Theme: Point of No Return

We’ve all been there: the point of no return. Sometimes it’s set in motion by circumstances outside our control and at other times, we initiate. Whether it happened in a flash or played out over several years, one thing is certain: the world as we know it has shifted. What ideas, perspectives and innovations were uncovered and how are they shaping our lives? The theme of TEDxOlympia 2015 was Point of No Return. Our talks explored what unfolds when we realize there’s no turning back—and the surprises we discover before, during and after that threshold. Visit us at www.tedxolympia.org.

206 5th Avenue SE
Olympia, Washington, 98501
United States

Chris Maynard

Artist

Chris combines his scientific knowledge, artistic sense, and love of the natural world in a new art form. His medium is feathers, which represent flight, transformation, healing, and a bridge between our present lives and our dreams. Chris is grateful that his work with feathers has hit a soft-spot in the hearts of people around the world. Learn more about Chris and his work at www.featherfolio.com.

Daniel Cherniske

Aquaponic Food Systems Designer

Daniel is an aquaponic food systems designer, teacher, and consultant living, learning, and working in the greater South Sound area. He operates the aquaponic program at the Organic Farm at the Evergreen State College, where he teaches and facilitates education for students and the public. He serves as co-owner of Symbiotic Cycles, an aquaponic design and building company based out of Olympia, WA. Daniel has a passion for accessible and integrated food security approaches which is guided by his strong drive for humans rights, social justice, and vision for a resilient, diverse, and equitable society and quality of life for our world’s communities.

Debbie Lacy

Life Coach and Facilitator

Debbie is a Certified Life Coach with a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Maryland. Debbie is the author of Ready, Set, Manifest! A Handbook for the In-Betweens and Leaps in Life. After a career that spanned social psychology research, clinical social work, and nonprofit management, Debbie launched her full-time coaching and consulting practice in 2003. She is a practitioner at Higher Wellness in Bellevue, WA where she provides individual coaching sessions and workshops. She and her husband live in Kirkland, WA with their son and two dogs. Debbie enjoys monthly meetings with her book group and providing "quality control" services at Auclair Winery, her husband’s labor of love. Learn more about Debbie and her work at www.debbielacy.com.

Diane Whalen

Roman Catholic Womanpriest

Diane, a life-long Catholic, was the first woman in Washington State to be ordained as a Roman Catholic Womanpriest in May of 2010. She serves Holy Wisdom Inclusive Catholic Community in Olympia and Lacey, WA.

Keith Edgerton

Blind Independence Blogger

Keith is a father of 2 daughters, a step dad, husband, waterman, singer/songwriter, drummer, and lacrosse coach. Keith feels most comfortable in the natural world. He is sharing his journey as a legally blind man on his blog.

Madeline Poultridge

High School Student

Madeline is entering her senior year at Avanti High School in Olympia, WA. She began her work in conflict resolution at age 15 with the Dispute Resolution Center of Thurston County. She is thrilled to share ideas and stories with the community.

Maggie Neatherlin & Her One-Man Orchestra

Musicians

Maggie, sophomore at Olympia High School, is a fiddler, vocalist, and multi-instrumentalist (her other instruments include cello, ukulele, and guitar). Maggie has been in a variety of bands including The Bowpullers, Jumping Off Place, and her family's band Fiddlie-I-Ay. She has played traditional music for over half of her life, and has recently immersed herself in playing swing jazz and writing original compositions. She is joined by guitarist Vince Brown, of the local jazz duo Red and Ruby (with LaVon Hardison), and the Greta Jane Quartet. Maggie and Vince enjoy creating innovative arrangements just as much as recreating fun old standards. They are delighted to participate in TEDxOlympia and hope you enjoy the show!

Max Brown

City of Olympia Planning Commissioner

Max was born and raised in Olympia and currently serves on the Olympia Planning Commission. At 24, he was elected the youngest known chair of the commission. Max cares about creating dense and walkable communities in Olympia with an eye for thoughtful design. He joined the commission to give back to his community and help shape the city that he wants future generations to enjoy. Max lives in Olympia with his wife Shannon, daughter Maddox, and twin boys Ryder and Rowan.

