rehabilitation. He spent much of his career working in sales and recruitment, since 2011 he has worked supporting people with criminal convictions, initially as a Resettlement Worker, then as an Employment Coach for Groundwork as part of the GM Talent Match programme. Lee also spent 4 years as a Board Trustee of Survivors Manchester, a charity supporting male survivors of abuse. Lee uses experience from both his personal life and career to help guide and mentor people with a criminal record to live a life free form crime. He has also worked with Greater Manchester Police as part of a pilot aimed at diverting young people away from organised crime groups. Lee is also a regular visitor to local prisons where he talks about his life and how he managed to break his own cycle of offending.

Rory Thomas

Committee Member of the student society Without A Home (WOAH)

Rory Thomas is a second-year architecture student at the Manchester School of Architecture. He is talking as a member of and on behalf of the group WOAH (Without a Home), a student-led initiative that aims to raise awareness and provide creative solutions to the homeless community, within and out of Manchester. The group was created and is based within the architecture school but emphasises collaboration both inside and out of the discipline. At the moment WOAH is collaborating with an artist that was previously homeless, Ollie Martin, and the firm Architecture Unknown on their latest project ‘Sounds of the Streets’. This is a crowdfunded project to create a walkable space to listen to Ollie’s soundscapes within.

Sarah Yousef

Student at University of Manchester

Sarah Yousef is a postgraduate student at university of Manchester studying International Political Economy. Always enjoyed speaking about social issues, during my undergraduate degree I co-founded a society called ‘Aspiring Young African Leaders’ that set up debates surrounding issues within the continent and potential ways to resolve them. Currently Part of a project with the university that looks to de-colonise the curriculum and address the present attainment gap for students of colour. However, I’m most passionate about vocalising issues faced by women globally but particularly honour based crimes faced by women of colour present throughout the world. Being North African means I am exposed to narratives surrounding ‘honour’ regularly. After writing about this for my undergrad dissertation and various spoken word pieces, it’s about time it shifts from just words on paper to an obligatory conversation.

Shamima Khonat

Community, Campaigns & Citizenship Officer at University of Manchester Students' Union

Shamima Khonat is a graduate from the University of Manchester and now an elected officer at the Students’ Union: "I lobby the university to increase services and support for students from marginalised and unrepresented backgrounds. I aim to be a voice that demands systematic and institutional change from the university, community and wider society to fight against white supremacy and injustices. As a visible Muslim woman I’m passionate about fighting islamophobia and promoting tolerance through faith based activism." She also co-founded Electric Bazaar, an ethical clothing social enterprise that aims to move away from fast fashion and its exploitative nature as well as supporting an inclusive economy that empowers poorer families to sustain and support themselves.