McMicken Students, Alumni Featured in March 5 TEDxUCincinnati

Shivam Shah will tell you why TEDxUCincinnati is important in one word: ideas. They connect people from across the world and empower communities. Ideas are the lifeblood of the University of Cincinnati, and Shah, a senior in neuropsychology, thinks they’re worth sharing.

The president of the independently organized TED event, he developed his own idea for a UC TED talk in 2014, while serving as vice president for UC’s Student Government. His goal? Bringing students and members of the community together with original and bold talks. 

“There’s so much information out there,” Shah said. “If you have the ability to get that knowledge and be a part of understanding that information—I think it’s our duty to do so.”

On March 5, the second TEDxUCincinnati will spread ideas by pioneers in a number of fields, including activism, science, design, entertainment and education. This year’s theme, Cosmopolitan, revolves around the importance of fostering a global community. 

“We picked Cosmopolitan with the idea that we have a moral obligation to help others,” Shah said. “That obligation extends further than just myself to my friends and family—it goes to the people in Ohio, the people in the United States and the people in the world.”

This will be the second major TEDx conference held at the university, but smaller talks featuring students called “Salons” have been held throughout the semester to sustain interest, and conversations. 

The conference takes place Saturday, March 5, in CCM’s Corbett Auditorium from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Doors open at 10:30 a.m. Advance tickets, available online now, are $10. Day-of tickets are $15 for students and $20 for the general public. 

The McMicken College of Arts and Sciences is well-represented on the speaker roster, which includes:

Christina D. Brown. Brown received her B.A. in Africana studies and political science in 2010. She is a social justice activist and community educator at the Cincinnati Human Relations Commission. 

Brian Eiler. Eiler received both his B.A. and M.A. in Psychology in the College of Arts and Sciences; he is now a doctoral candidate at UC. He’ll speak about his research and quest to discover the underlying principles of human behavior. 

Sean Connell. Connell graduated from UC in 1991 with Political Science degree. After time at Procter & Gamble and in the Peace Corps, Connell founded the Connell Group, an innovative business consultancy dedicated to integrating research and marketing, in 2000. 

Shah says that curating the speakers and choosing a theme is a long, meticulous process. Brainstorming ideas, talking to students and administrators as well as people in the TED community and then whittling down the themes takes months of planning. 

Members of the TEDxUCincinnati executive board repping McMicken include:

Nick Cacodcar, staff director and a second-year Biological Sciences student 

Kristen Haddad, director of finance and a fourth-year Sociology and Psychology student.

Jack Fitzgerald, executive coordinator and a junior Public Relations and Communication student.

Arun Kumar, a graduate assistant in Neurobiology

To find out more about the speakers, past talks or specifics, visit tedxucincinnati.com.