Puppeteers and preservationists, newspaper editors and artist-scientists, police chiefs and chiptune musicians — these and nine other speakers shared their stories and projects with more than 300 “Renaissance Citizens” at the third annual TEDxBuffalo on Oct. 15, 2013. People and ideas came together under the domed ceiling and stained glass of Canisius College’s Montante Cultural Center.
The dedicated citizens of Buffalo inspired this year’s theme. As our 2013 speakers demonstrated, so many Buffalonians don’t simply leave their day jobs to go home and relax. On nights, weekends and whenever they can steal a moment, involved residents here work on their passions. A professor by day is an “imaginary scientist” by night. An aerospace engineer who grew up with 16 siblings develops a mental toughness regimen for coaching business executives. A Bhutanese refugee harnesses his own experiences to advocate for other refugees, both at his job and long after regular business hours.
TEDxBuffalo 2013 was the first TEDxBuffalo event not held to a 100-person limit. The dedicated volunteers that organized and ran the event were thrilled to be able to welcome more than 300 attendees, who networked and picked the brains of their favorite speakers during breaks. Everyone enjoyed breakfast from Elmwood Avenue’s Coffee Culture, a fabulous lunch from Buffalo’s own Lloyd Taco Truck and an afternoon snack from Firefly Cupcakes.
For those who wanted to attend but did not receive an invite or couldn’t take the day off from work/school, organizations throughout Western New York hosted remote viewing parties. A few speakers stopped by a viewing party at the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library’s Central Branch for a Q&A. TEDxBuffalo 2013 was also streamed live on TEDxBuffalo.com, and interested parties could follow along via Twitter and Facebook.
Back at the Montante Cultural Center, shortly before the day wrapped up, Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown stopped by to declare Oct. 15, 2013 to be TEDxBuffalo Day in the city of Buffalo!
Now that the new year is officially here, planning for TEDxBuffalo 2014 is already under way! Interested volunteers, speakers, sponsors or attendees can stay updated on the event and how they can get involved at TEDxBuffalo.com or email [email protected].