Xavier students focus April 15 TEDx talk on "hope"

Xavier's student-run Innovation Society will host its fourth "TEDxXavierUniversity" event on April 15, titled "Hope: A Driving Force for the Future." The session is licensed by TED, the international nonprofit organization focused on bringing innovative ideas and solutions to light through short speaker sessions.

The organization created TEDx to allow local self-organized groups to follow their lead and spark discussion on topics with local, national and international implications.
 
TEDxXavierUniversity is one of three TEDx chapters currently running in the area. The University of Cincinnati just held its first event last week, and Cincinnati boasts its own city chapter. Xavier prides itself in being the first fully student-run organization in the area to hold such an event.
 
Xavier's TEDx event will collect speakers from a variety of backgrounds united by the single theme of "hope." Those anticipated to contribute include Seth Walsh, a Xavier alum and project director at the Community Development Corporations Association here who will be speaking on urban development and how the city can approach city renewal in a more organic way.
 
"Seth is focused on finding ways to truly 'unlock' Cincinnati," says Ian Borczon, president of Xavier's Innovation Society. "He hopes to encourage the audience to look into local communities, find the hidden gems and then bring them to light."
 
Walsh's talk will also focus on the side effects of urban expansion.

Additional speakers like Dr. Helen Farrell, a Harvard Medical School professor, will contribute to the discussion by examining mental illness and the stigma associated with it. Nate Pelletier, the current executive director of Joseph House for Homeless Veterans, will discuss ways in which individuals can more effectively find success after service. Sarah Thomas, another Xavier alum, will contribute with thoughts on how small businesses can be the engine to ignite growth and social change.
 
Also adding to the discussion will be Bob McEwan, an Executive in Residence at Xavier who hopes to encourage millennials to escape the stereotypes that deem them "technology-obsessed" and "unmotivated." In doing so, he wants to inspire a generation that has perhaps been unfairly overlooked.

The simple fact that TEDxXavierUniversity is entirely organized by college students only further supports McEwan's message.
 
In fact, Borczon and the Innovation Society settled on "hope" as a topic in response to the noticeably cynical attitude toward their generation that seems to proliferate in the media.
 
"It's nice to see 19- to 22-year-olds concerned about these global issues, and this provides us with an outlet," Borczon says. "There is definitely enough drive and passion here."
 
The event will take place 5-7:30 p.m. April 15 at the Kennedy Auditorium in Xavier's Conaton Learning Commons. Tickets are free for students and faculty and $25 for outside attendees and can be purchased here.