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).

Loeb Playhouse
128 Memorial Mall
West Lafayette, Indiana, 47907
United States

Ben Westhoff

After decades as a media executive, Eric is now dedicated to fighting misinformation and disinformation and to restoring trust in professional journalism. Convinced that this is the challenge for this generation of media professionals, he is utilizing his media skills to counteract the toxic misinformation that is polluting our civic discourse and threatening democracy. Eric co-hosts a podcast, “In Reality,” that aims to shed light on the fight against misinformation by highlighting those advocating for truth. One of the first things that come to my mind when I think about a terrarium is the clarity of them. They are clear, and in today's polarized world, I think it is of the upmost importance to be clear and to be an ally of truth. I think that Eric's talk would drive this point home.

Eric Schurenberg

Eric Schurenberg is a media executive and award-winning journalist, now dedicated to fighting toxic misinformation and polarization. Among other efforts in this area, he hosts a podcast, In Reality, and a training program for mid-career journalists called The Newsroom Trust Project. Most recently, Eric was the CEO of Mansueto Ventures, home to Inc. and Fast Company, leading the company to the first profitable year in its history. Previously, he was editor-in-chief of four publications: Money, Inc., CBS MoneyWatch, and Bnet.com. As a writer and editor, he holds a Loeb Award for inv

Hatam Tamimi

Hatam Tamimi is a fifth year PhD student in Linguistics at Purdue University. He grew up speaking Arabic and signing a sign language that emerged in his family over a span of six decades after his father lost his hearing. Hatam is passionate about sign language and language emergence and evolution and aspires to be a biolinguist someday. In his home country, Iran, he taught English, raised buffaloes, and worked on his family’s farm. In his leisurely time, he works out, boxes, and dominates his friends playing Catan.

Luis O. Jimenez-Rodriguez

Professor in the School of Theology at Pontifical CatholicUniversity of Puerto Rico and associate professor in theDepartment of Theology at Pontificia UniversidadJaveriana, Colombia

Michael Luongo

Michael Luongo is a PhD student in Purdue University’s School of Hospitality and Tourism Management. His research centers on tourism recovery in the context of conflict. An awardwinning long-time freelance travel journalist, his experiences volunteering on a Ground Zero cleanup crew days after September 11th vastly transformed him, launching him to report in Afghanistan, Iraq and other conflict areas, covering tourism, culture, human rights and LGBT issues for the New York Times, Bloomberg, Gay City News and others. The New Jersey native was an interviewee for the 2022 TED Fellowship and lives between Manhattan and West Lafayette. His travels include 100 countries and all seven continents