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).

Yellow Box
1635 Emerson Ln
Naperville, Illinois, 60540
United States

Charlie Draper & Holly Lowe

Charlie Draper plays the theremin and the ondes Martenot, two early electronic musical instruments distinguished by uniquely expressive otherworldly sounds and almost limitless gradations of tone and volume. A passionate advocate for both instruments, Charlie has collaborated with ensembles worldwide in performances at TEDSummit, London's Wigmore Hall, Glastonbury Festival, Oslo's Opera House, Dublin's National Concert Hall, the New York Public Theater, and Mexico's Auditorio Metropolitano. In addition to performing with Holly Lowe as "Stranger Strings", he also plays with the Radio Science Orchestra and his own recently-founded orchestra, Retrophonica. Holly Lowe is a London-based freelance performer, she is a graduate of The Guildhall School of Music and Drama and The Royal College of Music, supported by a Richard Carne Scholarship, where she won the intercollege Chamber Ensemble Prize with her trio The Lilium Trio. Holly is a regular performer with major orchestras and ensembles

Charlie Draper & Holly Lowe

Stranger Strings

Charlie Draper plays the theremin and the ondes Martenot, two early electronic musical instruments distinguished by uniquely expressive otherworldly sounds and almost limitless gradations of tone and volume. A passionate advocate for both instruments, Charlie has collaborated with ensembles worldwide in performances at TEDSummit, London's Wigmore Hall, Glastonbury Festival, Oslo's Opera House, Dublin's National Concert Hall, the New York Public Theater, and Mexico's Auditorio Metropolitano. In addition to performing with Holly Lowe as "Stranger Strings", he also plays with the Radio Science Orchestra and his own recently-founded orchestra, Retrophonica. Holly Lowe is a London-based freelance performer, she is a graduate of The Guildhall School of Music and Drama and The Royal College of Music, supported by a Richard Carne Scholarship, where she won the intercollege Chamber Ensemble Prize with her trio The Lilium Trio. Holly is a regular performer with major orchestras and ensembles

Cornelius Link

Bardcore Musician

Cornelius Link is a southern German-native Bardcore musician. Cornelius always had a special relationship with the wild nature of the Black Forest lying there and its many medieval castles and ruins. His love for the Black Forest led to his admiration for the musical and instrumental diversity of this epoch and the desire to revive the music of the bards and minstrels of the colloquially-called "Dark Ages". Over time, Cornelius began to acquire more and more knowledge about exotic, historical, and especially acoustic instruments and tried to let them sound in their own unique way. Due to a medieval meme in a friend's WhatsApp group and the idea to set it to music, Cornelius made a medieval cover of Tony Igy's hit Astronomia (or Coffin Dance), which unexpectedly led to a different kind of enthusiasm for medieval music in the summer of 2020. Since then, he has been creating medieval or fantasy covers of well-known songs and also plans to release his own music soon.

Daryl Davis

Race Relations Expert

Daryl Davis graduated from Howard University with a degree in Jazz. As a pianist, vocalist, and guitarist, he performs nationally and internationally with The Daryl Davis Band. He has also worked with such notables as Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley’s Jordanaires, The Legendary Blues Band, and many others. In 1983, a chance occurrence after one of his performances led him to befriend a member of the Ku Klux Klan. This eventually led Daryl to become the first black author to travel the country interviewing KKK leaders and members, all detailed in his book, Klan-Destine Relationships. Today, Daryl owns numerous Klan robes and hoods, given to him by active members who became his friends and renounced the organization. Since his journey began, Davis has joined an all-white country band, attended KKK rallies, and accepted a “certificate of friendship” from the Traditionalist American Knights of the KKK. He’s even the godfather of former Klan Imperial Wizard Roger Kelly’s granddaughter.

Daryl Wilson

ER Doctor & Punk Rocker

Dr. Daryl Wilson graduated with a B.S. in Biology from Illinois Benedictine College (now Benedictine University), attended Loyola University’s Stritch School of Medicine for medical school, and did his residency training at John Stroger Hospital in Cook County. He has been an attending physician since 2000. He is an emergency physician at Edward Hospital in Naperville and currently one of four EMS medical directors for Region 8 in Illinois. He’s a Naperville resident and the father of three girls. By night, however, he performs as lead vocals for The Bollweevils, a Chicago-based punk band that he’s performed in since medical school. Since 1989, the group has released multiple albums and performed across the country at festivals like Riot Fest and with bands like the Smoking Popes.

