Theme: WHAT IF?

The “what if?” motto stands for doubts and questions. It allows us to examine extensively our actions to date and plans for the future.
“What if?” is an invitation to break patterns and search for answers to the questions we are only starting to ask. This is why TEDxGdynia becomes an open forum for theorists and practitioners in different fields.
“What if?” is also associated with empathy. It makes us empathize with others, take up the challenge and look into issues of local and global communities and not just analyze plain facts and foresee alternative outcomes.

CONCERT:
aiodine – an electronic music project from Tricity with members including: Jacek Banach, Kacper Graczyk, and Juliusz Kapka. The collective released two albums “Lp01,” “Lp02,” and anthology “The Best of 2007-2011.” Aiodine’s music is a mix of electronic sounds with atmospheric and vivid tones carved by melodic vocals, dynamic drums, and ear catching sound design.
At TEDxGdynia, Aiodine is presenting a short audiovisual concert produced by Oskar Zamek-Gliszczyński – a recognized graphic and visual artist from Gdynia.

HOSTS:
Urszula Kokoszka
She is an art historian, a culture expert, a drama teacher, and a cultural manager. She coordinated numerous projects in education and music for children in Lublin and Gdynia. Urszula works at Social Innovation Laboratory as a coordinator of Przystań Lipowa 15 Neighborhood Center. She has always loved working with kids and creating culture actively and collaboratively. She is a social activist and – as she puts it herself – needs people like the air she breaths. This year’s slogan “What if...?” is her life’s motto. She likes taking risks because – what if she had not dared to move to the seaside from the other end of the country? In her free time, she sings in Razzle Dazzle Choir and pursues her passion studying theatre pedagogy at University of Warsaw.

Jan Sikora
He is an interior designer, an architectural designer, the owner of Sikora Wnętrza Architektura architecture office. Born in 1984, he is an author of over a hundred private and public interiors and architectural objects. He has designed libraries Stacja Kultura in Rumia and Sopoteka, among others. At present he works on the Art Incubator in Sopot. He is a creator, idealist and a visionary. He creates unique places that are presented with the most prestigious awards, repeatedly. He is a head of Architecture Of Cultural Spaces field of study at Academy of Fine Arts in Gdańsk – the course in the area of applied arts that combines understanding the relation between space, human, and culture. He has received Polityka” Weekly Architectural Award, Block of the Year, and the international Library Interior Design Award, among others. He is a traveler, an e-bike fan, and a good food lover.

Pomeranian Science & Technology Park
Al. Zwycięstwa 96/98
Gdynia, Pomorskie, 81-451
Poland

Aiodine + Joanna Szkudlarek + Oskar Zamek-Gliszczyński

Musicians

aiodine – an electronic music project from Tricity with members including: Jacek Banach, Kacper Graczyk, and Juliusz Kapka. The collective released two albums “Lp01,” “Lp02,” and anthology “The Best of 2007-2011.” Aiodine’s music is a mix of electronic sounds with atmospheric and vivid tones carved by melodic vocals, dynamic drums, and ear catching sound design. At TEDxGdynia, Aiodine is presenting a short audiovisual concert produced by Oskar Zamek-Gliszczyński – a recognized graphic and visual artist from Gdynia.

Bartosz Karcz

Psychologist and a lecturer

In the existing sociopolitical conditions, the concepts of family and sexuality seem like mixing water with fire. The ongoing discussions touch upon issues that are crucial from the moral, social, political, and identity point of view. Moreover, there have been some disagreements on basic terms and concepts operative in human’s nature and psychology. Bartosz is a psychologist and a lecturer at SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities. He is a member of the Family Foster Care Committee at Social Welfare Center in Gdynia. Bartosz thinks successful process of growing to maturity depends on good experiences, reliable knowledge, and attitude of acceptance. At TEDxGdynia he is going to prove how sexuality is a part of our everyday life and how we can benefit from it for our own prosperity and a well-being of our children and families.

