Ideas Worth Spreading

TEDxDetroit 2013 featured more than a dozen of the best and brightest minds sharing their passion, wisdom and innovations.

Our speaker roster balances left brain and right brain – academics, artists, inventors, entrepreneurs and innovators. Each speaker only has a short block of time to share their positive idea for the world. We find them inspiring. We hope you will too.

John Bacon

John U. Bacon is the author of six books on sports and business, most recently Fourth and Long: The Fight for the Soul of College Football, his third national bestseller.  He speaks nationwide, teaches at Northwestern and Michigan, where the students awarded him the Golden Apple for teaching, and provides weekly sports commentary for Michigan Radio.

Mary Lore of Managing Thought

Mary Lore is the award-winning author of Managing Thought, helping individuals and organizations think differently, powerfully, and achieve new levels of success. Mary guides and mentors leaders, educators, spiritual teachers, medical professionals, and executive and life coaches around the world.

Jackie Victor of Avalon International Breads

To those who think Detroit is closed for business, Avalon International Breads Owner Jackie Victor says think again. Jackie opened her organic bakery in Detroit’s Midtown in 1997, said she’s seen a lot of changes in the city during the past 17 years and more changes are still to come.

Kennedie King of InsideOut Literary Arts Project

Poetry found Kennedie King by means of an English assignment in the 8th grade. She has been writing ever since. Kennedie attends Chippewa Valley High school, where is dually enrolled at Macomb Community College. After graduation in 2015, she plans to go on to study Law and Business.

Music from George Morris & The Gypsy Chorus

George Morris was born to write and perform music. Along with the bassist Aaron Nelson, keyboardist Helena Kirby and drummer Zach Pliska, George Morris is now ready to continue his musical quest to find the perfect musical soundtrack for our human experience.

Matthew Naimi of Recycle Here

Every week, 800+ people pile up their cars with cardboard, bottles, plastic and paper bags, newspapers and books and drive them to Recycle Here where they are met with brightly colored street art, great music, and even a community board where they can share their hopes and dreams for Detroit.

John Capp of GM

John’s ongoing mission is to make the roads as safe as possible. As the strategic lead for active safety, driver assistance and automated driving technologies, John is a motivating force behind the research and development of “Super Cruise,” Cadillac’s semi-automated driving system.

Ishita Gupta of Fear.less Magazine

Ishita is the founder of Fear.less, a digital magazine featuring best-known names in business on how to live without fear. She was featured in Seth Godin’s book Linchpin: Are You Indispensable? and speaks at conferences around the U.S. on entrepreneurship.