Theme: Humanity Reignited

Join us for our 4th TEDxEustis conference at Epic Theatres in Mount Dora, Florida.

In a world increasingly built on technological advancement and removing humans from the equation, it can feel as if our future belongs to the robots, the algorithms, the artificial intelligence that will tell us what to do and how to think.

But in this rush toward higher efficiency, how do we leverage our greatest asset? How do we rekindle that human spark to serve as a focusing lens on our shared future?

At TEDxEustis 2021, we will encourage our guests to explore Humanity Reignited. Our speakers will bring forward ways to reignite our humanity by reshaping the way we treat those in the last days of their lives, re-imagining our relationship with nature and food cultivation, and rethinking the way we use science to make decisions.

With our Humanity Reignited, we can look at public discourse through a filter that is no longer simply black and white, we can work toward global access to healthcare, and protect our important local ecosystem to sustain our future.

Throughout history, the spark of human life and ingenuity has blazed trails in art, literature, social compassion, and civic reform. Ignited by the smallest tinder, great movements have changed lives and focused our attention on important issues that can improve our world and make us better people.

The TEDxEustis 2021 conference is poised to nurture 14 amazing speakers and performers to stoke the fires of human compassion and ingenuity. It's time to remember that our future is, in fact, human. It's time to unleash that intrinsic humanity to address important issues. It’s time that we get our greatest asset, our humanity, reignited.

The all-day conference will feature three fantastic sessions filled with great talks and mesmerizing performances, along with a great midmorning break to allow attendees to explore topics with each other or just have great conversations. A boxed lunch is included.
Held on a Saturday for the first time ever, TEDxEustis 2021 will also debut a new, lower ticket price, along with an expanded audience capacity!
TICKETS ON SALE September 14th, 2020.

EPIC Theatres Mount Dora
2300 Spring Harbor Blvd
Mt. Dora, Florida, 32757
United States

Anya Berlova

Interdisciplinary Innovator

Anya Berlova is a student and Leeds Scholar at the University of Colorado, Boulder. She is the founder of two anti-bullying startups, a published children’s book illustrator, a remote volunteer for the United Nations, an international speaker on women’s entrepreneurship, and a researcher in the field of psychology and mental health. Through various creative initiatives in technology, art, animation, film, and fashion, Anya’s ventures aim to help people build resilience against bullying and embrace what makes them unique. Anya hopes that through her work, she can help create a world where bullying does not exist (or at least exists a little bit less). You can connect with Anya (and her startup’s mascots, Sheepers and Puggie) through her Instagram, @anyaberlovaofficial.

Claudia Jean Virga

Conscious Choice Challenger

Claudia Jean Virga is the creator of CHAT Communication Style, a communication assessment tool that helps participants identify the preferred communication styles of others in less than 60 seconds. The system allows the individual to effortlessly adjust their own communication style to meet the listener where they are, forging more authentic, effective and lasting connections. Claudia has facilitated more than a 100 employee training sessions and presentations, based on the CHAT system. Claudia has over 30 years of experience working with both for-profits and nonprofit organizations. Claudia is an author and member of the National Speakers Association. Claudia founded the nonprofit Girlz to Women, and has been featured in Shape Magazine, Women’s First, and other national media outlets. She has been a TV host, and has worked behind the camera as an award-winning producer. She is a TEDx Speaker as well as a TEDx Curator and has coached hundreds of TEDx speakers from all over the world.

Ellie Salazar

Backyard Food Forester

A professional gardener, business woman and artist, Ellie was born and raised in Central Florida for the past 27 years. She left college to become a hairstylist, then quit hairstyling to become a young mom. After finding herself in turbulent times, her hobby of gardening became a full-fledged micro garden operation that ended up feeding not only her family, but also friends and neighbors too. After meeting her partner Michael in 2018, they decided to turn their love for gardening into a business called Home Gardeneers and now to date have built dozens of edible gardens for residents here in the Orange and Lake county area. Edible gardening is their passion and spreading the culture of it is their mission.

