University of Sydney partners with TEDxYouth in 2019

As young people fight to be heard on the verge of an election, the University of Sydney will help to elevate their voices by partnering with TEDxYouth@Sydney in 2019.

This marks the second time the University has sponsored the youth arm of the ideas platform, after first sponsoring the event in 2017. The University will also continue to sponsor the main TEDxSydney event in 2019, for the eighth year running.

University of Sydney Vice-Chancellor and Principal Dr Michael Spence said the University was pleased to be working with TEDxYouth for a second time, while still continuing their support for TEDxSydney.

“Alongside our world-class research, educating young people through real-world experiences is at the core of what we do at the University of Sydney.

“Our partnership with TEDxYouth is a natural fit. We both share a passion for nurturing the ideas of young people, ensuring they can become equipped for an ever-changing future and empowered to transform our world.”

The theme for this year’s event, to be held at the Seymour Centre at the University of Sydney on Thursday 4 April, is ‘Cusp’.

The line-up of speakers – all aged 30 or under – and the audience will consider that they are on the cusp of change, and now ‘is the time to push for change and make a difference’.

One such speaker will be University of Sydney alumnus James Alexander, co-founder of INCUBATE, Australia’s largest student accelerator program based at the University of Sydney.

“I'm excited to share my idea for what's over the horizon for young people globally,” said James.

“I’m looking forward to hearing the incredible line-up of young speakers and what they have to say about things on the cusp of change.”

James added TEDxYouth was a great platform to ensure young people’s voices were being heard.

“I’ve been in many rooms where decisions are being made that impact young people across Australia and yet they are not in the room.

“Youth voice is rarely represented in an empowered environment, which is a big problem in Australia, but I think TEDxYouth is a great platform to help change this.”

Fellow University of Sydney graduates HY William Chan and Issy Phillips will also take part in the event.

During the event, the University will highlight the work of the Brain and Mind Centre and their research into smart technologies to improve youth mental health.

Researchers will be on hand at the event to answer questions and attendees can engage with Project Synergy, a mental health system designed to integrate existing apps and resources into one super-smart integrated platform.

TEDxYouth and TEDx are independent offshoots of the TED (Technology Education Design) conference that began in the US in 1984.

Top image: Sydney Conservatorium of Music student Titus Grenyer performs at TEDxYouth@Sydney 2017. Credit: Nathaniel Hunt