Jason Silva

TV Personality & Futurist

Jason Silva is an Emmy-nominated and world renown TV personality, storyteller, filmmaker, sought-after keynote speaker, and futurist. His inspirational videos, Shots of Awe, have received over 100 million views across social platforms. The videos explore topics such as futurism, technology, creativity, the science of awe, disruptive innovation, relationships and mental health. Most recently Jason hosted the global miniseries ORIGINS: The Journey Of Humankind, on the National Geographic Channel, seen in 171 countries. A global keynote speaker, Jason has given talks at events for Microsoft, Intel, Cisco, Oracle, Adobe, Electronic Arts, Cannes Lions, Tribeca Film Festival, National Geographic, Discovery Channel, 20th Century Fox, Cosmopolitan, PHD Worldwide, Google Zeitgeist, TED Global, The Economist, and more. “A Timothy Leary of the Viral Video Age” was how The Atlantic described Silva, “part Timothy Leary, part Ray Kurzweil, and part Neo from The Matrix.

John Coyle

Olympic Speed Skater & Design Thinking Expert

John K. Coyle is one of the world's leading experts in "Design Thinking” and Innovation. A highly sought-after speaker and lecturer, John is a graduate of Stanford University with a degree in Engineering - Product Design (Design Thinking) and Northwestern’s Kellogg Graduate School of business. A former head of innovation for a Fortune 500 wireless telecom, John has also been the SVP of innovation for a leading strategy consultancy. John is a world-class athlete in two sports (cycling and speedskating) and an Olympic silver medalist, as well as an NBC Olympic Sports analyst, John is a two time TEDx speaker, and an award-winning author of two books.

Kevin Bong

Multi-Instrumental Artist

Kevin Bong, aka “KBong”, is a multi-instrumental artist known for his “key” role in reggae band Stick Figure. Touring with the group since 2012, KBong has solidified his place as one of the top keyboard players in today’s current Reggae scene. Through his music, KBong hopes to inspire others to approach life with a positive mindset and maybe even pick up an instrument themselves. KBong’s debut solo album ‘Hopes and Dreams’ released in 2014 and features the standout track Livin Easy, which has amassed over 2 million streams. KBong’s music presents an atmosphere of catchy acoustic guitar riffs, easy-going vocal melodies, as well as influences ranging from reggae to hip hop. As KBong says, “Music is an expression of ourselves; it’s an art form. Whether you’re playing for one person or a thousand, music soothes the soul.”

Kevin Bong

Kevin Bong, aka “KBong”, is a multi-instrumental artist known for his “key” role in reggae band Stick Figure. Touring with the group since 2012, KBong has solidified his place as one of the top keyboard players in today’s current Reggae scene. Through his music, KBong hopes to inspire others to approach life with a positive mindset and maybe even pick up an instrument themselves. KBong’s debut solo album ‘Hopes and Dreams’ released in 2014 and features the standout track Livin Easy, which has amassed over 2 million streams. KBong’s music presents an atmosphere of catchy acoustic guitar riffs, easy-going vocal melodies, as well as influences ranging from reggae to hip hop. As KBong says, “Music is an expression of ourselves; it’s an art form. Whether you’re playing for one person or a thousand, music soothes the soul.”

Laticia Thompson

Laticia (Tish) Thompson is the Founder and Chief Legacy Partner of Legacy Blueprint, LLC. A management consulting firm that teaches people how to play nice in the sandbox. She’s known for driving change in organizations that stick and creating a learning experience that’s fun, thought-provoking, and capitalizes on the knowledge in the room. Tish is passionate about helping people and organizations discover the essence of their greatness and inviting the world around them to experience it. Tish holds a Master of Science degree in Management and Organizational Behavior with two concentrations. She is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Business Psychology. She is a best-selling author for her personal story I Am Not My Hair. Tish is a mother of four, a five-time marathon finisher, and never has a bad hair day.

