Mark Blevis

The problem with a conference like TEDxOttawa is keeping track of the amazing people and ideas you get exposed to during the sessions and while socializing during the breaks. There is no such thing as decompression time until after the conference is over. Of course, as Mark Levison pointed out during his session, our short term memory is good for a few hours at best. So, until the videos from the day are made available, here are my highlights of the day based on what I still remember this morning.

Students & the Canary in a Coal Mine by Melissa Love & Elise Jackson

It’s a tough situation to be a young voice in a room full of mostly 30-somethings that are passionate about TED and what it stands for. Melissa and Elise did a great job reaching the audience with their passion for protecting the environment. They introduced the audience to initiatives that students are becoming increasingly involved in including an environmental group called FROGG (Friends Reaching Out for Greener Growth) and an annual two week expedition to the north called Students On Ice. Perhaps the most exciting piece of that session is that Melissa is hoping to lead a project to get solar panels installed on the roof of Colonel By High School.

I spoke with Kneale Mann about this session during the break and the two of us got excited by the idea of how involved students are and want to be in solving the world’s problems. As Kneale pointed out, organizations need to do more with students to capitalize on their energy and enthusiasm. They also need to think differently about how they run their organizations, changing language like “fundraising” and redistributing their efforts to recognize a stronger balance between fundraising and action.

Storytelling by Danny Brown (with Graeme Stewart)

Danny explored the relationship between storytelling and technology using George Lucas as an example of someone who is an incredible storyteller with a keen sense of technology. Lucas’ style redefined storytelling with the release of the original Star Wars, a film that had a strong story that needed technology to enhance the audience experience. The results were incredible — a $6-million movie that created the special effects giant Industrial Light and Magic and that grossed over $300 million. Lucas made a number of decisions that made the movie particularly believable for the audience including showing the world a little bit dirty (until then, almost all sci-fi productions depicted sterile and amazingly orderly spacecraft and environments) and making the Millennium Falcon seem like everyone’s beloved first car with all of its mechanical problems. Sadly, Lucas tinkered with his magic formula when he produced the three Star Wars prequels, an initiative that was based on exploiting new and strong technology rather than telling a compelling story.

Making the Right Choices by Nick Desbarats

Online decision-supporting technology is noticeably absent from search technology and the websites of most online retailers. Nick Desbarats is a self-proclaimed nerd who spent more time designing the technology to help him make an informed and personality-based decision on a car purchase than he did actually purchasing the car. He put a lot of thought into the decision process, weighing individual preferences based on emotional factors rather than objective comparison, and building a useful interfaces. He then extended the application to help make other purchase decisions including a computer and (if memory serves me) an iron.

Nick is still developing the technology and plans to give free licenses to charitable organizations to help them make decisions on the best allocation of their resources to achieve their goals.

How to Learn by Mark Levison

Mark made no apologies for being at the front of the room. He came right out and explained that he was speaking on how the brain processes information and creates neural pathways not as a scientist or expert in the field, but as someone who reads a lot on the subject and tries to apply that passion to his work and family life. He explored short-term and long-term memory and how hardwire neural pathways in the brain that make strong associations for retention. Apparently association with images offers the best chance for being able to retain and recall information and as I type this, I’m able to see the image of a gift wrapped box in my mind (the slide he used to illustrate the point).

Sing Your Song by Bob Ledrew

Using the thread of music and connecting through melodies, spoken or sung, Bob illustrated the importance of passion, connecting and siezing the day. Of all the sessions, Bob’s was the most deeply personal. He related the story of his older brother’s suicide as a teenager and his own cancer diagnosis which came on his 40th birthday [personal note: why do so many people seem to discover the signs of or get diagnosed with cancer on or around their birthday?]. These life challenges combined with some positive experiences inspired Bob to put structure around his work and his passion for music. He described overlapping pie charts, one which illustrates how he derives income (80% from his work, 20% from music) and how he derives pleasure (80% from music, 20% from his work).

Bob’s commitment to music involves taking guitar lessons, playing for fun and hosting concerts at his home. Performers to date have included Lynn Miles, Tony D and Suzie Vinnick.

Six String Nation by Jowi Taylor

The most powerful session of the day was delivered by Jowi Taylor. I’ve seen him speak before and he never disappoints with the story of  his love for Canada and his passion for connecting people through story.

Jowi is the founder of the Six String Nation Guitar project, a guitar made of 63 pieces of Canadian history ranging from ordinary and relatively unknown people that helped shape the communities of Canada, to the personalities that put Canada on the world stage.

There weren’t many dry eyes in the room as Jowi related stories of Joe Lebobe and the Golden Spruce. Indeed, Jowi himself choked back tears as he told the same stories he’s told hundreds if not thousands of times over the last three years.

It amazes me that Voyageur, the Six String Nation guitar, isn’t an officially recognzied icon for Canada.

Impossible 2 Possible by Ray Zahab

The day wrapped up with a motivational speech by endurance athlete Ray Zahab. Ray shared the story of his transformation from the pack-a-day-smoking-beer-drinking-armchair-quarterback to the unwitting winner of his first marathon, the 2004 Yukon Arctic Ultra. That race turned his dislike of running into a new passion.

Ray isnt’ just a Forrest Gump. He’s turned his passion for running into a way to educate and connect people around the world. His i2P ogranization (impossible2Possible) works with schools using the Internet to connect students with Ray and his colleagues as embark on their adventures… setting a new speed record to the south pole, discovered an urgent lack of sufficient clean water in during a 250km run across Africa, and hiking Baffin Island with five high school students.

Congratulations!

Allan Isfan, Susan Murphy, Kneale Mann and their team did an amazing job organizing an event that has an established and well loved brand. Delivering on that brand is a daunting task. I’m incredibly impressed that they managed to do so and still look rested (even if they weren’t).

I wonder if any of the TEDxOttawa sessions will find their way onto the TED site and feed.