Ian Blair and the TED Global Conference in Rio

by Lorrie Hoeh

Ian Blair  photo Lorrie Hoeh

One mystery was solved for the dozen and a half or so attendees at Ian Blair's talk on March 4 about his experience at TED Global South in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from October 6 through 10, 2014. We learned that TED is an international non-profit organization dedicated to spreading ideas. The organization sponsors speakers on every subject imaginable, speaking for around 18 minutes. TED stands for Technology-Entertainment-Design.

Blair attended out of curiosity and chose the event in Brazil to get a foreign viewpoint, and also because his mother is from Venezuela, and South America is close to his heart. The theme was TED Global South, covering the entire southern hemisphere around the world. In order to be accepted into the program, Blair had to fill out a comprehensive application, including an essay; come up with the tuition and a visa; and take an 11-hour flight out of JFK Airport. Ian was one of 1100 people accepted.

We were shown photos of beautiful Rio, which is a very modern, clean, and well-run city. Blair also mentioned that there were around 40 presenters, and all talks were in English. Morning sessions lasted 3 hours, followed by a break and then an afternoon session. Now Ian is thinking about the next TED Global he can attend!

For more information about Western Mountains Senior College visit our website at http://sad44.maineadulted.org/western_mountains_senior_college