Theme: The School of Tomorrow

Today technology gives us unprecedented access to people and knowledge. This interconnectivity makes many more things possible, but also means the world is fluid and harder to predict.

When learning no longer stops at school or university, and life changes faster than you can spell curriculum, the burning question on our minds is “what is the future of education and learning?”

We have other questions too:

• Does delivering content mean people are learning?
• Is education about learning about things or learning about you?
• How can education help us build better societies?
• Is technology making us smarter or just more stressed?
• What do we need to learn to be prepared for the world of work?
• Will our speakers answer any of these questions, or bring their own?

We are excited to announce that TEDxSquareMile returns on 18 March 2017 in the City of London.

Our next event is a celebration of 5 years of bringing TEDxSquareMile to the business, technology and education hub in the heart of London.

‘The School of Tomorrow’ is our theme and we hope you will join us in exploring some of the questions above.

City of London School
107 Queen Victoria St
London, London, City of, EC4V 3AL
United Kingdom

Alexandra Gabriel

Singer

Alexandra Gabriel started her musical training at a young age as a chorister in Exeter Cathedral. An accomplished singer, cellist and pianist she won the ABRSM scholarship to fund her Operatic studies at the Royal Northern College of Music, where her Mezzo-Soprano voice has been in demand for many performances. Upon completing her traditional music training Alexandra stepped away from the world of Opera to find a way to express her own unique sound and experiences in music. Her debut album ‘Unconditional’ was toured and released in 2015 and subsequently nominated by Soul Traveller Radio for a spot in their top 20 conscious music album awards of that year. She feels a deep spiritual and energetic connection through the beauty of music and now works to help others transform their lives with the power of sound. The music she writes and performs supports those it touches to open their heart and find a place of stillness in our ever changing world.

Chris Panting

Deputy Head, Ashcombe School, Surrey

Chris has been teaching since 1999 and has been at Ashcombe School in Surrey since 2000, working first as a History Teacher, then Head of Year, Assistant Head and now Deputy Head. He is responsible for Careers and Business Links at Ashcombe, and at TEDx Square Mile he will share the amazing things the school has achieved. Fundamentally Chris believes people should have work they are enthused by, believe in and are good at. School careers advice has not been good at enabling that, largely because students don’t see enough of the world of work to choose well. In 2011, with budgets tight, Chris redesigned Ashcombe’s careers fair, and since then it’s grown, just a little. They now have large formal and informal networks with over 250 active participants including exciting local businesses, multinationals, parents and education providers bringing insight they students on a level we could never have foreseen, and providing benefits on both sides

Clemens von Stengel

Clemens is a student at The City of London School, who kindly hosted us this year, and won a competition we ran for pupils to propose talsk they would like to present. He is studying Biology, Maths, Physics and Chemistry at A Level, and recently was involved in a team from the school entering an international science competition (iGEM). At TEDx Square Mile Clemens explored what it takes to put ideas into action, especially what is needed to ‘not say no’ when it sometimes feels easier to do that.

Daniel Rowntree

Daniel Lewis Rowntree (goes by the name RedBeard) is a beatboxer who has been beatboxing since 2012. RedBeard was the 2015 under-18 UK champion and in the top eight UK Beatboxing Championships 2016.

Dave Cornthwaite

Author, Filmmaker, Yes Man

Dave has been an increasingly familiar figure in the UK adventure scene since quitting his job as a really bad graphic designer in 2005. Developing a wide range of storytelling skills and using these to share a series of unique expeditions, adventures and social projects, Dave’s reputation as a Yes Man is now confirmed. At his core, he is a record-breaking adventurer who has travelled over 19,000 miles as part of the amazing Expedition1000 project: 25 journeys of 1000 miles or more, each using a different form of non-motorised transport. His uniquely entertaining and motivational keynote presentations have been enjoyed on six continents and Dave has also written three books. As an award-winning filmmaker and social media expert, Dave has created hundreds of shorts and occasionally makes films and creative campaigns for other individuals and brands, as well as prolifically sharing his journeys as he goes.

David Keene

Global Head of Sales Enablement, Google Cloud

David works at Google, where his team helps other Googlers continually learn how today’s magical cloud technology can revolutionise the world and be used to create business opportunity. In his past, David helped several other big software companies do other cool things with code. When David was at the school of yesterday he listened to punk music, was a games programmer and didn’t really enjoy exams. At TEDxSquareMile, David looked at the benefits of Failing to Learn.

Dr. Seren Dalkiran

Co-Founder: Synergized Earth Network Initiator: Millennial Motion: The Next Generation of Leadership

Dr. Seren Dalkiran is a lifelong learner and (leadership) educator at heart who bridges theory with practice, and science with society. She is the co-founder and initiator of the Synergized Earth Network (SEN) & Millennial Motion: The Next Generation of Leadership (Millennial Leadership Lab, MLL), both of which are complementary platforms that unite leaders across generations, disciplines and sectors to tackle pressing global challenges. Seren won numerous (inter)national awards for her leadership, academic and societal undertakings over the years. She believes that value-based leadership and intergenerational collaboration that she calls 'mutual mentorship on equal grounds' are key to 'co-creating conducive environments for lifelong learning'. In such spaces individuals can discover their purpose, fulfill their human potential and synergize their capacities for a more peaceful, just and sustainable world. For more information: www.millennialmotion.net & www.synergizedearthnetwork.org

Emma Lawton

Head of Creative, SPIXII

Emma is Head of Creative at SPIXII (an insurance startup), an author and speaker, and was recently featured in the BBC2 documentary ‘The Big Life Fix’, looking at the power of design to transform people’s lives. Diagnosed with Parkinson’s at 29, Emma has written about her experience in her book, Dropping the P Bomb.

