Navesink
x = independently organized TED event

Theme: Accelerators

This event occurred on
April 11, 2015
9:00am - 6:00pm EDT
(UTC -4hrs)
West Long Branch, New Jersey
United States

An accelerator is:
1. A device for increasing speed.
2. A substance that increases the speed of a reaction.
3. A person or thing that accelerates.

Accelerators are change agents. They provide the fuel for which ideas and products are evolved or created, poking holes in knowledge and memes in a memorable way.

TEDxNavesink: Accelerators will offer two dozen live talks and entertainment showcasing people and ideas that are speeding up innovation and forging our tomorrow. How will technology impact our lives? Will there be “smart contact lenses” that enable us to see and get information at the same time? What’s the future of education? Will nanotechnology enable us to live longer, healthier lives? How will we play in the coming decades?

Join us as we explore how today’s Accelerators are shaping our emerging and upcoming future.

Pollak Theater
400 Cedar Ave
West Long Branch, New Jersey, 07764
United States
See more ­T­E­Dx­Navesink events

Speakers

Speakers may not be confirmed. Check event website for more information.

Ravind Kumar

A former college radio DJ, Ravind Kumar is a founding team member and Director of Business Development of RadioFlag, where his primary role is station outreach and developing strategic partnerships. He also led the company’s College Advisory Board effort, a first of its kind. In addition, he is a business analyst on Wall Street.

Abby Daly

Abby Daly is the Founder and Executive Director of the Bridge of Books Foundation, an all-volunteer non-profit organization, which has distributed nearly a half-million books to underserved children throughout New Jersey since 2003. In July 2014, Abby's work was recognized when she was named a “New Jersey Hero” by the New Jersey Heroes initiative (founded and chaired by NJ First Lady Mary Pat Christie). Formerly, she was an attorney with the State of New Jersey, where she pursued mental health and children’s rights cases.

Annika Lorienne

Annika Lorienne is the co-founder and Director of Public Relations of RadioFlag, where she co-created the company’s “Connective Listening” concepts and organized other instrumental aspects of its development. She previously worked in the food and wine industry, helping launch various ventures, including Golden Vine Winery initiated by industry legend Robert Mondavi, in partnership with Disney’s California Adventure. Her unique background in hospitality, the healing arts, and equestrian enabled an expansion of business experiences, including operating and managing horse ranches, where she was also responsible for training, showing, and marketing.

Bora Yoon

Bora Yoon is a Korean-American composer, vocalist, sound artist, and 2014 TED Fellow. She creates immersive audiovisual soundscapes using digital devices, voice, found objects, and instruments from a variety of cultures and historical centuries. Her sounds evoke memory and association to formulate a cinematic storytelling through sound design. As a site-specific and architectural composer, she writes and performs music for a wide spectrum of spaces, which was also the topic of her 2014 TED Talk in Vancouver. Named one of the “14 Artists Who Are Transforming the Future of Opera” by Huffington Post, Bora’s pioneering works have been presented by Lincoln Center, Brooklyn Academy of Music, the Nam June Paik Museum (Korea), Singapore Arts Festival, MADE Festival (Sweden), Festival of World Cultures (Poland), Park Avenue Armory, and Walker Art Center, among others.

Brian Reynolds

Brian Reynolds is executive director of Climate|Money|Policy, a sustainability consultancy which advises organizations on how they can de-leverage their climate risk and prepare for a climatically different world. His firm’s clients span non-profits to manufacturers to small island nations. When not busy with clients Brian travels the country visiting DC and Statehouses, lobbying legislators for aggressive, market-friendly action on climate change. You can find some of his writing on the intersection of climate, risk, and business at www.ClimateMoneyPolicy.com

Camilla Webster

Chris Welty

Dr. Chris Welty is a senior research scientist at Google. He is also the endowed professor of cognitive computer at VU University in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Dr. Welty has been a leading researcher in machine intelligence for over 25 years. He is one of the founders of the semantic web movement, and he is most recently a founder of cognitive computing. Chris was part of the leadership team for IBM Watson’s Jeopardy! Challenge.