Meg Martin

Interfaith Works Shelter Program Director

Meg is an outreach worker, advocate, social worker, musician, aunt, and Program Director of the Interfaith Works Emergency Overnight Shelter (IWEOS) in Olympia, WA. Meg worked closely with the street community for 7 years in downtown Olympia as an outreach worker with the Emma Goldman Youth and Homeless Outreach Project and created, with two passionate friends, the concept for the IWEOS that opened November 1, 2014 at First Christian Church. The IWEOS is an overnight shelter for highly vulnerable single adults and couples without dependent children, operating 7 days a week, 365 days a year. IWEOS's mission is to advance the social inclusion and empowerment of the homeless community through innovative practices of sheltering, mental health and emergency basic needs coordination. In her free time Meg listens to records, plays in bands, dreams big about the possibilities, thinks about gardening—but never really gets to it—and eats tons of veggies.

Michael B. Maine

Artist

Michael's work is intended to bring people together who might not normally share intimate time and space. His goal is to both illuminate the things we have in common and celebrate our differences while exploring issues of identity, belonging, isolation, deviance, kindness, and oppression. The medium he uses most is photography supplemented with interviews, community events, and transmedia storytelling, distribution, and collaboration. He describes himself as someone who newly identifies with being an artist. Although his path has taken several turns to find his passions, his set of experiences have positioned him to be able to serve as a bridge between several different communities. This informs much of his inspiration and the approaches he takes with his work. Learn more about Michael and his work at www.michaelbmaine.com.

Russell Kolts

Psychologist and Professor at Eastern Washington University

Russell is a licensed clinical psychologist and Professor of Psychology at Eastern Washington University, where he has taught for the past 16 years and has received numerous honors including twice being named the associated student body’s Faculty of the Year. Dr. Kolts has authored and coauthored numerous books and scholarly articles, including The Compassionate Mind Guide to Managing Your Anger, An Open Hearted Life: Transformative Lessons for Compassionate Living from a Clinical Psychologist and a Buddhist Nun (with Thubten Chodron), and the forthcoming Buddhist Psychology and CBT: A Practitioner’s Guide (with Dennis Tirch and Laura Silberstein). Dr. Kolts has pioneered the application of Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT) to the treatment of problematic anger and regularly conducts trainings and workshops on CFT.

Sara Sparrow

Contemporary Circus Artist

Sara came to circus through a background as a gymnast, an actor and performer in musical theater, and as a classically-trained singer and musician who holds a degree in visual art. She has a distinctive, awkward grace that permeates her solo aerial and acrobatic work. A malleable character actor with a wide range of interests, she is entranced by the collaborative effort of performer and audience, and the unparalleled possibility of modern circus. She is currently working on a full-length solo show, "Wee Small", that will be presented in 2016. Sara has been teaching and performing aerial and acrobatics in the Pacific Northwest for six years, and in the summer of 2015, she will be opening her own training and teaching studio in downtown Olympia, dedicated to the advancement of the art of circus. Learn more about Sara and her work at Sparrow Studios and www.sparrowcircus.com.

Stacy Flynn

Textile Specialist and Social Entrepreneur

Stacy is a textile and apparel specialist with a BS in Textile Development and Marketing from the Fashion Institute of Technology and an MBA in Sustainable Systems from Bainbridge Graduate Institute at Pinchot University. She is actively reinventing the textile and apparel business model to preserve the future of apparel. After a diverse background working with both start-ups and large multi-national corporations like DuPont, Target, Eddie Bauer, and Rethink Fabric, Stacy launched Future Resource Collective (FRC), a collaboration hub and incubator for sustainable innovations in the apparel and textile industry. In 2014, FRC launched its first social purpose corporation, Evrnu, which uses a patent-pending technology that recycles cotton garment waste to create premium, renewable fiber. Learn more about her work at www.evrnu.com.