Lynda Ulrich

Positivity Media Mogul

Dr. Lynda Ulrich is a dentist turned global social innovator. She is the founder of the positive media outlet Ever Widening Circles (EWC), a company on a mission to prove it's still an amazing world. Through her work, she has uncovered an enormous wave of goodness and progress that has been hidden by the noise of our digital lives. It's a movement she calls the "Conspiracy of Goodness." The constant doom and gloom that has spread across our media, is not who we are at our core--and Dr. Lynda is about to lift the curtain on how we start to see and support this Conspiracy of Goodness. She believes a new, better era is on its way. In fact, it's here.

Mark Lundholm

Mark Lundholm is a comedian, author, playwright, actor, speaker, addict, and most important to him, a father. Mark performs stand-up comedy focused on the challenges and experiences of those struggling with addiction. He has appeared on Comedy Central, A&E, CBS, Showtime & NBC. When Mark isn't under the spotlight, he works with those in recovery. You'll find him in jails and prisons, addiction treatment centers, homeless shelters, recovery conferences, and other places he used to live himself. Recently, Mark and Wholehearted.org announced and released, The Mark Lundholm Show, along with several new video programs and resources.

Moran Cerf

Neuroscientist & Hacker

Dr. Moran Cerf is a professor of neuroscience and business at the Kellogg School of Management and the neuroscience program at Northwestern university. His research uses methods from neuroscience to understand the underlying mechanisms of our psychology, behavior, emotion, decision making, and dreams. His works address questions such as: "How are conscious percepts formed in our brain?", "How can we control our emotions?", and "Which brain mechanisms determine if we find content engaging?" Dr. Cerf holds a Ph.D. in neuroscience from Caltech, an MA in Philosophy, and a B.Sc in Physics from Tel-Aviv University. He holds multiple patents and his works have been published in wide-circulation academic journals, as well as popular science journals. Additionally, his work has been portrayed in numerous media and cultural outlets such as CNN, BBC, Bloomberg, NPR, Time, MSNBC, and dozens of others. He was recently named one of the "40 leading professors below 40".

Natalia Taylor

YouTube Personality & Singer

Natalia Taylor is a YouTuber, model and singer who's made a name for herself on YouTube with over 2 million subscribers. As an expert in the field of social media, Natalia Taylor has “gone viral” numerous times over her 5+ years as an influencer. With her fans’ captive attention, Natalia spills the tea on current pop culture headlines and hot topics circulating online. an expert in the field of social media, Natalia Taylor has “gone viral” numerous times over her 5+ years as an influencer. She is a key voice in the world of influencers and new media.

Ralph Covert

Songwriter & Rock Performer

At the heart of the success of Ralph Covert’s thirty-year career as a Grammy-nominated recording artist is his songwriting. His songwriting classes for the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago were used as the model for their songwriting department. He has released over two dozen albums between his kids’ music project Ralph’s World and his Rock n’ Roll band The Bad Examples, and has toured the world, playing prestigious venues like the Ravinia Festival in Highland Park, New York’s Central Park, the Milky Way in Amsterdam, Chicago’s Lollapalooza, and Austin City Limits. His songs have appeared in films, TV shows like Six Feet Under, and commercials for companies like Huggies, Rice Krispies, and Sears, as well as being covered by other artists including the multi-platinum band Styx. Ralph’s World is viewed by millions on the Disney Channel.

Roger Anderson

Telecommunications Privateer

Roger Anderson is a telecommunications engineer by day and "mad telephone scientist" by night. In 2014, Roger’s son answered a phone call from an unsolicited telemarketer - an exchange that ended in some nasty things being said to his son. Roger took revenge by founding the Jolly Roger Telephone Company, a series of robots capable of wasting the only resource meaningful to telemarketers - their time. In 2016, Roger released his bots to the world, continuously enhancing and adding layers of "artificial stupidity" to bait telemarketers into long conversations with a gullible-sounding “human”. Since then, his bots have processed over 5 million telephone calls and wasted over 2 years of telemarketing time - and he’s not done yet.