Anab Jain's design studio Superflux envisions a future where the blind are given ultraviolet vision and invasive species are engineered to combat the effects of climate change. She shares her perspective on our not-too-distant future. How would you describe the work that you do at your revolutionary design studio Superflux? We are living...

Looking for a few great talks to inspire you for a great year ahead? TED's content+editorial team staffers pick their favorites -- including some don't-miss talks you might have passed by in this busy year. To spark your curiosity ...  Fawn Qiu: Easy DIY projects for kid engineers Don't you hate it when an operating-system upgrade means...

We asked TED speakers, TED-Ed educators and TED Fellows: “What books would you bring with you to a desert island?” In their deliciously diverse responses, you'll find there's something for every kind of reader. They offered up recommendations -- please use the following links to jump around the sections you're interested in -- for when you're h...

Have we used up all our resources? Have we filled up all the livable space on Earth? Paul Gilding suggests we have, and the possibility of devastating consequences, in a talk that's equal parts terrifying and, oddly, hopeful.

Eco-entrepreneur Alasdair Harris is passionate about conserving marine biodiversity, and he's doing it in unusual ways. While most marine conservationists focus on what's in the water, Harris' company Blue Ventures works with people in poverty-stricken coastal communities to engage them in rebuilding tropical fisheries and in the process of ...

One year ago, TED launched The Audacious Project — an initiative to help change-makers with big, bold ideas for tackling global challenges find the support to make their visions a reality. What's happened since has been amazing. Thousands of people in the US are awaiting trials at home rather than in jail cells now because of the work of The...

At TED2014, we asked speakers and attendees to riff off the conference's theme ("The Next Chapter") and tell us what might radically change society, life, technology and so on in the next 30 years. From funny and wry to deeply insightful, the answers will surprise you. "One of the things about learning how to read -- we have been doing a lot ...

We live in contentious times. Yet behind the dismaying headlines and social-media-fueled quarrels, people around the world -- millions of them -- are working unrelentingly to solve problems big and small, dreaming up new ways to expand the possible and build a better world. At "We the Future," a day of talks at the TED World Theater prese...

Written by the educators who created Reworking the Western Diet, a brief look at the key facts, tough questions and big ideas in their field. Begin this TED Study with a fascinating read that gives context and clarity to the material. Sweet and salty, meaty and mega-sized: Introducing the Western diet If you live in a Western culture, chances ar...

Will the societal shocks of 2016 lead to a bumper crop of art in 2017 and beyond? These TED Fellows channel the energy of activism into creative work that can change hearts and minds. There is a debate going on in artistic circles: Will the unsettling political era ahead push people to create more exciting art and music? But the real answer is:...

A single individual is enough for hope to exist, and that individual can be you, says His Holiness Pope Francis in this searing TED Talk delivered directly from Vatican City. In a hopeful message to people of all faiths, to those who have power as well as those who don't, the spiritual leader provides illuminating commentary on the world as we c...

Deep in the Himalayas, on the border between China and India, lies the Kingdom of Bhutan, which has pledged to remain carbon neutral for all time. In this illuminating talk, Bhutan's Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay shares his country's mission to put happiness before economic growth and set a world standard for environmental preservation.

We know that our world -- our data, our lives, our countries -- are becoming more and more connected. But what should we do with that? In two sessions of TED@IBM, the answer shaped up to be: Dream as big as you can. Speakers took the stage to pitch their ideas for using connected data and new forms of machine intelligence to make material ch...

About this event: A Sense of Wonder: Time to Think Again Roger Cook I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing Roger performed for TEDxNashville one of his first global hits on the very instrument he created the song. “I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing” was one of the first viral hits to ever span the globe and touched the lives of millions. He reminisced about...

It sounds like science fiction, but journalist Stephen Petranek considers it fact: within 20 years, humans will live on Mars. In this provocative talk, Petranek makes the case that humans will become a spacefaring species and describes in fascinating detail how we'll make Mars our next home. "Humans will survive no matter what happens on Earth,"...

