TED Talks Vancouver

TED has just announced that they will be hosting the TED Worldwide Talent Search in Vancouver (TED Talks) on May 31st at the Roundhouse in Yaletown.

View of the Roundhouse in Yaletown. Photo credit: John Bollwitt on Flickr

This globally-recognized non-profit conference bills itself as being “devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading” and their roster of high profile speakers has included Steve Jobs, Stephen Hawking, Tony Robbins, Al Gore, Sir Ken Robinson, and more. Some of the people behind the conference include Larry Page, Ray Kurzweil, Craig Venter and Seth Godin.

TED Talks Vancouver will be part of a series of searches to bring together some of the most remarkable speakers in TED’s history. The theme of the next TED being: “The Young. The Wise. The Undiscovered.”

They have approved a range of local applicants who each embody one of the characteristics below:

• THE INVENTOR: sharing an innovation with world-changing potential
• THE TEACHER: sharing valuable knowledge in a memorable way to teenagers or adults
• THE PRODIGY: young talent ready to break out
• THE ARTIST: who can showcase their work in a compelling, new way
• THE PERFORMER: music, dance, comedy, drama: or something entirely different
• THE SAGE: wisdom the world needs from those who have learned it the hard way
• THE ENTHUSIAST: with an infectious passion about a topic they can share
• THE CHANGE AGENT: helping shape the world’s future with work that matters
• THE STORYTELLER: vivid, original, meaningful: with a talent for connection
• THE SPARK: with a powerful idea worth spreading

The selected Vancouver applicants will be vying for a spot on the official TED main stage. These are the only auditions taking place in Canada and you can attend the talent search in Vancouver by purchasing a ticket for $40.

TED is a nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, and Design. Since then its scope has become ever broader. Along with two annual conferences—the TED conference in Long Beach and Palm Springs each spring, and the TEDGlobal conference in Edinburgh UK each summer—TED includes the award-winning TEDTalks video site, the Open Translation Project and TED Conversation, the inspiring TED Fellows and the TEDx programs, and the annual TED Prize.

TED Talks in Vancouver will take place Thursday, May 31, 2012 from 3:00pm to 5:00pm and from 6:00pm to 8:00pm. Follow the Vancouver auditions on Facebook and @TEDTalks on Twitter to see who will be speaking next week, and possibly at the next TED.