Dan Neil

Dan Neil is a Pulitzer Prize-winning car critic, whose “Rumble Seat” column appears Saturdays in the “Off Duty” section of The Wall Street Journal. Dan is, to date, the only award recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for criticism of automotive arts. A North Carolina native, he is a former copy-editor the Raleigh News and Observer classified advertising department, where he received his big break by slipping his first car review into the paper without permission. Subsequently, Dan’s column became a hit and his work appeared in The New York Times, “Car and Driver” magazine, and The Los Angeles Times.

David Srere

David B. Srere is the Co-CEO and Chief Strategy Officer at Siegel+Gale, a global strategic branding firm. A noted authority in the corporate branding field, he has pioneered the notion of organizational purpose as an integral part of the brand development process. He has 30+ years of experience helping organizations develop, dramatize, and deliver clear, credible, compelling communications strategies. Industry experience includes: healthcare; financial services; consumer brands; education; energy; entertainment; technology; and telecommunications.

Don Katz

Donald Katz is founder and CEO of Audible, Inc., the world’s largest seller and producer of downloadable audiobooks and other spoken-word content. The company commercialized the first portable digital audio player in 1997, and it is the exclusive supplier of audiobooks to Apple’s iTunes store worldwide and operates 12 global outlets. Acquired by Amazon.com in 2008, it is now an Amazon.com, Inc. subsidiary. Prior to founding Audible, Don was a journalist and author for 20 years. His work won a National Magazine Award, an Overseas Press Club Award, and the Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize for Nonfiction. He was also nominated for a National Book Critics Circle Award.

Don Lincoln

Don Lincoln is a particle physicist at Fermilab, using the Large Hadron Collider (world’s highest energy particle accelerator) to study questions of matter’s ultimate building blocks and the universe’s origin. A popularizer of physics, he has written for many magazines (Scientific American) and several books. His latest book is The Large Hadron Collider: The Extraordinary Story of the Higgs Boson and Other Things That Will Blow Your Mind.

Dr. Don Lincoln

Don Lincoln is a particle physicist at Fermilab. He uses the Large Hadron Collider (the highest energy particle accelerator in the world) to study some of the most profound questions ever posed by mankind: questions of the nature of the ultimate building blocks of matter and the very origin of the universe itself. Lincoln is also a passionate popularizer of physics. He has written for many magazines, including Scientific American, and made dozens of YouTube videos about particle physics and cosmology. He has also written several books for the public, including the recently released "The Large Hadron Collider: The Extraordinary Story of the Higgs Boson and other Stuff that will Blow your Mind."

Esther Dyson

Founder of HICCup and chairman of EDventure Holdings, Esther is an active angel investor, best-selling author, board member and advisor concentrating on emerging markets and technologies, new space and health. She sits on the boards of 23andMe and Voxiva (txt4baby), and is an investor in Crohnology, Eligible API, Keas, Omada Health, Sleepio, StartUp Health and Valkee, among others. From October 2008 to March of 2009, Esther lived in Star City outside Moscow, Russia, training as a backup cosmonaut.

Gail Dines

Popular culture bombards us with hyper-sexualized images of idealized women and men, conveying powerful messages that help shape sexuality. Dr. Gail Dines explores how masculinity and femininity are shaped by pornified images that spill over into our most private worlds.

Gary Lewandowki

Dr. Gary W. Lewandowski, Jr. is a professor and Department Chair at Monmouth University, Director of the Relationship Science Lab, and co-editor/co-creator of www.ScienceOfRelationships.com. His well-published research focuses on the self and relationships, and his work and expertise have been featured in media outlets (The New York Times, CNN, WebMD, Scientific American Mind, USA Today). Dr. Lewandowski is also a nationally recognized teacher by The Princeton Review among its “Best 300 Professors” list.

Joe Iconis

Joe Iconis is a musical theater writer and a fixture on the New York cabaret scene. He is the recipient of a Kleban Prize, a Jonathan Larson Award, an ASCAP Harold Adamson Lyric Award, and a MAC John Wallowitch Songwriting Award. He has also been nominated for two Drama Desk Awards and a Lucille Lortel Award. Joe’s songs appeared on Season 2 of NBC’s “Smash” and his writing has been featured in The New York Times. He is the author of: “The Black Suits” (Center Theater Group, Barrington Stage Company); the rock-and-roll Spaghetti Western musical “Bloodsong of Love” (Ars Nova, NAMT); “ReWrite” (Urban Stages, Goodspeed Opera House); and Theaterworks USA’s “The Plant That Ate Dirty Socks” and “We The People.” Joe is currently working on a musical about Hunter S. Thompson for La Jolla Playhouse/Broadway Across America, with book-writer Gregory S. Moss.

