An inside look at Tedx Adelaide - interview with Nathaniel Mason

22 Sep 2016 4:52 PM | Anonymous

TEDx Adelaide tickets are now on sale!

One of our members, Nathaniel Mason, (formerly at Barossa Council now City of Tea Tree Gully) is involved with the upcoming Tedx Adelaide event - so we thought we'd ask him a few questions about it to find out what's in it for local government professionals.

Hi Nathaniel - please tell us about Tedx!
TED is a non-profit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading where leading thinkers and members of our communities have a platform to share their ideas. TED started as a 4 day conference in California 30 years ago, with TEDx running as locally organised events supporting individuals or groups in hosting TED-style events around the world. Through TEDx Adelaide we are helping Adelaide innovators, activists and thinkers to amplify the impact of their remarkable projects and activities.
 
 What do our readers need to know? 
TEDxAdelaide 2016 is on Thursday 20 October 2016 from 2:00pm – 8:00pm. This year's theme is 'Metamorphosis' and will be held at the Adelaide Town Hall, 128 King William Street, Adelaide.
 
TEDxAdelaide 2016 is set to be the biggest and most diverse TEDx event in Adelaide to date. With a focus on deep transformation, the speakers you will hear, connections you will make and the event experience are sure to inspire you to develop and pursue ideas at the conference and in the future.
 
Tickets are available here now - https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/tedxadelaide-2016-metamorphosis-tickets-26698447776

 
TEDxAdelaide is available to follow on social;
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/tedxadelaide
Twitter - https://twitter.com/tedxadelaide
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/tedxadl/
 
How have you been involved?
I have been a long time follower of TED talks, gaining tremendous insight and inspiration from a variety of talks and topics available online in both professional and personal pursuits. I recently shared an article on LinkedIn about my experience - https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/whats-your-identedy-nathaniel-mason?trk=prof-post
 
I joined TEDx Adelaide this year in the role of Stage Manager, bringing experience, skills and networks from lifelong participation in the Adelaide theatre and music communities and a keen ambition to support South Australian initiatives, economy and sustainability through collaboration and the TEDx platform of sharing ideas. Working in local government gives me a direct connection to understanding and participating in initiatives that shape our daily lives, where we live, work and play to ensure we can curate a TEDx Adelaide experience that is meaningful and relevant. At the same time, participation in TEDx provides perspectives, ideas and connections that I am able to bring directly back to local government and share with my peers.

 
The TEDx Adelaide management team comprises of a diverse group of people who are passionate about recognising the incredible history, celebrating successes and increasing potential of Adelaide and South Australia.
 
Will there be any local government content?  
All speakers are South Australian locals and will cover an incredible and diverse line up of topics around the 'Metamorphosis' theme including government, sustainability, community growth, inclusion, leadership, technology and more.  Many of the speakers, volunteers and organisers are involved with local government initiatives already and much of the content will be connected to initiatives, grants and services that local government provide, support and participate in. 
 
In my experience, I have frequently been able to apply ideas and lessons learned in TED talks directly back to local government, be it back of house operations in continuous improvement and leadership or customer facing ideas across community, culture and environment.
 

 
What can local government professionals look to gain from attending?  What can they expect?
Local government and TEDx Adelaide share similar goals of achieving cultural vibrancy, environmental sustainability and economic prosperity within Adelaide and South Australian communities. The opportunities for attendees extend beyond the presentations they will hear on the day, through to interactive experiences at the event and networking with a broad group of like-minded, constructive and passionate peers.
 
The Metamorphosis theme tackles individual struggles as well as great political or economic transformations experienced by societies. Change is often something we confront and it isn’t on a mission to be liked. Most of the time, we’d rather not think about metamorphosis at a personal, political or any scale, let alone talk about it in front of a thousand strangers. This is what is behind the power of TED; great talks bring our fears and hopes into the open and propel us towards better things.
 


Mailing Address: 148 Frome Street ADELAIDE SA 5000   Phone: 08 8224 2080   Email: admin@lgprofessionalssa.org.au


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