Jamie Maddison

Senior Editorial Strategist, NewsCred

Jamie is an accomplished journalist, nominated national adventurer of the year, equestrian Long Rider and explorer, who also has a day job as a Senior Editorial Strategist. After a 64-day long unsupported expedition travelling across Kazakhstan by horse in 2013, he began to wonder exactly what compelled him to undertake such a gruelling challenge. Reflecting on that experience and his work since, at TEDx Square Mile Jamie will explain the three core drivers he believes can be used in all areas of life to drive passion and really get people fired up by your brand, business, charity or cultural project. The polite version of a quote on his website sums him up roughly like this: “I can be obsessive and, at worst, a bit of a prat. But I do believe that the best of life only comes through perseverance, patience, and the ability to say ‘stuff it, let’s give that a go’ every once in a while”

Joanna Webster

Global Editorial Director, Reuters TV

Jo Webster is the Managing Editor for Strategy and Operations for Europe, the Middle East and Africa at Reuters. She works on a range of issues including speed, editorial staff security, multimedia, training and development. Prior to this role, Jo led a global team of video journalists and technical staff producing programming for Reuters’ flagship consumer TV app, which she launched in February 2015 after developing the product and its editorial mission. Reuters TV is available on iOS, Android, the web and Apple TV. It’s on-demand, relevant and mobile - putting users in control of what they watch and when they watch it.

 Prior to Reuters, Jo had a front row seat to the 2007 financial crisis as a producer for CNBC Television. She has also delivered major outside broadcasts including ‘Davos Today’ for the World Economic Forum annually.

Kimberly Chimsasa

Kimberly’s love and passion for spreading the gift of music through song has always pushed her to perform. She has had incredible opportunities to perform on exciting stages with amazing people, where she’s made cherishable memories advocating for causes that she cares about. She’s a singer in the multi-award winning London African Gospel Choir and has been on tours with the band.

Magdalena Bak-Maier

Change Maker at Make Time Count

Magdalena is a change maker committed to making our world a better place, who teaches people how to operate with more ‘heart’. Connecting heart and mind is what she sees as the biggest challenge and opportunity for a better world, effective leadership and good self-management. Her work and research shows that developing the skill of connection is vital for personal wellbeing, for individual and workplace productivity, for fulfilling relationships, for ending conflict, and for effective education. She is on a mission to spread this knowledge and make positive change happen.

Nicola Miller

Architect, mum and co-founder of The Teddington Trust

Nicola is a Architectural Technologist, whose path took a turn for the RARE in 2012 when her son (aged just 13 mths old) was diagnosed with an ultra-rare genetic condition, xeroderma pigmentosum. Since then, as well as being a full-time Mum to her two sons, she is co-founder of the rare disease patient support charity Teddington Trust and active RARE advocate. She is the author and creator of the BMA Award winning book Little Ted and passionate about better representation for RARE diseases across all walks of life. She is also the co-founder and Editor-in-chief of Rare Revolution Magazine. At the heart of everything Nicola strives for is EDUCATION! Patient, peer, clinical and general education. With 1 in 17 of the UK population affected by a rare disease.

Steve Dineen

CEO, Fuseschool

Steve is an EdTech entrepreneur who is passionate about bottling greatness and sharing it through learning & communications technology. His drive to democratise learning and knowledge led him to found Fuse Universal to push the boundaries of learning technology and find the best blend with face-to-face delivery to increase performance and individual opportunity. At TEDx Square Mile Steve will explain Fuseschool, an exciting charitable project to improve lives by providing free world class secondary education. Fuseschool has already gained 15,000 subscribers with just one subject, chemistry, and will add further subjects in the next 12 months. With their success Fuseschool are now attracting amazing partners like The Prince’s Trust, UNHCR and some of the world’s best schools where they are able to combine their strengths to expand their impact.

Tiffany Jenkins

Author and academic

Tiffany Jenkins is an author, academic, and ex-columnist for the Scotsman. She wrote the critically acclaimed Keeping Their Marbles: How The Treasures Of The Past Ended Up In Museums And Why They Should Stay There, published in 2016. She is the writer and presenter of the 2016 BBC Radio 4 series, A Narrative History Of Secrecy. She has been a visiting fellow at the London School of Economics, and was previously the director of the Arts and Society Programme at the Institute of Ideas. Her first degree is in art history, her PhD in sociology.

Timandra Harkness

Speaker, Broadcaster and Author

Timandra presents the BBC Radio 4 series, FutureProofing; and documentaries including Data, Data Everywhere, Personality Politics & The Singularity. She is resident reporter on Radio 4’s social psychology series The Human Zoo, where she is more an exhibit than a zookeeper. She is Visiting Fellow (Knowledge Exchange) in Big Data, Information Rights and Public Engagement with the Centre for Information Rights at the University of Winchester. Her book, Big Data: does size matter? was published by Bloomsbury in 2016. At TEDx Square Mile, Timandra will explore knowledge in the age of Big Data, looking at what it means to know something, beyond the data stored and accessed via machines. She will discuss meaning, reasoning and understanding as verbs, not commodities, and look at what’s needed for us to restore the human mind to the act of knowing, to fully benefit from today’s cornucopia of information.