Jessica Hartman

Reptile Enrichment Specialist

A native of central Florida, Jessica spent her formative years fascinated by the state’s bountiful variety of reptiles and amphibians. Today, she is an entrepreneur turned passionate conservationist with a mission of bringing people closer to wildlife. Her focus is educating youth on some of the world’s most misunderstood and detested species. Jessica founded a regional reptile outreach and educational program where she frequents local schools and learning centers to bring attention to problems such as habitat destruction, pollution, and human-wildlife conflicts. She started a local Reptile Youth Alliance with a goal to spread awareness about these issues and support local conservation efforts. Currently working with the National trust of the Cayman Islands Blue Iguana Conservation and Breeding Facility, Jessica intends to bring a group of volunteers to the island in 2021 to participate in the preservation efforts of a group of endangered cyclura iguanas.

Jim Enderle

Observer & Storyteller

Jim Enderle is a native Chicagoan, retired Navy Chief Hospital Corpsman, and Iraq combat veteran. Jim has a Masters Degree in the Education of Exceptional Students and is a regularly scheduled speaker on veterans’ suicide and transition conversations. He’s recently scheduled publication for his memoir, Fight, Flight, or Freeze: A Love Story, detailing his path to therapeutic forgiveness and reconciliation after war’s trauma. As a member of the Connecticut Storytellers Center, he works with veterans on the healing power of stories, poetry, art, and music. A long-time DJ at Connecticut College’s WCNI radio station, he uses his Saturday night slot for interviews on mental health issues between free-format music. Jim has recently launched a YouTube channel, The World Needs More Middle Children. Jim lives with his wife, Cindy, of 29 years in Quaker Hill, Connecticut. They have two sons, Alfonso and Lorenzo.

Joe Shaw

Data Nerd

Joe Shaw is an author, a speaker, and an analytics engineer. Joe has been counting everything since he was young. The number of paperclips floating around in the junk drawer in his parents kitchen. The number of times his older sister would slam her bedroom door per week. Even the number of times his favorite radio announcers would say the word “and” during Cincinnati Reds broadcasts. Joe counted it all. His love of counting things lead to a career in Technology and Data, where Joe now works in analytics, counting many other interesting things, and using those numbers to help people make important decisions. Joe regularly combines his love of numbers and his love of stories to make sense of the world around us. Joe currently lives in Clermont, Florida with his wife and five children. The Shaw Kids (aka “The SKs”) are a chaotic, eccentric bunch that spin Joe’s head around so much he sometimes loses count of them. But that’s okay. Sometimes losing count is a good thing.

Joy Farrow

Safety Advocate

Joy Farrow is a former street cop who retired from the Broward Sheriff’s Office (BSO) in South Florida after 28 years of service. Joy worked the road as a patrol officer, handling every type of call imaginable. After 9/11, she transferred to the airport to protect the public from terrorists. Joy was involved in many high-profile cases, the last being the mass shooting at the Fort Lauderdale Airport. Joy has received numerous life-saving awards from BSO and many letters of appreciation from the public that she served. Joy retired several years ago to educate women about their personal safety. She creates videos and blogs that detail how women can keep themselves safe from predators. Joy enjoys travel with her family and loves stand-up comedy. Very few people know that above all, Joy is an elite connoisseur of marshmallows.

Kat Chrysostom

Purposeful Entrepreneur

At 19, Kat Chrysostom was riding her horse back to the barn when he suddenly stumbled and fell. After Kat regained consciousness, she discovered that her horse was dying, and she was paralyzed. Having grown up on a farm, in a family full of medical professionals, Kat was passionate about animal wellness. But she had no idea that a tragic accident to turn her passion into a successful business. After a long struggle, Kat found a holistic therapy that helped her regain mobility and began exploring the possibilities of using the same life-changing therapy to reduce pain and suffering on the creatures she loved most. And so Benefab, a company specializing in wearable therapeutic pet products, was born. In addition to Benefab, Kat loves to help people channel their passion into profit. Her newly released book, Broken to Branded, is full of true business stories and real-world strategies designed to help entrepreneurs build a successful business without losing sight of their purpose.