Kaihan Krippendorff

Kaihan Krippendorff is the CEO of Outthinker LLC (www.outthinker.com), a former McKinsey consultant and author of four business strategy books (most recently Outthink the Competition). He writes one of the most popular blogs on Fastcompany.com and is the founder of the Outthinker Network, a global community of creative innovators. Nobel Peace Prize winner Mohammad Yunus has said, "Kaihan shows that with a compelling idea anyone can change the world" and that message has made Kaihan one of the most sought-after public speakers on the topics of business, strategy, and innovation. Through his firm, Outthinker, he helps leading firms including Red Bull, Microsoft, VMware, Nestle Purina, L'Oreal, TIAA-CREF, Aetna, Experian, Johnson & Johnson, and Citibank reach strategic clarity and build strategic-thinking capacity. He earned his MBA at Columbia Business School, his BS in Finance from Wharton Business School, and a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania.

Karyn Marshall

Dr. Karyn Marshall is a pioneer in the sport of women’s weightlifting. She set over 60 world and American records, was crowned “World Champion” and “Strongest Woman in the World”, and earned a spot in The Guinness Book of World Records. As the first woman to ever lift 300+ pounds (the weight of some sumo wrestlers) over her head, Karyn’s success helped pave the way for females to participate in weightlifting at the Olympics. A three-year breast cancer survivor, she now competes in the sport of CrossFit. At age 55, she placed 6th worldwide in the CrossFit Games’ masters division in 2011. Dr. Marshall was a Wall Street analyst before becoming a chiropractor and opening Champion Chiropractic in Shrewsbury, a private practice which specializes in treating athletes.

Lora Aroyo

Dr. Lora M. Aroyo is the Chief Technology Officer at Tagasauris, Inc. in New York, where she makes media content more accessible and discoverable using crowdsourcing. She is also an associate professor of Computer Science at VU University in Amsterdam, Netherlands, where she heads the Web & Media group. Dr. Aroyo is an internationally known expert in multimedia interaction. Lora led the European NoTube project, developing new “second screen” applications for discovering and sharing TV experiences online within one’s social circles.

Lou Kerner

Lou Kerner is the founder and senior partner of The Social Internet Fund, which invests in the primary and secondary shares of rapidly growing private technology companies. Previously, Lou was Wall Street’s first social media analyst at Wedbush Securities, where he was the managing director of the private shares group. He also had a distinguished career as an equity analyst following media companies for Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch.

Michele Mitchell

Michele Mitchell is the co-founder editor at Film at 11, located in Brooklyn. She is the co-director/producer/writer of the upcoming documentary, The Uncondemned. Her first film, Haiti: Where Did the Money Go?, won the Edward R. Murrow Award for “Best TV Documentary” among many others. Michele is the author of three books, including two regional bestselling novels. She is a former political anchor on CNN Headline News, where she began her career. She is also a former correspondent for “NOW with Bill Moyers” on PBS.

Mike Rayburn

Mike Rayburn is an unconventional keynote artist, known for his skilled use of guitar and comedy in delivering his “‘What If?’ Experience” presentations on innovation and peak performance to corporations and associations worldwide. As artist in residence at High Point University, Mike teaches real-world business and entrepreneurial strategies a few days each semester. He is currently launching his Virtuoso Community, providing excellence-driven interactive live events and resources for people dedicated to becoming Life Virtuosos. He has presented two TED Talks, headlined Carnegie Hall multiple times, and performs regularly in his home of Las Vegas. Mike has performed more than 5,000 presentations in 19 countries and is a favorite on Sirius/XM Comedy and morning radio nationwide. He has been featured in USA Today, Billboard, Successful Meetings, Guitar Aficionado, Gig. His YouTube videos have millions of views.

