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).

TEDxAmsterdam
Piet Heinkade 1
Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, 1019 BR
Netherlands

Fonger Ypma

Fonger Ypma is a cleantech entrepreneur, who recently founded Arctic Reflections, with the moonshot mission to restore Arctic Sea Ice to counter global warming. After obtaining a PhD in Mathematical Physics from Oxford University, Fonger worked as a strategy consultant at McKinsey & Company for several years. From there, he moved to Eneco, a Dutch sustainable energy company, to be part of a newly formed unit on Innovation & Corporate Venturing. At Eneco, he led the innovation team, and founded a cross-company programme on data science and AI. As an experienced leader in the energy transition, he co-founded a start-up aimed at datacentre waste heat reuse, and was CEO of a housing market data analytics scale-up. Initially starting his Arctic ice initiative as a side project with the Technical University of Delft, he is now fulltime dedicated to this endeavour.

Friendred Peng

Friendred is a computational artist and researcher. Currently, he is a Course Leader & Senior Lecturer at the University of the Arts London. He has worked at various academic institutions, including University College London (IOE, UCL) and Goldsmiths. Friendred's work has been focused on disciplines across art, technology and sciences, exploring the agency of the technologized body, sensory apparatus and interactive systems. His research explores the intertwined relationship between technology, installation and performance arts in HCI. Friendred’s work has been widely published and has been recognized by various awards including the Oppo Renovator award. He has exhibited internationally with works such as “Moving Photon” (London), Skin-Awareness (Arizona), as well as others at Tate Britain, The Design Museum and other galleries internationally. His works have also been presented at the London design festival and Dutch design week.

Lisa Becking

Lisa Becking is an associate professor in tropical marine biodiversity at Naturalis Biodiversity Center and Wageningen University & Research (WUR) in the Netherlands. As a marine biologist she studies life in the sea. With her work she aims to enhance our understanding and appreciation of marine biodiversity. Her work subsequently informs science-based conservation management. Her work has been valued broadly, for example as a former member of the De Jonge Akademie of the Dutch Royal Academy of Arts and Sciences, receiving grants from the Dutch Science Council (NWO), and the Women for Science Award of UNESCO-LÓréal. Public dialogue and societal impact are an integral part of her work as a scientist. She believes strongly that the dissemination of research findings to a broader public is crucial to attract young talent, and to make society more aware of life in the sea. She works towards this with public speaking, as a columnist, and a National Geographic Explorer. Lisa is program leader of INREEF, focused on the balance of tourism in marine protected areas for coral reefs. Within INREEF she has formed a transdisciplinary team of researchers, educators, conservationists and policy makers from Indonesia, the Dutch Caribbean and The Netherlands.

Milio van de Kamp

Milio van de Kamp (1991) is a sociologist and works as an senior lecturer at the University of Amsterdam. In 2022, he was voted FMG Lecturer of the Year. Raised in poverty, he provides a unique, personal look at social inequality. In 2023, his first book was released by Atlas/Contact: Maybe You Should Aim a Little Lower. Previous pieces on inequality and poverty have appeared in several newspapers.

Robin Aisha Pocornie

Robin Pocornie (Amsterdam, 1996) is a real multi-hyphenate! She has experience in and a passion for the neuro- and computer sciences, in addition to being a creative producer for cultural organisations in Amsterdam. Robin was born and raised in Amsterdam, but has also lived and worked in Costa Rica, the USA, and Australia, before moving back to the Netherlands in 2018. Her background in the computer sciences makes her highly aware of the ways in which our societal inequalities influence our rapidly advancing technological world. She is the first person to produce case law on algorithmic racism in the Netherlands. In an accessible and easy-to-understand way, she invites people to gain awareness on AI ethics issues and how we can all work to mitigate them.

Thom Weustink

Thom Weustink, together with Dieuwertje Drexhage, founded LAYCO Medical Devices. After graduating from the University of Groningen with degrees in Business and Politics, he gained valuable experience at Amsterdam-based start-ups bloomon and Studocu before joining multinational FrieslandCampina. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Thomas and Dieuwertje, who was in the process of spinning out the development of a medical device from TU Delft, joined with ambition, drive and a lot of enthusiasm decided to start LAYCO. Through the platform of LAYCO, we are focused on developing reusable medical devices to reduce the CO2 footprint of the healthcare sector while simultaneously enhancing global access to healthcare. Our first product is vela®, a reusable vacuum extractor, to support woman and safely give birth during prolonged or obstructed childbirth.

Venus Bijleveld

Venus Bijleveld aka Ma’MaQueen is an internationally known powerhouse based in Rotterdam Netherlands. Mother of the House of Holographic Hoes. She is an artist with a powerful vision a strong mind and a very warm and op heart. Fighting for equality by celebrating diversity. She is a queen who read inclusive children books for kids because she understands the power of (the lack of ) representation and therefor knows the impotentie of a good representation for the development of the sense of self-worth. The person behind the drag artist is Venus, a non-binary trans feminine person who is currently transitioning.

Zsofia Kollar

Zsofia Kollar is a designer, researcher, published author & the founder of Human Material Loop. For her, design goes beyond mere aesthetics; it holds the power to challenge perceptions and reshape societal norms. This sense of responsibility led her to found Human Material Loop, a material science company.The core focus of Human Material Loop is the transformation of keratin waste, specifically hair, into high-performance, planet-positive materials tailored for the textile industry.Zsofia emphasizes the symbiotic human-ecosystem relationship, seeing us as a part of nature, not above it. As the CEO of Human Material Loop, Zsofia’s current mission is to take their innovations to a global scale. Through scientific advancements she and her team are developing technologies to transform the strongest protein found in nature, keratin into standard materials.