An item for the academic's conference bucketlist

TED is about ideas worth spreading. Willem gives his own interpretation of looking at the world through a different lens in Dubai 

I often read bucket lists of things people want to do or places they want to go. When it comes to conferencing, ever since I discovered TED, I tell myself: one day I will be standing there. I still do not know what I will talk about but it will probably be a combination of Open Distance Learning and Theology and the influence this combination should have on developing agents of change since this is my passion and focus of my current research.

If you want to know why I did not, as yet, at least attend the annual TED conference, the answer is simple and twofold. One, I do not have $8500 to pay to become a member and attend the conference and two, the annual conferences are in very high demand and sold out quickly, long before I can submit forms to ask for money from the university. The theme of the 2017 conference is 'The Future you' and it will be held between 24 and 28 April in Vancouver Canada.  Luckily there are also other events that one can attend: The 2017 Global TED event will be hosted in Tanzania between 27 and 30 August, on the theme 'Builders, Truth tellers, Catalysts' and it will cost you $6000. Yes you pay in American dollars in Canada and in Africa and who in Africa has $6000 to attend a conference? - Currently this amounts to more than R80 000!

The first Technology, Entertainment and Design (TED) conference on ideas worth spreading was held in 1984 and today you can watch hundreds of these inspirational talks on your mobile phone as they are added almost daily. The topics also expanded to include science, business, art and global issues. There is also a TED women conference and a TED education leg which focus on the youth with TEDed weekends in June. TEDx is a project that supports independent organisers who want to create a TED-like event in their own community.  There are already 4 events listed for South Africa for 2017: 3 March in Bloemfontein for youth and regular events on June 16 in Cape Town, August 5 in Lynnwood Pretoria and September 29 in Pretoria central.