Mitchell Delmar

Mitchell Delmar works in the office of a heavy construction firm and spends much of his time writing. Previously, he was a graphic designer in print media for 27 years before the internet changed the industry. Despite wanting to “help” as an undergraduate student of then-Monmouth College, he decided not to further pursue his major in psychology upon graduation. Mitch has realized many years later that he still wants to help.

Nadya Zhexembayeva

Nadya Zhexembayeva is a business owner overseeing a group of companies active in real estate, investment, and consultant industries. She served as the Coca-Cola chaired professor of sustainable development at IEDC-Bled School of Management, an executive education center based in Slovene Alps, where she still teaches courses in leadership, strategy, change management, design thinking, and sustainability. She has also taught in other business schools, including CEDEP in France & IPADE in Mexico. Dr. Zhexembayeva chairs the resourcefulness advisory board at OMV, an oil & gas company. She sits on the advisory board of the Fowler Center for Sustainable Value at Case Western Reserve University. She also serves as Vice President of Challenge:Future, a global student think-do-tank & innovation competition. Nadya co-authored her first book, Embedded Sustainability: The Next Big Competitive Advantage, with Chris Laszlo.

Nadya Zhexembayeva

Nadya Zhexembayeva is a business owner overseeing a group of companies active in real estate, investment, and consultant industries. She served as the Coca-Cola chaired professor of sustainable development at IEDC-Bled School of Management, an executive education center based in Slovene Alps, where she still teaches courses in leadership, strategy, change management, design thinking, and sustainability. She has also taught in other business schools, including CEDEP in France & IPADE in Mexico. Dr. Zhexembayeva chairs the resourcefulness advisory board at OMV, an oil & gas company. She sits on the advisory board of the Fowler Center for Sustainable Value at Case Western Reserve University. She also serves as Vice President of Challenge:Future, a global student think-do-tank & innovation competition. Nadya co-authored her first book, Embedded Sustainability: The Next Big Competitive Advantage, with Chris Laszlo.

Philip Murphy

Philip D. Murphy is the chairman and co-founder of New Start New Jersey, a policy and advocacy organization established to grow the economy and enhance quality of life, with a focus on the state’s middle class. He recently served as the U.S. Ambassador to the Federal Republic of Germany. Previously, he worked at Goldman Sachs for 20+ years, ending his career on the firm’s management committee in 2003.

Sarah Krüg

Sarah Krüg is a researcher, innovator, and patient advocate. She is CEO of CANCER101, founder of Health Collaboratory, executive director and past president of Society for Participatory Medicine, and serves on the board of National Organization of Rare Diseases. Previously, Sarah was Global Education Director in the medical education group and worked in patient advocacy relations at Pfizer, where she also established the company’s Global Investigator Initiated Research Program. Prior to Pfizer, she spearheaded the development of pediatric disease management clinical pathways and conducted clinical research at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

Ted Coiné

Ted Coiné is Chief Marketing Officer of Meddle.it, the next generation content marketing tool for organizations and individuals. He is a Forbes “Top 10 Social Media Influencer” and an Inc. “Top 100 Leadership Expert.” After five years of trend watching, interviewing and intensive research regarding the demise of Industrial Age management and the birth of the Social Age, he co-authored his latest book, A World Gone Social: How Companies Must Adapt to Survive.

Vinnie Brand

Vinnie Brand is a stand-up comedian, who owns and operates The Stress Factory Comedy Club in New Brunswick, NJ. He serves on the Middletown Township Board of Education. In addition, he coaches two youth travel soccer teams. He performs at various charity appearances annually for organizations, such as Operation Smile, H.O,P.E., The Christina Walsh Breast Cancer Foundation, and others. Vinnie has appeared on Fox’s “Red Eye,” “The Sean Hannity Show,” Comedy Central, Nick Mom’s “Nite Out,” and in 2014 made an appearance on NBC’s “Last Comic Standing.” He has also appeared regularly on various radio shows including “Opie and Anthony,” “John Dabello,” “Preston & Steve,” and “The Bob and Tom Show.” Previous careers include car sales, construction, and florist.

Organizing team

Brian
Smiga

New York, NY, United States
Organizer

Donna
Steinhorn

Rumson, NJ, United States
Co-organizer