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).

Missouri History Museum
5700 Lindell Blvd
St. Louis, Missouri, 63112
United States

Allison Miller

Principal Investigator and Member; Professor of Biology

Allison Miller is a Principal Investigator and Member at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, a private, nonprofit research organization improving the human condition through plant science. She is a Professor of Biology at Saint Louis U. She is a Research Associate at the Missouri Botanical Garden. Allison’s research program focuses on understanding biology, diversity, and evolution of long-lived (perennial) plants, including woody perennial crops, and wild species of potential agricultural importance. The long-term goals of her work are to improve existing perennial crops and to develop new ones to support sustainable and resilient agricultural systems in changing climates. She earned BS and MS degrees in Botany from Miami U in Oxford, Ohio, and Colorado State U, and holds a PhD in Ecology, Evolution, and Population Biology from Washington U in St. Louis. She completed postdoctoral training at the U of Colorado. Allison lives in St. Louis with her husband and two children.

Daniel Flynn

Managing Funeral Director

As a lecturer, author, and licensed Funeral Director in multiple states, Dan Flynn has spent the last two decades working with every type of death, from helping a family through the loss of a loved one to working with mass fatality events. Dan speaks to audiences across the country on consumers’ rights and options in regaining control and closure, in the final arrangements for their family. Dan wants everyone to find peace in the final moments of their lives and in the lives of their loved ones.

David Wraith

Co-Founder, Sex Positive St. Louis

David Wraith is a Saint Louis native, writer, filmmaker, sex educator, activist, and co-founder of Sex Positive St. Louis (sexstl.com). He has spent much of his adult life advocating for reproductive freedom, gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender rights, and people living with HIV. He holds a degree in English from Webster University and a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the University of Missouri, St. Louis. He has presented on polyamory, nudism, BDSM, sex-positivity, and body image across the United States and Canada. He occasionally rants about movies, sex, and politics on his blog at davidwraith.com.

Kathleen O'Mara

Opera Soprano

Kathleen O'Mara holds a graduate degree from The Juilliard School and completed her undergraduate work at Westminster Choir College. She has recently returned to Opera Theater of St. Louis.

Kimberly Cole

Owner & Principal of KimHEC

Kim Cole, P.E. is the Owner & Principal of KimHEC and the software as a service solution called DROP. KimHEC helps ensure that sources of pollution from industries are controlled by managing and evaluating data and developing appropriate control mechanisms to ensure the protection of our water system. Kim’s company helps communities and industries implement data-driven decisions related to their wastewater system and the impact that industrial discharges might have on the system. The software that Kim is developing uses data already being collected in the water industry but better manages and analyzes the data so that the "gold" can be found. Kim attended Purdue University for her undergraduate studies in Civil Engineering and received her master's from Clemson University in Environmental Engineering and science. She has a blended family with four kids who are tolerant of Kim's habit of having a computer with her at all times.

Patrick Doering

Commander Crisis Negotiation Team

Patrick Doering has been in law enforcement since 1996 with Lake St. Louis (MO) Police Department. A Crisis/Hostage Negotiator since 2005, he is currently the St. Charles County Regional Crisis Negotiation Team Commander. He's a graduate of FBI National Academy, FBI National Crisis Negotiation Course, and London Metropolitan Police (Scotland Yard) National Negotiators course. Patrick is the former President and co-founder of the Missouri Association of Crisis Negotiators. He has presented case studies at several conferences across the country. He is currently the Crisis Negotiation Section Chair for the National Tactical Officers Association. Patrick has written two books, Crisis Cops and Crisis Cops 2, interviewing pioneers from the 70s and 80s. He traces the evolution of “crisis negotiations” and shares their stories—colorful, comical, tragic, and heartbreaking—distilling the essential communications, tactical, and human lessons he and colleagues have learned through the years.