Big lineup of educational and inspirational speakers coming to Caledon for TEDx Talk

By Zachary Roman

A Caledon woman is organizing an insightful night of knowledge sharing next month.

On March 11, Denise Grant will bring 18 speakers together for a jam-packed evening of presentations at the Albion Bolton Community Centre. 

The event will be part of the TEDx Program, which is affiliated with TED Talks. “TEDx is a grassroots initiative, created in the spirit of TED's overall mission to research and discover ‘ideas worth spreading.'... these events are organized by passionate individuals who seek to uncover new ideas and to share the latest research in their local areas that spark conversations in their communities,” said the TED organization.

That's exactly what Denise Grant is hoping to do. Grant is an author, having published the book Racism: Rising Above the Discomfort of Difficult Conversations.

She now works with government and business groups to help transform their office cultures for the better. Grant herself did a TEDx talk last year in Caledon, but this time around she's taking an organizer role.

“The event I'm hosting, the theme is ‘re-imagine potential,'” said Grant. “We have a lineup of speakers coming from all over the world — some local, too — to share their creative genius. The idea is to put fresh ideas to work on old and new problems.”

Grant said public speaking is very empowering and that it's great to listen to other people's stories and experiences as they're all unique. She said when you put yourself out there you will learn about topics you may not normally find.

Of the 18 speakers who are presenting, five are local to the Caledon area. She said the event will help to put Caledon on the map in the global TEDx community. Each presentation will be around 10 to 20 minutes depending on the speaker.

Some of the local presentations will be “The Art of Intentional Decision-Making” by Rishma Walji and “Co-creating a Life Economy” by Sonia Molodecky.

On March 11, presentations will begin at 5 p.m. and people can purchase tickets or sponsor the event by contacting Grant directly by email at denisegrant@riseoverrace.com or by phone at 416-735-4124.