Five powerful poems to commemorate this moment in time, as we look toward the 2017 US Presidential inauguration ceremony. Whatever your politics, poetry can help. As President John F. Kennedy put it, “If more politicians knew poetry, and more poets knew politics, I am convinced the world would be a little better place in which to live.” That's ...

The Fez River winds through the city’s medina -- Fez's historic medieval center and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Heavily contaminated, almost an open sewer, it was covered over with concrete to contain the smell; it was all but forgotten in recent decades. For much of the past 20 years, architect and engineer Aziza Chaouni has been battling to ...

Maker, innovator, and cottage industrialist Dominic Muren wants making to be open, global and modular. He's just launched his latest project, Alchematter -- an online open source platform that breaks down and spells out instructions on how to make, well, anything. He gives us the ins and outs of the site, covering everything from reverse crowd...

Need a dose of literary oomph and inspiration? Here's a selection of uplifting reads -- all suggested by TED speakers -- for your enjoyment. When you crave entertainment but don't want to dumb down A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman This touching novel reminds us that everyone has a story; that we should aim to understand, not to judge; and ...

Call it "fuel without fossils": Jonathan Trent is working on a plan to grow new biofuel by farming micro-algae in floating offshore pods that eat wastewater from cities. Hear his team's bold vision for Project OMEGA (Offshore Membrane Enclosures for Growing Algae) and how it might power the future.

Compiled from past TED book lists, here's a curated selection of fiction and non-fiction titles to check out now. Minority Leader: How to Lead from the Outside and Make Change by Stacey Abrams (TED talk: 3 questions to ask yourself about everything you do) I work in government affairs, and the last thing I enjoy reading for pleasure are books ...

About this event: Session 1 Sylvia Camarda: “Dancing through the dark” Sylvia is a professional dancer, born to an Italian immigrant family in Luxembourg. She refused to pursue a secure future, a big house, a big car and a solid bank account. Instead, she chose to become a dancer, an artist, and to pursue to road to freedom. Sylvia pushed herself to the li...

Enthusiastic recommendations for uplifting reads, as suggested by TED speakers and TED-Ed educators. If you’re searching for some calm The Peace of Wild Things: And Other Poems by Wendell Berry This little book of poetry is my current morning dose of calm, and I use it like a meditation if I’m feeling stressed about the day ahead. The most f...

In a mind-bending talk that blurs the line between science and art, Tomás Saraceno exhibits a series of air-inspired sculptures and installations designed to usher in a new era of sustainability, the "Aerocene." From giant, cloud-like playgrounds suspended 22 meters in the air to a balloon sculpture that travels the world without burning a singl...

Astronomer Aomawa Shields searches for clues that life might exist elsewhere in the universe by examining the atmospheres of distant exoplanets. When she isn't exploring the heavens, the classically trained actor (and TED Fellow) looks for ways to engage young women in the sciences using theater, writing and visual art. "Maybe one day they'll jo...

How can cities help save the future? Alex Steffen shows some cool neighborhood-based green projects that expand our access to things we want and need -- while reducing the time we spend in cars.

Why do arguments change people's minds in some cases and backfire in others? Hugo Mercier explains how arguments are more convincing when they rest on a good knowledge of the audience, taking into account what the audience believes, who they trust, and what they value. [TED-Ed Animation by TED-Ed]

Born out of a social media post, the Black Lives Matter movement has sparked discussion about race and inequality across the world. In this spirited conversation with Mia Birdsong, the movement's three founders share what they've learned about leadership and what provides them with hope and inspiration in the face of painful realities. Their adv...

Days before this talk, journalist Naomi Klein was on a boat in the Gulf of Mexico, looking at the catastrophic results of BP's risky pursuit of oil. Our societies have become addicted to extreme risk in finding new energy, new financial instruments and more ... and too often, we're left to clean up a mess afterward. Klein's question: What's the ...

On a mission to create a hunger-free world, agricultural entrepreneur Cedric Habiyaremye makes the case for cultivating quinoa -- and other versatile, nutrient-rich grains -- in places experiencing malnutrition, like his native Rwanda. He shares a model to help smallholder farmers across Africa diversify their fields with nutritious and indigeno...