Beata Podlasek

Educationalist

Beata Podlasek runs a Family Children’s Home. She is an educator and the author of “ABC’s of Foster Parenthood” and articles on children with disabilities raised in non-biological families. Beata and her husband received “Gdynia Bez Barier” (Gdynia without Barriers) medal and the “Amber Heart on the Sleeve” distinction. She is the author of the social innovation “HOW?” – “the relations warmer,” a handy tool that helps fighting social stereotypes. ABOUT „What if… we meet?” TEDTalk Social space is for everyone. Is it really? Do the worlds of people with disabilities and of non-disabled ever meet? What does it look like? How should they act? How to reshape reality? Who is responsible? The “HOW?” project and its author – an ordinary mother to extraordinary children – hold the answers to the questions above.

Dariusz Gzyra

Lecturer, writer, social activist

Imagination is an essential part – or even one of the crucial parts – of social change. If we can imagine a better world, it will be easier to make our way towards it. What our corner of the world would look like, if we took animals and their rights seriously – truly seriously? At this year’s TEDxGdynia we shall try to imagine a few pictures from a world without species chauvinism together with Dariusz Gryza – a PhD student at the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology at Pedagogical University of Cracow. He is also a lecturer at Faculty of “Artes Liberales” at University of Warsaw – Filed Anthrozoology. He is a journalist and a longtime social activist. He is the author of „Dziękuję za świńskie oczy. Jak krzywdzimy zwierzęta” (Thanks for Pigg Eyes. What harm do we cause to animals?) and a vegan.

Joanna Jeśman

Culture expert and a lecturer

Joanna is a culture expert and a lecturer at the School of Ideas at SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities in Warsaw. She conducts interdisciplinary research in liberal arts. The impact of medicine and biotechnology on modern society is her specialty. As a scientist, she pursues interests in art and its role in society today and broadly defined ecological education as well. Joanna is the author of “Żywa sztuka. Wielowymiarowość bio artu w kontekście posthumanistycznym” (Living art. Multidimensionality of bio art in the context of posthumanism). At TEDxGdynia she is going to talk about the art & science projects showing potential directions for development of environmental activism and prosocial behavior.

Maciej Dębski

Sociologist of social problems

We live in a digital world ever more and ever faster dominated by new technologies. At present, there are more people on-line than those using toothbrushes and pastes on daily basis. What is a fundamental factor of safe and responsible use of digital blessings today? What would it be in the future? The answer is – well-established interpersonal relationships. What if we forgot how to build relations based on in-person social interactions in a digital world? Maciej is a lecturer at the Faculty of Social Science at University of Gdańsk. He is a sociologist of social problems, a social educator, and an expert at the Supreme Audit Office, Ministry of Digital Affairs, and Commissioner for Human Rights’ Office. He is the founder and CEO of DBAM O MÓJ Z@SIĘG Foundation. He conducted a social experiment – POZ@ SIECIĄ (Outside Network) – in which over 100 young people were cut off from the digital world for 3 days.

Magdalena Kluszczyk

Psychologist

Magdalena is a psychologist, a coach, and certified Daring Way™, Rising Strong™ and Dare to Lead™ Facilitator. She is Brené Brown’s student specializing in topics of shame, courage, vulnerability, and authenticity. Magdalena organizes personal development expeditions accompanied by sledge dogs (animals that have undergone trauma) and wanders with dogs. She is the founder of the School of Courage “Jesteś Rewolucją – One Girl with Courage Is a Revolution.”

Mateusz Wawryszuk

Paramedic

Matuesz is a paramedic, an entrepreneur, and a visionary. He has experienced the significance of first aid at first hand. Now, he helps others saving lives. He is the creator of Eskulapa – the innovative Emergency Buttons System. He organizes first aid training courses. In his talk, Mateusz is going to share the easy way to safe 100,000 people only in Europe every year.

Monika Stankiewicz

Coach

Monika dreams of a world where all accept themselves and their own nature and a self-esteem and a right to be oneself are non-negotiable. She dreams of a world where the way one spends his or her free time does not make him or her better or worse person and all can speak freely what is good for them and what they need. Monika believes that the little things make people different can be inspiring and both introverts and extraverts were created to complete one another.

Richard Egan

Fulbright U.S. Student at University of Warsaw

Richard is a Fulbright U.S. Student at University of Warsaw. He graduated from University of Delaware with a degree in Chemistry and Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. He is one of organizers of TEDxFulbrightWarsaw. At present, he organizes an art contest for Polish young students all over the country supporting them in fighting air pollution. Air pollution, but from a very new perspective, is also the topic of Richard’s TEDxGdynia talk. What if toxic air particles could add to saving, not taking, lives?