Kori Novak

Hospice Heroine

Dr. Kori Novak is an accomplished Senior Executive with more than 20 years of success spanning healthcare and criminal justice. Dr. Novak’s broad areas of expertise includes elder care, hospice services, thanatology, healthcare strategy and public affairs. Dr. Novak has held leadership positions where she was responsible for achieving change and driving successful collaborations within and outside her fields of expertise. In addition, she is a professor at various universities and is a Sr. Researcher in Gerontology at Oxford University and a Sr. Fellow of Sociology at the School of Law and Social Science at the University of Suffolk in the UK. Dr. Novak attained her Post-Doctoral Fellowship in Ethno-Geriatrics and end of life care (Thanatology) from Stanford University School of Medicine, her Ph.D. in Human Services and Gerontology from Capella University, her MBA from Pepperdine Graziadio Business School, and her BA in International Relations and Russian from the University of Denver.

Max Winfrey

Stunt Comedian

Stunt Comedian Max Winfrey combines his love of improvisation and physical comedy to bring a fast paced no holds barred show that has left a trail of laughs and gasps across the globe. He has made numerous appearances on national television including NBC's America's Got Talent. When he's not performing at corporate or faith based events around the country, he can often be seen headlining for Disney Cruise Line.

Michael Rust

Conflict Expert

You might say that Michael Rust is addicted to conflict. He is an attorney, has three kids, is dating an attorney, and had a cat and a dog prior to getting divorced from another attorney - so conflict is his life. Michael is CEO of the Winnebago Conflict Resolution Center in Oshkosh, WI and Past-President of the Association for Conflict Resolution. Michael performs complex commercial and family mediations throughout the Midwest and trains mediators around the country. He has also served as President of the Wisconsin Association of Mediators, Chair of the Dispute Resolution Section of the State Bar of Wisconsin, Mediation Partner for the Wisconsin Special Education Mediation System, and on the Core Team of the Oshkosh Civility Project. He is a graduate of Marquette University Law School and received the Beacon Award (Distinguished Alumni) from the Carthage College Alumni Association. As a frequent speaker and trainer coast to coast, he is a member of the National Speakers Association.

Nicole Hassoun

Global Health Researcher

Nicole Hassoun is a visiting scholar at Cornell University and Professor of Philosophy at Binghamton University. From 2006-2012 she was an assistant professor in philosophy at Carnegie Mellon University, affiliated with Carnegie Mellon's Program on International Relations and the University of Pittsburgh's Center for Bioethics and Health Law. She has published more than seventy papers in journals like the American Philosophical Quarterly, Journal of Development Economics, and The Journal of Applied Ethics. Her first book Globalization and Global Justice: Shrinking Distance, Expanding Obligations was published with Cambridge University Press in 2012 and her manuscript Global Health Impact: Extending Access on Essential Medicines for the Poor is under contract with Oxford University Press. Professor Hassoun also heads the Global Health Impact project intended to extend access to medicines to the global poor (Global Health Impact).

Patti Hope

Humorist & Humanist

Patti Hope grew up in a small town in the suburbs of Philadelphia, PA. In the 80s, she met a geographer and they married and had many adventures together, traveling and living in the US Virgin Islands and all over the eastern US. Then, in 2009, he died after a five-year struggle with leukemia. She purchased an old farmstead in NJ and poured her grief into its restoration. For eight years the property was host to visual artists, video, film and live music productions, an organic farmer and his family, chickens and entirely too many cats. A passionate advocate for all things social sector, as a nonprofit executive for over 30 years, Patti established best practices for dozens of charities and nurtured the careers of hundreds of young idealists. In 2013, Patti opened her home to travelers using the sharing economy site Airbnb. In 2017, she moved to central Florida and transitioned from a career in nonprofit management to stand-up comedy, speaking, and writing.

Sarah Peters

Fire Keeper

Sarah Peters lives in Mount Dora, Florida and is in her twentieth year as an educator. Her passion is equipping others to become the best that they can be, and teaching children is her favorite way to live out that passion. She has played a variety of roles in both public and private schools. Sarah now co-owns a company, Equipped2Learn, which provides educational services to homeschool families as well as after school tutoring. She holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Elementary Education and a Master of Arts in Counseling and is also certified in Exceptional Student Education, English for Speakers of Other Languages, Reading, and Guidance Counseling. Sarah is also a member of the board of Central Florida Bible Camp and her company facilitates a program there called Florida Learning Adventures. Sarah mixes equal parts of work and play to meet her goals, and strives each day to bring that balance into the lives and learning of her students.