Heirloom invites us to reflect on what endures—the ideas, practices, stories, and objects passed from one generation to the next. These inheritances may be tangible or invisible, cherished or contested. They live in family rituals and cultural traditions, in intellectual frameworks and ecological memory. In Maine, an heirloom might be a Wabanaki canoe, a pair of L.L. Bean boots, or a stubborn sense of local independence. At Colby, it could be a method of inquiry, a sunrise gathering on the Miller steps after Doghead, or a quiet economy of privilege that shapes who feels they belong.
But inheritance is never passive. This year’s TEDxColbyCollege theme asks: What do we preserve? What do we question? And how do we transform what’s handed to us and what we hand to others—be it land, knowledge, code, culture, climate, or identity—into something meaningful for the future? From heirloom seeds to legacy software, oral histories to inherited trauma, Heirloom is a call to look both backward and forward with care, creativity, and courage.
Alumni Dr
Waterville, Maine, 04901
United States
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