The upcoming TEDxIHEParis conference on May 21 features a roster of speakers who truly live up to the organizers’ tall order.

A few days prior to the upcoming TEDxIHEParis conference on May 21 at Théâtre de la Madeleine in Paris, we had a chance to catch up with Sabri Ben Radhia, its founder and one of today’s young business and community influencers, to learn more about this must-see event on everyone’s schedule:

What inspired you to organize TEDxIHEParis?

I didn’t just wake up one day deciding it would be nice to organize a high-profile event, but I grew into it through my own experience. I was a final year MBA student at the Institut Des Hautes Études De Paris when I realized that whenever I needed inspiration or new ideas, I turned to TED or TEDx motivational talks. And this eventually sparked my desire to be the driving force behind such an event myself.

That was in 2015, and our first TEDxIHEParis event that year sold out in no time. This showed me I was on the right track and encouraged me to also mount a 2016 edition under the motto Beyond Our Limits. Our varied programme showcases ideas and insights that have helped people accomplish incredible things through persistence, people who have gone beyond their limits by overcoming the toughest of mental and physical constraints to reach otherwise untenable heights.

Sabri Ben Radhia of TEDxIHEParis

Who are some of your speakers?

Our panel consists of nine speakers who are all exceptional in their own way. Maybe one of the most inspiring stories that will be told is that of Ramin Farhangi, who left a promising and high-profile career to trade the corporate rat race in for his passion for education. He became disenchanted with the conventional schooling system, and founded a democratic community, L’École Dynamique, in which children are free to do whatever they want with their lives. You can imagine there are are only very few pioneers like Ramin who dare to challenge the educational establishment in such a way.

Then we have Danica Jurisic, who will talk about the very hot topic of refugees from her own experience as someone who was forced to flee from the Balkans three decades ago. She will address the situation of those who have to leave behind their homes, families, friends, countries, and value systems, and she discusses the tremendous impact that our decisions now have, not only on refugees’ individual destinies, but on the main features and characteristics of our society.

And the doyen of our event, André Brugiroux has amazing experiences to talk about in his own way. He was named “the greatest living traveller on Earth” after having spent his life visiting every single country and territory in the world, guided by a specific philosophy, incredible curiosity and a keen sense of resourcefulness. By the way, the insights he shares about his hope for humanity will be translated from French by Theatre in Paris at this otherwise all-English event.

TEDxIHEParis speakers 2016

Behind every exceptional panel is a great team. Tell us about yours, Sabri.

The theme this time around for TEDxIHEParis is “Beyond our Limits”, and it is fitting, as it’s organized by a group of volunteers coming from 20 nationalities, different cultures and religions and are aged between 19 and 50 years old. All of them passionately believe in the power of the idea and have built this event to inspire and bring a positive change to the Parisian community.

How can our readers be part of this extraordinary conference?

There are only a few tickets left, so the best way is to buy them online on the website.

Thanks to Sabri for taking time out to answer our questions. We wish him and his team the best of luck for this amazing event and many future ones.

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TED has created a programme called TEDx, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. The “x” stands for “independently organized TED event”. At the TEDxIHEParis event, TED Talks video and live speakers will combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group.

TEDxIHEParis bannerCONTACT DETAILS
TEDxIHEParis
Théâtre de la Madeleine
19, rue de Surène
75008 Paris

Tel: +33 1 42 65 07 09

 

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All images courtesy TEDx IHEParis; photo of Sabri Ben Radhia at TEDxBerlin 2013 by Sebastian Gabsch

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