In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized (subject to certain rules and regulations).

Montgomery Community Media
7548 Standish Place
Derwood, Maryland, 20855
United States

Adriana Rojas

inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility consultant at Be Equitable

Dr. Adriana Rojas (she/her/Dr.) is an inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility consultant at Be Equitable and has over seventeen years’ experience in cultural competence training and leading programmatic and cultural organizational change. Prior to joining Be Equitable, Dr. Rojas was a tenured professor and academic program director. She has over 11 years of experience in research, writing, and speaking on a variety of social justice issues that center historically minoritized communities. Dr. Rojas holds an MA and PhD in Hispanic Studies, professional certificates in Diversity and Inclusion for HR, and has completed workshops in race equity, language interpretation for healthcare and social justice contexts, and restorative justice facilitation.

Carla Anderson

Carla Anderson is an advocate for justice-involved women transitioning back into their community successfully. She is also a Justice Ambassador with Prison Fellowship and proudly leads their initiatives. Carla speaks to us today as a formerly incarcerated woman that feels that had it not been for her lived experience, she would not be able to accurately give a voice to the voiceless and shine light on the forgotten individual...an incarcerated woman.

David Fakunle

Dr. David Fakunle completed his PhD from Johns Hopkins and a postdoctoral fellowship at Morgan State University. He is an adjunct assistant professor at University of Florida’s Center for Arts in Medicine, associate faculty at Johns Hopkins’s Bloomberg School of Public Health, and assistant professor at Morgan State University’s School of Community Health and Policy. His goal in the existence given to him is to help his people, his city, his state, his country, and his world. Whether that is a researcher, a practitioner, a mentor, or just a helping hand, he is willing to do it.

Finn Coy-Gresavage

Finn Coy-Gresavage is a diversity educator, activist and speaker hailing from the woods of Southern Maryland. Finn has been out as a Non-Binary person since 2009, and began their transition in 2020. Finn has a Bachelor of Arts in Theater, Film and Media Studies from St. Mary’s College of Maryland, is a licensed esthetician in Maryland and Virginia, and currently works in the IT field. Finn is a proud member of the leather community, and creates educational content on queer allyship on TikTok to an audience of 122,000 allies and counting. In whatever spare time they have left, Finn enjoys going to concerts and spending time with their spouse, Justin, and their cat, Peki.

Matthew Ratz

Matthew Ratz's career began in the high school classroom, and it grew from there into the worlds of Higher Education, autism and intellectual/ developmental disabilities, nonprofit management, organizational change, mental health peer support, disability advocacy, and healthcare innovation. At every step, he centered on the needs of underrepresented populations and he used his creativity and strategies of immersive engagement to empower them to change their worlds for the better. Matthew believes the world is a better place when people’s voices are heard, and he is keen to use his voice to amplify the stories of others. Using his experience, his learning, and his ethos for the pursuit of inclusion and equity for all people is his natural way of being in the world.

Nicole Kenney

Nicole Kenney, M.P.P., is an award-winning founder, social entrepreneur and social impact consultant. As founder and CEO of It Starts With Me, LLC, a social impact consultancy, Nicole supports companies in innovating and optimizing their strategy, communications, and programs to advance racial, gender, and economic equity in their business and in the communities they serve. Nicole is also the founder of Hey Auntie! a platform connecting Black women with real advice for real life to thrive at home, work, and everywhere in between, an idea where she was the Grand Prize Winner in the #WellCityChallenge, a Philadelphia social-impact competition, in 2021. Nicole holds a Master of Arts in Public Policy from The Johns Hopkins University and a Bachelor of Arts in Government and Psychology (double-major) from Smith College, where she also received the Barbara Jordan Public Policy Award.

Omar Eaton-Martinez

Omar Eaton-Martinez is the Senior Vice President (SVP) for Historic Sites at the National Trust for Historic Preservation. He is also a doctoral candidate in American/ United States Studies/ Civilization at the University of Maryland, College Park. His motto is, “Transforming communities through co-stewardship of narratives in the spirit of equity and inclusion. I stand in the gap, to advocate for the unheard and the unseen through public history, art and culture.”

Paul McFadden

As CEO of Zero Point Leadership™ and an expert in many disciplines, Paul McFadden takes a very integrative and purpose-driven approach to helping individuals, leaders and teams develop the practices necessary to disrupt the status quo, optimize themselves and also upgrade the human interactions between themselves and others. This work involves the integration of science-based strategies and techniques grounded in evidence-based research from multiple disciplines with innovations in personal, leadership, change and human transformation.

Pooja Chawla

As an actor, writer, artist, creativity coach, Pooja Chawla knows exactly what it takes to turn your passion into a thriving, sustainable business. After 9 years of ups and downs from running several small businesses, she has found that: Passion + Business Tools + Self-Awareness= EMPOWERED ARTIST.

Robin McNair

Robin McNair is a Restorative Justice Practices consultant and trainer. She believes in creating just and equitable learning environments with respect, dignity and mutual concern; building and nurturing relationships through community building and shared values; and transforming conflict through restorative dialogue and accountability to improve school and classroom climate. As a Restorative Justice Practices trainer, Robin provides support to organizations who desire to implement RJP through the indigenous model which has been used to cultivate authentic relationships.